Ken Boothe - Grandma
Grandma / Dub (Tradition All Stars)
Cactus CT 84 (1976)
Ken Boothe's (born 1948 in Kingston, Jamaica) is known as "Mr Rocksteady" for his prominence during the musical period 1966-1974 and was a major idol for the to-be members of UB40. Boothe started by recording a version of Sandie Shaw's "Puppet on a String" in 1967. Later the same year, Boothe and Alton Ellis had a successful U.K. tour with the group The Soul Vendors.
Under new direction from record producer Lloyd Chalmers, the song "Everything I Own" surprisingly was Number One in the UK in 1974. The song, written by David Gates, was given a sympathetic light reggae feel and found instant favour in the West Indies and in the U.K.
Boothe seemed, at the time, to have the makings of an international, long-lasting, hit maker, certainly when compared to most of the other latter-day reggae acts. His smoother style gave him a wider appeal and his choice of songs also showed the breadth of his musical taste however he only had limited chart success in the UK.
This 45 was his only release on Cactus. The label, a subsidiary of Creole Records, found most of its success with music from the reggae genre in the mid 1970s releasing 45s from artists such as Rupie Edwards, I-Roy, Pluto, John Holt and Judge Dread.
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