The Big Reggae Haul

The haul

My wife had a huge surprise for me when she came home from work on Friday. She had a stack of 41 records with her. She found them at the Goodwill in Punta Gorda, Florida. The records were mostly reggae records, there were a few soca and calypso records, some disco records completed the haul. I was so excited seeing the records that upon my wife's announcement that there were a lot more we got into our car and drove back north to Punta Gorda. I ammassed another thirty records to complete the haul, and still left behind enough crumbs for someone else to get excited too. I picked out two records from the haul to share here. The one with my favorite sleeve, and the one with favorite (so far) song. First the sleeve: It's not specific to the maxi single inside but it's rather a label advertisement. The label is simply called Joe Gibbs, after its producer. The record inside is a tune written by Joe Gibbs (Gibson) together with Alton Ellis called Girl I've Gatta Date. It is performed by Dennis Brown. The backside, as is the case with most of the maxi singles from the haul, is an instrumental version by Joe Gibbs with his band The Professionals. I almost like the instrumental version better but share the vocal one here because it's has a bit more variation. 

Joe Gibbs 45rpm Disco Single
Dennis Brown – Girl I've Gatta Date
Joe Gibbs Music Inc. 1978, Made in Jamaica

My favorite song so far (I've not nearly played all 71 records) is Woman Come by the singer Marguerita from an LP called More Intensified! Original Ska 1963-67. It is a remarkable track in more than one way. First of all there aren't that many recordings of a female singer in the mid sixties ska era in Jamaica. But what's really history is that Marguerita was later (in 1965) murdered by her long time boyfriend, the famous trombone player of the Skatalites, Don Drummond. They are heard together on this recording. Marguerita is Anita 'Marguerita' Mahfood, an exotic rhumba dancer and singer.

More Intensified! Original Ska 1963-67, Vol. 2

various artists, Mango Records, MLSP 9597
Island Records, made in New York, 1980