Reggae's emergence on the world
stage came from his blueprint and nothing can erase
the fact that the first three pop/rhythm and blues
records produced in Jamaica were born in his camp.
In fact, it would be impossible to
pay Island Outpost's Chris Blackwell royalties for
helping to establish the global appeal that
complements reggae's name.
Since his hands turned the music into gold, freedom
fighters in Zimbabwe (formerly Rhodesia), South Africa
and Namibia have adopted the lyrics as a means of
empowerment, yet Blackwell, a multimillionaire who has
touched the lives of so many, is still as humble as
the days he scouted talents at what he terms
"music shows".
Reminiscing on those days, Blackwell
told The Sunday Gleaner that then the artistes with
noticeable potential were promoted by a frustrated
singer named Horace Forbes.
"There was a singer on one of the shows one
evening who sang like Brook Benton. His name was
Wilfred Edwards. I decided I definitely wanted to
record him if he wrote his own songs," Blackwell
said.
The rest is history.
Around the same time, Blackwell had
made his production debut with Laurel Aitken, whose
double-sided single Boogie in My Bones/ Little Sheila
went to number one on the charts.
"My second record was by Owen
Gray, Please Let Me Go, and that went to number two in
the charts," Blackwell said.
Of course success was in his veins,
equipping him with the ammunition to produce song
number three by Wilfred Edwards, tagged Your Eyes Are
Dreaming, which also went to the top of the charts.
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Source: Jamaican Gleaner
