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Hopeton Lewis - Rock A Shacka / I Don't Want Trouble
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1966
¥1380 (US$13.30)
Those rare songs did not appear Hopeton Lewis’s classic Rocksteady album Take It Easy. ‘Rock A Shacka’ is truly a Rocksteady classic of all times. It’s a must item for all Rocksteady fans. With his dearest hope, he calmly sings ‘I don’t want no trouble now, no no no. I just can’t take troubles now, no no no. So let’s together in unity, let’s togther in prosperity’ backed by version accompanying heavy bass.
Hopeton Lewis - Cool Collie / This Poor Boy
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1966
¥1380 (US$13.30)
Originally released in 1966, 'Cool Collie' is sometimes considered as one of the first Rocksteady recordings. With hard hit paformance by the back band, Hepetone Lewis sings to free Ganja which is the one of the essential elements of Jamaican music tradition.B-side, Mr. Rocksteady performs a bitter love song in a minor key.
Hopeton Lewis - Run If You Are Afraid / Sounds And Pressure
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1967
¥1380 (US$13.30)
A rare previously unreleased Rocksteady by Federal’s star singer, Hopeton Lewis. This killer Rocksteady represents one of the traditional elements of Jamaica, as well as the Rude Boy themed warning which could be heard in the lyrics. These types of unreleased materials could only be dug out at such a profound label, Federal.
Hopeton Lewis - Run Down / Lynn Taitt, Jets - Napoleon Solo
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1966/ 1967
¥1380 (US$13.30)
The very first Merritone ska classic released under its project the Federal Ska! Featuring a classic Rocksteady tune from no other than Lynn Taitt on the flip. No one else but him should be qualified as the Mr. Rocksteay, Hopeton Lewis presents a rare early Ska! Reminding the good old days in Kingston with slow, nice and easy vibes. On the B-side, Lynn Taitt just proves again how tight and heavy the sound was at the Federal studio back then with this great piece of music.
Renegades - Knocking On My Door / Hopeton Lewis - Pick Yourself Up
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1966
¥1380 (US$13.30)
The Renegades consisted of Winston 'Pipe' Matthews, Lloyd 'Bread' McDonald and George 'Buddy' Haye and later became a group called the Wailing Souls. ‘Knocking On My Door’ is one of their earliest Rocksteady works and it was originally released in 1966. It is also one of the rarest records hardly ever found. The record features previously unreleased Ska vocal recording ' Pick Youreself Up' by Hopeton Lewis from the original master tape.
Hopeton Lewis - Happy Christmas / Lester Sterling, Lyn Taitt, Jets - Lester Sterling Special
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1967/ 1966
¥1380 (US$13.30)
A festive Christmas piece presented by the Federal ambassador, Hopeton Lewis, along with a previously unreleased cool Rocksteady instrumental. Hopeton Lewis, a.k.a. the Mr. Rocksteady celebrates the festive season with this happy piece. Flip is the Merritone trademarked, an elegant, yet respectable instrumental. As this has never seen the light of day, all the inst fans should have one in your collection.
Hopeton Lewis - Don't Cry / A De Pon Dem
Merritone / Dub Store Records JPN 1966
¥1380 (US$13.30)
Hopeton Lewis’ vocal matches perfectly with alto sax, which you hear backing ‘Don’t Cry’. In addition to this minor-coded love song, the flipside features another rough and tough Rocksteady hit.
Hopeton Lewis - Take It Easy With The Rock Steady Beat
¥2500 (US$24.09)
A fundamental album released in 1966 that determined the way Rocksteady was going to journey. In 1966, Rude Boys were at the peak of the fame with their notorious behaviors, while Ska gradually started to slow down its tempo. This album paved the way for a newborn music, Rocksteady, with rather slower and tighter rhythm approach. This album should be considered as one of the ten most important albums in Reggae history. The descent from Ska, which had its derivation from Jazz or Rhythm and Blues, to Rocksteady, with its various potential elements which would be passed to the next decade of Reggae, has been allegedly created in this album with Trinidadian guitarist Lynn Taitt and his band The Jets as the backing band. Entitled “Take It Easy With The Rock Steady Beat!”, most of the tunes featured in this album were written for praising dancehall as if he’d have known this genre was going to rule the dance floors. Among the tunes in this album, “This Music Got Soul” was the coolest of all and called out the dawn of the Rocksteady era. This tune had a huge influence on the future developments of Reggae music.