Studio One Radio Show presents two rare performances recorded for Studio One by the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation and presented by Winston “The Whip” Williams during the late seventies.
Broadcasted on Saturday these shows were intended to showcase recent releases and to advertise the various Studio One locations and their products. The shows lasted half an hour and featured artists like Ken Boothe, The Heptones, and Sugar Minott who was the leading Studio One artist at the time. VP5PZ was Jamaica’s first radio station. Later Radio Jamaica and Re-Diffusion was formed in 1950 by British Rediffusion in collaboration with the Jamaican Government to replace VP5PZ. Started in the 1930’s as a one-man operation, by May 1940 VP5PZ/ZQI had begun operating daily with a small staff. RJR was known for its speakers hung from trees that allowed those without radios to hear; unfortunately the speakers didn’t turn off. RJR was the commercial station until 1956 when the JLP run government formed the Jamaica Broadcasting Corporation in competition and as a vehicle to disseminate its information.
Jamaican radio in the 1950’s played almost exclusively songs from either Britain or the United States. In 1953 one of the biggest songs in Jamaica was Patty Page’s “How Much Is That Doggy In The Window” and it remained a radio staple up until the early sixties. In 1959 95% of the records played on the radio were from outside the island but this was changing and by December 1960 around 30% of the songs were produced in Jamaica. The number one song on the hit parade of December 23, 1960 was the Studio One release of the Mellow Larks, “Time To Pray”. One big factor for change was the formation of the radio show “Teen Age Dance Party” by Sonny Bradshaw, broadcast six days a week from 4-5pm on JBC. This show revolutionized youth culture in Jamaica by allowing songs other than the foreign playlists to be played. So Jamaican music was being heard for the first time outside of the dances and one of the early records played was Laurel Aitken’s “Boogie In My Bones”. The inclusion of the “Hit Or Miss” segment allowed the kids to judge the latest releases. The shows theme song was American Ernie Freeman’s “Live It Up” known in Jamaica as “Beard Man Shuffle”. Another big radio show was the Australian produced “Portia Faces Life” which remained on air throughout the sixties, and who can forget Reverend Pronger’s Sunday morning show of eclectic albeit thoroughly obscure English hymns.
Jamaican radio in the early years was not supportive of the music made on the island. Literally most of the songs recorded never got any airplay whatsoever, and some were banned outright without a single spin. Therefore the prodigious output of Studio One material was, by necessity, created exclusively to be played at sound system dances. Most small producers could expect no airplay while a small number of songs from the major players like Federal, Treasure Isle, and Studio One would be played. Up until the 1970’s there were heated discussions about the amount of U.S. soul hits being played on the radio. It was in this climate that Studio One’s Clement Dodd as well as Duke Reid and Lee Perry, started purchasing time from the radio stations to play their material uninterrupted. The favored radio jock for Studio One was Winston Williams nicknamed “The Whip With The Solid Kick”.
Winston Williams went to Kingston College on North St graduating in 1958. He started working at Alcan in Mandeville leaving to join RJR in 1962. By 1963 he was with Carlos Malcolm as the MC during the band’s residency at the Sombrero Club and in its trips outside of Jamaica to Trinidad, Barbados and Puerto Rico. In 1967 he began working at Z.N.S FM in the Bahamas as the host of the popular “Music To Remember” show. He joined JBC in 1969 at the departure of Jeff Dixon, then the swingiest DJ on Jamaican radio. His slot was 2:30 to 6.00 during the weekdays known as the Winston Williams Show. In 1971 he hosted the show “Rolling Home” from 4.30 to 7pm that featured “news, views and interviews”. He won the “El Suzie Red Stripe Award” in 1972 as the best DJ as well as numerous other awards.
The first of the two Studio One Radio Shows was known as the “Sound Of Young Jamaica” and featured Winston Francis, The Boss, Jerry Jones, The Heptones, Ernest Ranglin, Horace Andy and Burning Spear. The second show, known as Soul Power and Sound, features Sugar Minott, Ken Boothe, Alton Ellis, The Heptones and Carlton & The Shoes.
Produced by Clement Dodd.
Executive Producer: Carol Dodd for Studio One.
Album supervision by Chris Wilson for Studio One.
Mastered by Toby Mountain at Northeastern Digital Recording. Southborough, Mass.
MC: Winston Williams.
Engineer: Donnie Grant.
Recorded at Studio One and the J.B.C Studios, South Odean Avenue. Kingston, Jamaica.
Best CD I have purchased in years. Thank you so much for this one.