Q: Some stories have him as a mentally unstable person, I suppose this contributed to... A: Well, he wasn't no crazy man, he was no crazy man. He just had a lot of pressure, a lot of... like boxing here. His producers push him around, dogged him around and cheat him a lot. Some of them is a mess, man. Some of these men are wicked, man. I say it like that. It's like they boost one up here, having a competition. Well, it may not have been a hundred per cent a cause of Slim Smith's death, but it's a part of it, by not paying the man what he's due, his money. Like they do to me, like they do to Delroy Wilson or other artists looking around them, and just buy a lickle food, buy a drink and promise you, promise you - sweet talk. And you drive around the street and ley, ley, ley! When time come for money, you can't find them, man. Q: After the Soul Boys broke up, you had a break to '72 or thereabouts, and then you met up with Phil Pratt - before Prince Tony. A: Yeah, about '72. Yeah, it was Phil Pratt too, you remember very well. Q: In the fall of '73. A: Yes, Phil Pratt. He was a good man. Phil Pratt was a very... that's how I met this guy Al Campbell, Al Campbell was with Phil Pratt too. Yes, Phil Pratt was a very good man, honest man. He was not a rich producer, but he was honest. Whatever he's got, he shares it with the singers, he makes sure things are taken care of. Phil Pratt was a very good man. Hey, I almost forget certain things and you can point them to me now and I could... Phil Pratt was on... what street-name was it again...? Prince Street or whatever street, I forget what street he was on. But then he had a little shop down by the bus terminal, I forget where that was again too. He was a real good man.

Phil Pratt

Q: You did 'Diana' and 'Sweet Wanton' for him. A: Yes! Oh, my God! 'Sweet Wanton'... Q: And 'Where Must I Go', almost forgot. These are the ones for Pratt. A: Yes (sings): 'Where must I go, if there's no place I'd know...'. Bwoy, I don't got that song, I forget the song. And 'Sweet Wanton' was a point I read in a book, oh gosh... Yes, quote those songs for me, they come back to me so long ago. Q: Only heard 'Wanton'. A: Yeah, 'Sweet Wanton'. What's the name of the other two? Q: 'Diana' and 'Where Must I Go'. A: Oh, 'Diana' was a Paul Anka. Well, yes. Q: But Phil Pratt was just a pass-through, you didn't stay long? A: Not stay too long with Phil Pratt, I move on to... As a matter of fact, before Coxson I was at King Edwards, he was a sound system man. They're all sound man, yunno. King Edwards - it was the King, the Duke and the Sir. It was a King, a Duke and a Sir back in the sixties. But I didn't do no record for the King, I was just around the sound, goes with the sound and, y'know, hang with the sound system. OK, so after Phil Pratt now comes Bunny Lee, get involved there. Q: You did 'Dear Dawn' for Bunny. A: 'Dear Dawn', yeah. (Sings) 'Dawn, Dawn is your name...'. Oh boy.

Q: And also 'Don't Cry'. A: Eh? 'Don't Cry', yeah that's just a edition of Ken Boothe. 'Don't Cry', yeah. But 'Dawn', the song 'Dawn' was a beautiful song too. It was a teenage girlfriend I made the song of, 'Dawn, you're my morning, you're like a brand new day, open up your window and let the sunshine in today...' - beautiful love song. I'm gonna write one about my present wife too, it's gonna call 'Gale' (chuckles). Anyway, then comes Prince Tony, Slipe Road. Q: This was November '73 to be more specific. A: Yes sir, exactly! You've got everything... you're a policeman, you've got everything registered (laughs)! Q: (Laughs) No, you told Carl Gayle back in the day. A: Oh, God! OK, Prince Tony, he reads off like this now: I was at home one day, right, and I was living at Waltham Park Road, 32 ½ Bowens Road off Waltham Park Road. And so I was going for a walk, so I went to Cross Roads passing back where his shop was, and someone told me that's Prince Tony, a big producer, and so forth and so fast, go by there and get myself acquainted. I stop and tell him who I am and what I've done before and all that, and he say well, "Yeah man, keep in touch", y'know. Q: He was just up and coming at that time with Winston Scotland and Keith Poppin and I believe the Chosen Few. A: Yes, perfect! Q: 'Buttercup' was for example a big early hit for Prince Tony. A: Yeah man (laughs)! 'Buttercup' deh (laughs)! Oh gosh, right time exactly, exactly the right time. Beca' I did my first tune for him in 1974, you gotta have... Oh Peter, you're good, because you have perfect timing, man. Q: (Laughs) Well, I have a singles discography to thank for certain data, Roots Knotty Roots, that helps. So it's hardly me. A: (Laughs) Anyway, so after I get acquainted with him and going on, one day I was down at my house and I got a phonecall, I answered and he said to me: "Hey man, I want yu come version a song for me". The song was called 'Curly Locks' that Junior Byles did. Q: A Lee Perry classic. A: My version was 'Let Locks Grow', but the original version was 'Curly Locks' by Junior Byles (sings the chorus). Now I say: 'Now you learned what curly locks is, what can you do more than love it, appreciate it...', right.

Q: That was Prince Tony's style, to ride on someone, the bandwagon thing, a practice that became pretty common around that time but he was one of the foremost 'versionists'. How did you feel about that idea at the time? A: Well, I'm not accustomed to that, but I needed to make some money at the time too, and I can write, I'm a good writer, bwoy I'm excellent writer. So with the tune now - 'boom!' I went to the shop immediately, you see he was playing the record over and over and over, then he said: "Listen, you know what, take a copy home". I took a copy home, my mother just bought our first stereo, I can remember that, and I went home and I played the song about ten times, man. The melody was easy for me, 'cause I've got a quick ear, but the words - I turned every word into my lyric. And I called, me say: "I'm ready now". "So you're ready, come up this Saturday here". I jump on the bus, 'cause at the time I was in Clarendon, no transportation, I jump on the bus, man. Went up there and I sing it to him, he say "Yeah, you're ready". Set up a time - 'boom!' Randy's. So he call Sly and Robbie (more likely Lloyd Parks on bass, the Skin Flesh & Bones) and all them guys, get in the studio, lay the riddim track, jump in and voice it, then he release it four days later. When that release, it killed Junior Byles' song! It jump up like a jet - 'boom!' The first time I've ever seen any of my songs sell so fast and it brought tears to my eyes, 'cause I'm very emotional. And I was in the shop one day, man, and a customer came in and say, "You got the 'Curly Locks' song?" And the lady say, "Yeah, we've got 'Curly Locks'", and she put a Junior Byles (sings): 'Curly locks, now that I'm a dreadlocks...'. He said, "No, no, no! Not that one, the other one, the new one!" And she put on: 'Now you've learned what curly locks is...'. He said, "That's the one!" And that song sell, man. In my face, I've never seen any of my songs sold in my face like that, 'cause that shop become my main shop. Because I've got a hit song from the shop, and then he brought in Big Youth now, and Big Youth come and rap on the riddim and call it 'House of Dreadlocks'. And that song BLOW up again! That's how I went to London, to England, in '74, with Big Youth and myself. We went to Germany a little bit, we spend in foreign travelling about a year, roughly. We spent most of our time in England, in a place called Westbury in Ladbroke Grove in London, England. And so that song blow up, blow up like a jet - 'boom!' Like a rocket, man. But when Big Youth did his version, when Big Youth come and rap on the song, I realised my money's been cut. Big Youth are getting more of the money. Because I will be waiting there for my money, and Big Youth ride upon his bike with a badman, they called him Claudie Massop - you must've heard about the man, Claudie Massop?

Q: Yes, a ghetto don, gunman. And now resting in the ground. A: Yeah, big gunman, and a politician badman. When he drive up there 'boom, boom, boom', I will be there waiting for Tony, Tony is back to me - soon come, I could hear the sound of money counted (imitates rustling paper bills), Big Youth a pass me and say, "Wha' appen singer?", y'know, with his mouth full of pearls. I say, "Is Tony me a come get some money from, yunno". Him say, "Bwoy! Cut me a lickle change, bwai". Them start cuss Tony now, Tony a pea-claat, a pussy-claat, y'know wha' I mean? And blah blah deh. When Tony a come out now, say "Bwoy, Barrington, Big Youth a come get all him money now", and stretch him hand 'uuuhhh'. Me say, "Tony, wha' appen with yu, man? I'm here waiting an hour fe my money, man". Is just when Big Youth come - 'cause he's scared of them guys, man, he's afraid of them kinda guys, them a badman, you understand me. But through me na fire no gun inna dem days deh, me is a humble lickle singer and me be nice, still rude but not as bad, y'know. Give me the respec' I deserve. Man, I hang out with him still, I like it, I love him, yunno. He take care of me, but not the way I respect. But he take care of me, he take good care of me. He makes sure I'm paid, money in me pocket, y'know, 'cause I need to help my mother build a house in Montego Bay. I start making money for me, beca' I did start version even Ernie Smith songs, he have me like a version artist, to version any song that I hear, or any song he hear. And he pay me for those songs, like Ernie Smith's 'Shaving Cream', them songs ('Bleaching Cream' was Barrington's 'reply' at the time). And then I do a lot of songs for him, and I got money from Tony. I am no (inaudible) in me. But in the first half, he squeezed it a little bit. But when me see that... as a matter of fact, he's the one that make my name, expose my name - that's internationally. Prince Tony, I give him that credit, y'know. He's the one that make Barrington Spence be known all over Europe an' t'ing, because the first album I did was released through him, via Trojan. I mean 'Speak Softly'. Q: 'Speak Softly', right. A: Yeah. Have you seen any copy of that over in Europe, Peter?

Q: It hasn't remained in print as far as I know, so I suppose it's a real collector's item by now. No, that one is hard to come by. A: My wife, I sing the songs to her early morning and night, I would like her to see me when I was at that age, that album caught me when I was young, y'know what I'm saying? A young, young boy, a young fellow. Anyway, I spent a lot of time with Prince Tony, I did a lot of songs for Prince Tony. Most of them songs, 'Jah Jah Train (Is Coming)'. Q: 'Children Don't You Cry'. A: 'Children Don't You Cry'. Q: Which wasn't picked for the album? A: No, it wasn't on the album. It was a big song too, 'Children Don't You Cry'. It did a lot. And I did a version of this song... Q: You had a hit with 'Darling Dry Your Eyes'. A: That is original too, yeah.

Q: That's on the album. A: That sell a lot too (sings the chorus). And the main song I did a version of that sell a few copies as well, is a group, an American song, it goes something like... Oh, 'Tears of a Clown' (sings): 'Laugh everyone of the clown though it's just...' - what's the song again? 'Laugh Just a Lickle'... (Sings): 'Laughin' just a little, living just a little ain't easy...' - that song, just some of it. I don't know if it's 'Living just a little, laughin' just a little' - that song, but that sell a few copies very well too, a lot of copies. Q: I think for purists it's so easy to judge an artist's credibility by what type of material he puts out, but as you said you gotta live too and make some money; it's the producer's choice according to how he knows the market, he's the one financing it. But what do you actually feel about recutting and reshaping a popular tune, as an artist, does it cheapen the music by practicing this 'method'? A: Yeah, you're right. No, at first I didn't feel no way about it, but after I see what it does to Junior Byles, I feel very bad about it. Because he got crazy right offa that, beca' he never made any record after that song, after 'Curly Locks' he never do any song. Because one day I was in the record store and I see Junior Byles pass there - craaazy, man! He wear a (inaudible) and flowers behind his ears and is walkin' up and down in front of Tony's store, 'cause he know the song was versioned from there. And I felt very bad about it, man, that the loss is mine. Q: That might be a part of it, but the most common version though is that he took the reports from the passing of His Majesty too hard and got a serious breakdown from that, and never really recovered. A: Is that what it is?

Ken Boothe

Junior Byles

Q: Yeah, I think so. But there is more sides to a story and this is far from all, naturally. A: But I've seen at the record store every day, man, he's just pacing the floor, up and down right by the record store, and I've seen that, man. I'd say it was part of his insanity. So the question asked how I feel about the versioning of other people's songs, riding the bandwagon: is not fair unless they consent - you understand me? It doesn't show that you've got no talent of your own, you understand, to ride your own lyric. So I done a countdown really, a hundred per cent I do not. But in the beginning I did the first version like that, then I haffe do Ken Boothe's songs over and all on the album and all that, but I consoled Ken Boothe about it, the songs of Ken Boothe. And Ken Boothe said OK - 'cause Ken Boothe is my mentor, he encouraged me to sing and continue. He said, "Barrington, don't stop, man. I don't feel no way they are trying to copy me. But go ahead, as time goes on you get your own style" - which I did! But when I started, Ken Boothe was my favourite artist, no guy could come tell me about no Bob Marley, is Ken Boothe 'cause I no see no man, no singer in Jamaica, that can pronounce the words with the effect that Ken Boothe has. 'Cause Ken Boothe forces like a - this piercing, and when he pronounces the words, the s's and the t's. He's the best I think Jamaica have seen where voice, culture and pronounciation is concerned. That's my opinion, Ken Boothe's. Q: Yeah, that phrasing he has is something else. A: Yes sir, Kenneth Boothe is one of Jamaica's best. Q: So there was no animosity there, that you patterned your style after his? A: No, he encouraged me, he encouraged me to go ahead. Because he told me that later on I'm gonna get my own style, and that's true. 'Cause right now for me to sing a Ken Boothe song I've got to put on a lot of effort, put in a lot of effort to get it back, because I've changed from that years ago. I have my own style now, my own pattern, my own slurs, my own range. It's completely different right now, and I'm glad I did it, because his songs push me far in my career - his melodies, not his words. When I'm doing a song over, I change all the words, the melody will remain, but the words I'll change them. It may be a part of it, yes, but not totally, not all the way. So I'm glad for Ken Boothe where my career is concerned and my ability of singin' and writing right now, 'cause he inspired me a lot with his stage appearances, his singin' ability and his counseling towards me, and his motivation helps me to prolong and continue until this day. I'm still kickin' butt, and trust me, Peter, my album's gonna be hot! Yes, I'm workin' on it still, it's gonna be hot.

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Article: Peter I (Please do not reproduce without permission)