Q: What else to expect other than selling it off when going into politics full-time?

A: He didn't sell the place. It was, y'know... them... Honestly, I think them jus' light the place to fire just to kinda wipe out certain bullshit, is a mafia set-up business, you understan' me? And then Byron Lee now, as a bandman and money-involved an' t'ing, he just buys out the place and turns it into Dynamic. That's where him and Neville Lee, him brother, half-brother come involved and Neville and him work the studio until, y'know, the early seventies blah blah blah until Neville decided to 'fuck off with him', and opened Sonic Sounds.

Q: For how long was Garnett engineer at Randy's?

A: Really between '69 to '70 he was there. And then after Bill left we brought in some lickle idiot from up a RJR, I cyaan remember whe him is now. Some tall, lenky guy from RJR, him worked there for about two days or three days, whatever. Neville him named, he never stayed there long, y'know. And then what happened was that we had bought a Hammond B3 organ, and it needed tuning, right. Now, you bring in somet'ing from foreign you have to modify it, so when we got Gallibraithe to modify it now, Gallibraithe brought in Errol as an apprentice. And it's so my father know about Errol, and a so Errol get the work. A so Errol get the work fe work at Randy's, as an apprentice, yunno (giggles). History! Ohh! Me a tell yu, man. And you see when me a see Errol, me seh, "Errol, but we a go school together", and Errol say, "Hold it down, man".

Q: Right. How did your father acquire the premises at 17 North Parade, what was in those buildings before you turned it into a shop, distribution outlet and a studio?

A: My father bought 17 North Parade - 17, not 18. 17 North Parade. He bought 17 North Parade in 1963 or '64. He bought the premises in 1964.

Q: So he had it for a while until the studio was established, setting up the new shop first.

A: 18 North Parade, the one beside it. Beside 17 now and Chancery Lane, that was between my father and my uncle, my late uncle Keith. Keith, that was living in the States at the time, came down to Jamaica to live in 1969. And that's how when we build the studio we just open it up as one building.

Q: What was the premises before you settled the company there, can you remember that?

A: What, 17 or 18?

Q: 17 North Parade, where the studio was.

A: You have to be more precise, because 17 was a ice-cream parlour, yunno. And we had rented just like a eight by four, right. But 18 North Parade now, that was a grainstore, that used to sell like all corn and peas and rice and all them kinda lickle t'ing deh. Flour. By the pound! You want a pound a corn, a pound a peas or... yu know wha' I mean? Is just a grain-place.

Q: What was the first independent, up-and-coming producer to use Randy's studio back in '69, that was Bunny Lee?

A: The first producer that I know that use the studio was...

Q: Bunny Lee, or Perry?

A: Bunny Lee? No man, the first one that rented the place was JAD - was Danny Sims, Arthur Jenkins and Johnny Nash. Those was the first outside the independent people them that rented the studio, and it's all because of Bill Garnett. Because, when West Indies Limited did burn down, WIRL, they were workin' down there, yunno. Because you must remember, y'know, the tune name 'Hold Me Tight'...

Q: Johnny Nash, yes, big hit.

A: Johnny Nash tune deh, a down deh dem record, yunno. Down a Federal, down a... yeah. So, after that when we decide to fly-open the gate, a dem people deh come there first. And then after that now we open the gate now for guys like Clancy Eccles, Phil Pratt, Bunny Lee, Scratch, Niney... well, I don't even think Niney had start at the studio yet dem time. But a dem man deh used to rent the studio.

Q: The usual suspects of the time.

A: Yeah. I can't remember exactly which one a dem, must've been either Perry or Bunny. But it was a set of early guys dem, y'know. I know Clancy did use the studio early too. Oh! You know who used to use the studio too? Joe Gibbs. Yeah, for them tune deh named 'Dem A Laugh and a Ki Ki'.

Q: That's the Pioneers if I'm not too mistaken.

A: Pioneers? No, it wasn't Pioneers. It was Stranger Cole and... Reggie!

Q: 'The Reggae Boys'.

A: 'Reggie' Lewis, man. Alva. I think they called themselves...

Q: Reggae Boys (Glen Adams and Alva Lewis).

A: The Reggae Boys, man!! There you go (chuckles). Fuckin' hell 'bout Pioneers! (Sings) 'Them a laugh and a ki ki ki ki ki ki - kiiiii...'! Oh my God, what a history this is. My God, you're pluckin' my brain right, left and center.

Q: When did Gibbs set up his studio, this was around the same time?

A: A little after, lickle after that. Ca' you must remember, yunno, it was Federal, WIRL - that become Dynamic, then you have Treasure Isle, Studio One, Randy's... how much you got there now, six? Then you had RJR back in the fifties deh - seven. And then them other ones start spring up afterwards, Harry J, Channel One, Joe Gibbs. Ca' Joe Gibbs never really have no studio, in Duhaney Park, a lickle t'ing that, man.

Q: Plus Aquarius studio.

A: Aquarius? Oh gosh, man. Karl Pitterson waan give the hits from 'round deh so he he...

Q: Where's Karl now?

A: Karl deh a Florida. That was an old meat-shop, yunno, that was like a cold-house fe hang meat. And Karl used to tell me seh, "When me around deh a night-time all the piano a play, when me a look, nobody a play the piano". So me say, "Wha' appen Karl, it hauntin'?" Man say, "Ohh, duppy inna it, blood-claat, man!"

Q: From all accounts, Aquarius was never the most popular or frequently used studio in those days.

A: It had a very damp sound, to me. When Bunny Wailer was doing the 'Blackheart Man' LP 'round deh, man, I said to the man, "You should've recorded that album 'round at Randy's". You know, the sound... very quiet, it never had no sting.

Q: I know, but there's still a lot of good recordings coming from that place. What was Pablo like when you grew up? You felt he had potential musically from an early stage?

A: (Chuckles) Swaby... I tell you 'bout Swaby, man. Swaby was more than talent, Swaby just had a... he had a musical balance. That guy was moulded out of school, that guy was moulded out to record. When I first encountered with Swaby, yunno, 'cause me no call him 'Pablo' more. You know, I call him 'Pablo' because of business or... y'know? When me and him together, I don't call him Pablo, yu understan' me, we call each other by our own rightful name, yunno.

Q: So you called him Swaby and he called you simply Chin, or 'Chinny' (chuckles)?

A: Him no really call me Chin, him used to call me 'Chinno'. You know, 'Chin-O', and me used to call him 'Swab-O'. 'Chinno & Swabo', y'know. So anyway, how he got involved, y'know, we used to waste a lot of our lunchtime talkin' about music and rey rey rey. When I used to tell him, say, "Listen man, my father a build a studio, yunno". This is before the studio done build, we're talkin' from about '67, '68 - rock steady time now, yunno. Delano Stewart a lick a tune name... Wha' the big tune deh for Mrs Pottinger name again...? The man him have a raas tune deh... A wail! When me seh 'a wail', we go a dance, man, we a look all a girl fe dance with, yunno. 'That's Life'!

Q: Big music, great singer and sadly overlooked.

A: (Sings) 'That's liiife...'. Uph!! And 'Lady', 'Lady With Starlight' - Ken Boothe. Them deh ya a pepper time, yunno, Peter. Them deh time, if you don't have a t'ing lock down, yu nah say nutten, yunno (laughs)! We make sure seh every evening after we leave KC, yunno, you know which part we deh? Constant Spring Road, and look a girl from out a your 'Immaculet Conception' now. And you know the girl dem out a your Maculet the way dem dress, all the way down to dem knee, because sister no want no mini-skirts! (Laughter) You know? They don't want any mini-skirts, they just want decent girls. This was my girl a come out of... the minute she jump in a the car, man, oh gosh, man! That skirt tek off, man. Quick, quick! And we gone out a Hellshire Beach. You know, I have a lot of good memories with Horace Swaby.

Q: What was he like in those days?

A: He was beautiful, man. Beautiful, man, a beautiful guy, man, down to earth. He was very... he had a very soft side to him. When I say 'soft side', I mean...

Q: Introverted?

A: Yea. Very quiet. But we all had good times, all of us. We all had good times, Peter, ca' every afternoon after recording, you know which part we gather? Up a Red Hills Road. Yeah man, a place called Red Gal Ring.

Q: Close to Tit For Tat and similar clubs on that strip?

A: No man, Tit For Tat was down 'pon Red Hills level, me a talk Red Gal Ring which part Merritone (the Blake brothers) used to play. Now, you have Tit For Tat, you have Stables, you have Turntable, you had... whatever. It was like one a dem boulevard deh a California weh yu have different (giggles) entertainment. Whe yu know Tit For Tat? Tit For Tat used to have Skin Flesh & Bones. Yeah man, Charlie and Sly and Lloyd Parks, that was good days too, yunno. Oh gosh, man!

Q: Skin Flesh & Bones with the characteristic 'bump' sound.

A: Yes. The seventies, oh raas, man! But anyway, coming back to the Pablo, Pablo was a very good guy to work with.

Q: Was Tyrone hanging around the same time you did the stuff with Pablo?

A: Tyrone... yeah, Tyrone used to be in the choir, yunno, the Kingston College choir. But him kinda break away, him and... you know Harold Butler?

Q: Yes, the keyboard guy, brother to Leslie, another keyboard wiz.

A: But Tyrone kinda break away earlier, 'cause after Pablo left Tyrone kinda followed after. I think how Tyrone got involved, Tyrone... oh God! I don't know how he was related to Jimmy Radway - you know the one-foot brother deh?

Q: Fe Me Time?

A: Fe Me Time! You know dem label deh? You know the history behind that label? Fe Me Time was a guy named Jimmy Radway, was a politician, yunno.

Q: 'One-Foot Jimmy'.

A: One-Foot Jimmy, man! And according to him, he say Tyrone was some nephew of his, and he brought Tyrone and him play organ 'pon a Errol Dunkley tune, 'Black Cinderella'. And I saw Tyrone get the name 'Organ D' - 'D' as in 'Downie'! You see, all dem t'ing I used to be told, yunno. Ohh, bes' a believe that! Tyrone Downie play 'pon Fe Me Time, he play 'pon tune fe me too. Raas, I admire him. You know, he is a nice young lad, younger than us. When I say 'us' - beca' me an' Pablo the same age, I think Tyrone is about two or three years younger, Tyrone's now about 47 or 48. Right. But him used to be in the choir, him was one a Douglas Forrest bwoy dem (laughs)! Choir bwoy, singer bwoy, man. Sing 'pon Bishop Gibson album, 'In Memory of Bishop Gibson'.

Q: So when did you actually decide to try a thing behind the board? Was this something your father encouraged you to do, or a personal choice?

A: No. It was just my choice, and why I decided to go into it is because I decided that it's no other... there is nothing else I love more than music. I love music, I eat, sleep, enjoy music.

Q: What was the first attempts at production then? I've read about your schoolmate Dennis Wright being one of the first you tried to produce?

A: No man, my first recording was a tune named 'Young Love' (laughs). (Sings) 'Yoouung loove...' - instrumentation is the base, me is a man love instruments, yunno. Anything that I love as music, I try to create it with my own mind. 'Java' wasn't the first tune, no. 'Java' was a tune weh, y'know, it was Dennis Wright, yeah, we decide to do this tune rey rey rey. But 'Young Love' is a tune that I used to fantasize as a kid, y'know. I even wrote a tune named 'The Weeping Willow', never recorded it. But you see, during the sixties now all there was was Beatle tunes and all those... I can't even remember the names dem now, 'cause they come and go. But anyway, I think about this music and I fantasize about them, and I build around them. And whenever I do anything that I love, I don't try to do it the same way. I don't pattern it the same way, I make it different. You see when I record 'Too Late To Turn Back' by the Cornelius Brothers, when I recorded that tune I never made the musicians to listen to that song, yunno, I created that song from drum street, from the ghetto. I used a cheese-grater instead of a rhythm guitar (imitates that chopping sound on the song). I no want an electric guitar on that, I wanted somet'ing so neutral that it would make a man seh "Bumba-claat, a wha dat?!" Mek a man t'ink, mek a man wonder! Because those was the days of creativity - what's the sense of copyin' a song note-for-note, it nah doing any justice, do it? Might as well do the original run. Create somet'ing from the ghetto, create somet'ing from scratch. You understan' what I'm trying to say?

Q: Yes. You remember this deejay tune you did named'African Bread'? As 'Little Clive' (out on a recent Trojan compilation titled 'The Hudson Affair').

A: I did several deejay tunes, I did something for Keith Hudson, yunno. I did a couple of tunes for Keith. And I also did some stuff for 'Santic' (Leonard Chin).

Q: It's not that well-known, is it, that you did a few deejay pieces in those days? People know about the production skill, but that's about it.

A: No, no. It's just, you see... he he, there again yunno, it's all with the youthfulness we did the songs, because we're just trying to be creative. You know, just trying to be a vocalist when you were never meant to be a vocalist or you're trying to be an artist but lack the attitude. It's just all about experiment, it's the same thing when I produced the 'Ordinary Version' with Errol and Bingy Bunny, it's just something that we're trying out. And it worked, and we taped it. And after we listen to it we say, 'Hey, it's fantastic'. Everything in life is a trial; you don't try it, it don't work. But you gotta try, and because you have that time, you see, what one must understand also is that our studio time was unlimited, it wasn't something that we have to pay for by the clock. And I think that was a plus for me, because after I left Jamaica 1978, all of that died. Say if I walk into a studio now, if I have to do somet'ing, y'know, whether a man say "It's eighty dollars now, hundred dollars now" - you don't know what you're doing (laughs)! You understan' me?