Q: So what was the instant reaction from Harriott, hearing your sound?

A: Harriott liked what he heard! He said: "Come back!" (laughs). I think we set up like a rehearsal date and then we went back.

Q: Do you remember the songs you picked for that audition at Harriotts?

A: Yeah, I sang ´Tonight´. Those were our first recordings.

Q: Was that an original of yours?

A: Oh yeah, that was written by me, walking from my girlfriend's house to my house (laughs)!

Q: And what was the other songs?

A: The other songs we took was ´Goodbye Baby´, and I think we might have taken some American written songs that we kinda adopted, y´know. Or adapted, to rock steady.. But I do remember that we had our originals and that's what we recorded first.

Q: Harriott liked what you had, and suggested to come back next week or something?

A: Yeah, he said to come back whenever it was and he would listen more to all that we´ve got. We went back and...

Q: You had like some ten songs written and rehearsed already?

A: We had like five or six songs because I remember I said "alright, we´ve got to go and write some new ones now" (laughs), y´know, so.. It wasn´t that many, originals. But we had about five or six, so we did those and we did two or three of the American songs that we had liked. And from there on the next step was that he took us to Boris Gardiner. You remember him?

Q: Yes. Some is known about his work as bass player and arranger at the Black Ark in the 70s, as well as a bandleader with The Happening, but we´re not too familiar with his works in the 60s?

A: He was playing bass with a band called The Vikings. He was playing ´cuz he was the one that kinda put the music down on paper. We had like basic chords, y´know, ´Cos we was just learning then. I had like my basic G chord, G minor chord and that kind of stuff. He would organise it, make it.. It's not like we went in without anything, but when we went in he just formalised it, and make more sense of it. Then it was enough to go into the studio with.

Q: OK. So which studio was that?

A: I think we went to Federal.

Q: The Khouries?

A: The Khouries, yep!

Q: And the band Harriott used? I don´t know if it was either The Dynamites or The Crystalites (if there's a difference in line-up?) but it's one of those anyway.

A: He didn´t call it anything like that, at that time. It was a few guys from The Vikings. A pick-up band. I think Gladdy (Anderson) was there to play piano. So, he would get guys for the band, because he (Harriott) would emcee and sing for The Vikings. So he got some of the guys who played in his band, like he had got Lyn Taitt to play guitar on the song. I think Gladdy was playing keyboards.. or piano. So a few guys from his band, and a couple others, y´know, made a studio band.

Q: Can you remember how many songs you cut at that first recording session?

A: First time we did, I think, two - ´Tonight´ and.. what was the other one?

Q: Not ´Stop That Train´, was it?

A: No, no. That was the second session. We did two songs, ´Tonight´ was one but I can´t remember which the other one was...?

Q: ´Goodbye Baby´?

A: Maybe. Maybe so..

Q: ´Tonight´ was the first song by Keith & Tex then?

A: Yeah, that was the first song, ever (laughs).

Q: Exciting times I suppose? You both must have been pretty excited to say the least, like "what will happen with this, where will it go"?

A: Yeah (laughs)! Oh yeah, oh yeah. Oh man, look! At that time we were teenagers and we were just so happy to be singing and recording. Oh, man..

Q: That feeling, being on plastic..

A: Yeah! No! Not even that! Being heard on the radio!! Oh, my God!

Q: Which was RJR at the time?

A: Yeah, RJR. Rediffusion, and all that stuff. I called my cousin who lived in Montego Bay, ´cos I´m in Kingston, and I said "we´re gonna be on the radio so start listening!" (laughs)!

Q: "Watch out!"

A: Yeah, "watch out"! (laughs). "One of these days".. So, we were very, very excited. Money wasn´t anything. I would´ve sung at that time for nothing. I practically did!

Q: Who played your stuff on the station, at that time?

A: The deejays? No, no.. don´t remember who it was back then. But Derrick was in tune to those things. I admired the fact that for a young guy and a singer himself he was pretty in tune with the business and how to get it done. Because pretty soon thereafter we were able to go on and do concerts. So your name would´ve gotten out there, we had interviews for newspapers and we were on television. The Gleaner and the Star were the papers, and they used to have a column like every Friday where they featured different acts so we were one of those featured.

Q: So that single (´Tonight´) took off pretty quick then?

A: Yes. It made a name for us quickly. I mean, it was laid back rock steady and two guys singing "toniiight, tooonight", y´know (laughs).

Q: As a young singer, green and fresh standing in front of a recording mike, what was that like?

A: Yeah, I didn´t think I was nervous. I was a "virgin", you know what I mean? And so I had to be taught. Had to be told, y´know: "step back from the mike". You know: "when you´re singing, you can´t shout!" (laughs). One time you´re quiet and one time you go "boom!", y´know? You had to go to the high note gradually and smoothly, those kind of things. I wasn´t scared, nah. But I was fresh, I was new.

Q: Who was engineer at Federal then?

A: Who that was...? Hard to remember those guys now, y´know.

Q: Then you went into doing stage shows at the Carib and Regal theaters, I guess?

A: Yeah, Regal and the Carib, Christmas morning concerts, y´know? (laughs). Those were exciting times, man. All the young girls screaming! (laughs). Oh yeah, it was awesome! For a 17 year old guy all of a sudden being on stage with a bunch of chicks checking you out.

Q: Yeah, like "what's gonna happen next"?

A: (laughs) Yeah! "I like this!", y´know!

Q: Can you recall who backed you on these shows? It was the regular (studio) musicians, or?

A: That now.. During those times there were like show bands, I mean like Byron Lee (and the Dragonaries). We did shows with and for Byron Lee.

Q: Now, what was the difference and was it any remarkable difference between the studio crew and those show bands at the time?

A: Yeah, yeah. It was a totally different gig, too. The studio session... those guys are in charge, the musicians are in charge, y´know. I mean, they do this thing and they make the hits. So you´re more in a learning mood, you´re listening to them. You are picking up different things about each, you´re picking up who the leaders are and who´s got the "finger on the pulse". I mean, this guy Lyn Taitt.. oh man! I thought that guy was awesome! You know, I´ll never forget him because he make such an impression on me at a young age. So, it was a different gig. On the stage shows it was more like they would bring in bands to work who were regular performers together, not a pick-up thing. But, like... what was the name of the group, Virtues.. ? Let me see, Byron Lee, Vikings... All the bands from that time that were performing, they would be running the concert musically, if you will. So, we go rehearse wherever they rehearse that for you, and when they got to the stage so they tell you when you´re going on, "you´re number four!", y´know. And things like that.

Q: So roughly, how many songs did you do on these shows? Suppose you didn´t get to do that many songs on such a huge bill of singers and groups?

A: Exactly, yeah, yeah. We do two or three songs, y´know. Go out there and do your little routine, do your two or three songs and..

Q: What did you practice for the visual aspect of it, choreographed some moves, dance steps?

A: Yeah, we did some dance steps and so..

Q: I´ve never seen any live pic´s, what was the clothes like, your stage gear?

A: The clothes? I remember we had..

Q: He bought you some stage gear?

A: Yeah. Harriott used to travel to the States.We were so young and impressionable when you come to think of it now. But we never got paid, alright? We would get like.. uniforms. He got to Miami and picked up a few things. I remember we had a green sequint top and we wore white pants and white shoes. Awesome! Awesome at the time! (laughs). "Don´t even bother pay me, man! This is my payment", y´know? I didn´t say that, but I really didn´t care, that much, at the time.

Q: Not with all that excitement about it?

A: No, no! Initially, oh forget it, man! I was just so excited to be doing what I was doing. You know, he gave me that shirt, that top, and the pants to go with it. I was the happiest man alive! It changed soon after, but..(laughs). Initially, that's the way it was. I remember we had this bright orange nayroot type shirt - awesome! Back in those days, it was really nice. So those are the kind of uniforms we wore and we really, really had a good time.

Q: OK. So after all this live work with stage shows in Kingston, etc, it was time for the second session, when you did ´Stop That Train´ and those tracks?

A: We did ´Stop That Train´ then.

Q: That was originally a tune by The Spanishtonians - it was a ska tune, wasn´t it?

A: That's correct.

Q: Who were they, The Spanishtonians?

A: It was Winston, a girl and another guy. Winston Jones. How did this happen now..?

Q: Was that someone (Jones) that you knew from before? Was it a song Harriott picked for you?

A: No, no, no. It was me, actually. So, Winston had left for the States, and so while we were with Derrick - I think we would go for the second session, I asked the girl if we could use the song to record. She said "sure"!

Q: Was it their original, or a cover from somebody..?

A: It was an original. So I asked her for permission, and she said "yeah, go ahead". And so we did. It wasn´t her song! (laughs). I didn´t know that. It was Winstons, so later on we found out.

Q: And this is around ´67, or ´68?

A: ´68, yeah. So we did that, and we did probably a song like ´Tighten Up Your Guird´, a song that Tex had written. Peter, I´m not sure of the sequence there, but.. I have a scrapbook though, which I have kept from those times, so..