rocksteady instrumental ~ Jamaica 1968

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Roland Alphonso - mid-60s

Roland Alphonso's beautiful sax playing really shines here. Backed by the Beverley's All Stars, 'Dreamland' was written by him. Recorded in Kingston, and pressed on Leslie Kong's Beverley's label, it also was pressed the same year on the UK's Pyramid label.

Many white label "pre-release" 45s out of Jamaica were pressed, given out, or sold with minimal information on the labels. At the same time, some were legitimate, promo, pre-releases that were simply given out before being pressed officially with full colored designs, logos, and musical information to be sold to the general public.
The flip side of this: '54-46 (That's My Number)' by Toots and the Maytals (also first recorded the same year).

Stock Beverley's 45 from 1968 .

ska / early rocksteady - Jamaica 1963

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Lord Creator (Kentrick Patrick) somewhere in Jamaica, early 60s

Rolando Alphonso 1931 ~ 1998

Compared to much music that was popular in Europe and the US during the time, I'm always amazed by the unique sounds that came out of Jamaica in the late 1950s.

Rolando Alphonso really put his own signature style of sax playing on much of the Ska and Rocksteady music that would develop later on. One can hear Mento, American Jazz, and R&B influences, but still a musical sound that was very new and all its' own for the time.

This 1958-59 recording with Clue J and the Blues Blasters, originally was pressed in Jamaica on the 'Worldisc' record label in 1959.
Though the same recording, this 'Studio One' label press is probably the second or third mid-60s press out of Jamaica.
An instrumental shuffler, 'Proof Rum' is early Ska at it's finest.