niney the observer: channel one presents-100 tons of dub

The mighty Channel One Studios, Kingston, Jamaica, has its place set in reggae's history. Its distinctive sound the studio created on opening its doors in 1972 to its closure in the early 1980s made it the producers, singers, and musicians studio of choice during this furtive period. Achieving that vibe and clarity, separated it from the other Kingston establishments. Run by the Hookim Family's four sons, Jo Jo the eldest followed by Paulie, Ernest and Kenneth. Their father originally came from China and married a Chinese Jamaican lady and settled in the St Andrews district before moving to Kingston Town itself. The family business was built on jukeboxes and one-armed bandit machines in and around Kingston. A lucrative venture until the gaming laws changed in 1970, outlawing the gaming machines. It was decided to open a studio to make the music to supply their already established Jukebox enterprise. The four brothers opened Channel One Recording Studios in 1972. Initially, the purpose of the studio was for the brothers use only, but this would soon change. Jo Jo would take over the production duties after the initial hiring of Syd Bucknor a producer who had worked closely with Coxonne Dodd's Studio 1 stable. The first release on the Channel One label would be "Don't Give Up The Fight" by Stranger Cole and Gladstone "Gladdy" Anderson. 1977 saw Jo Jo extending his stays in New York to a semipermanent status, returning mainly to oversee recording sessions and then taking the results back to America for worldwide distribution. His brother Paulie senseless killing in that year also added to Jo Jo's decision to spend more time with his Hit Bound Manufacturing set up in New York. The Channel One studio would be upgraded in 1979 to sixteen tracks and although Jo Jo and Ernest still covered the mixing and engineering duties Kenneth would now supervise sessions. An often untold part of Channel One's history is the involvement of producer, Niney The Observer. The mid to late 1970s were heavy times both musically and politically and Maxfield Avenue was in the heart of this crossfire. Niney's fearlessness seen him over running and in many cases running the all-night sessions with his trusted set of musicians loosely called The Soul Syndicate. Jamaican Recordings have selected a bunch of material from Niney's vaults for this release. Some great unreleased rhythms and some different cuts to some tracks you might already know.