For me I can’t take the weight no more.
That’s how you felt, constantly arguing, disagreements one after the other.
It’s the weight too, man. It’s too hard to carry.
More like a burden than anything else.
Yeah man, because it’s all a burden, man. And it’s easier when you’re young, man. Me old brain, I can’t take it at all. Strain. After teachin’ them and they just… and they’re indisciplined too. Because some people drink a lot, I mean the heavy stuff. That and singin’ no work, ’cause when they (inaudible) it out, pure shit come out your mouth.
So you called it quits in ’77 and went solo now?
Bwoy, I tried too. Because a lot of people crying I tried to put it together about two times after that but it couldn’t work, like vibes.
After the ‘Party Time’ album?
Yeah. One guy did all the operation, the guy – because of alcoholism – and I told him him mustn’t drink anymore, him drink same way. I said to him, “OK, we gonna try this one more time. You have to promise me that you’re gonna stop, you cannot drink while you are workin’ with me. When we’re going onstage, doing shows, you can’t drink. You’ve got to stop that.” I cannot control the situation when they’ve got nothing to do, but I tried to bring it up to both that ‘don’t drink when you come around me’. When you come around me its work-time. That’s all I’m asking, if they could promise that they would give it a chance… “oh yeah, oh yeah”. First couple of times you see no drinkin’, but when you see the first beer start appear, and the one Guiness, but you know when you see its two its gone “auh auh”… Oh, fuck that, man! They come on stage all you pants zip down, and you’re so high you can’t sing, until you zip up. You’re way off key, ca’ you juice is tellin’ you to mock me. It must be (sighs).
Embarrassment for all in the end.
Yeah man! I don’t want to think of any mockery, man. Yeah. I don’t want that, I don’t need that. But me alone out there now, all I have to depend on is meself, man. If I do a bad t’ing its because of me, I can’t blame no-one else. And when I go out there on me own more time and ninety-nine percent of the time I get top reviews.
You’re in charge.
Exactly.
What was some your first solo recordings while still in the Heptones, like ‘Love Won’t Come Easy’ for (Augustus) Pablo?
And even while in the group at Studio One I did solo songs, like ‘Sea of Love’, like ‘Sweet Talkin”. I can’t remember – I do a few other songs, man. Even on ‘Night Food’ album, the song about ‘Mama Say’ – a solo song, all those voices there, apart from the girls, are mine. Yeah man. ‘Cool Rasta Cool’ – that’s all me, all a dem voices deh.
Where were the others at that time?
I (laughs)… somewhere, y’know. Yeah.
Who actually wrote that track of tracks by the way, the mighty ‘Book of Rules’?
Now, that’s a good one. When I left Canada, went down and meet these guys, right, we used to smoke up in Half Way Tree there, by a place called Ambrook Lane, yeah man, at a guy called Statius. When I went round there another guy, another Rastaman round there, came to Barry with this idea: ‘Isn’t it strange how princesses and…’?
‘… and kings’.
‘… and kings’, yeah. ‘In clown ragged capers in sawdust rings’. Just how he gave him the whole of that part, right, and then Barry put the melody that he had to that part there now and even keep singin’ that and couldn’t find nutten else. When I came I heard him with just that, y’know, meet all the guy who gave him the idea and all of that, I knew the man who he went to. So he was stuck on it, and I realise he liked it, so I got my guitar and sit down with him and we worked out chord structures to the whole thing, harmonies, y’know. It’s from some old folklore, it’s coming from some… yeah. So I helped with the arrangements and we all worked out the harmony stuff, the “baa ba baa ba” – Barry him came up with that too, the “baa ba baa ba baa”, so I just worked out the harmonies out with him, worked the chord structures, put the right chords. I chose these chords that lay there on the song, and I did it all structured out and got two verses and rey rey rey, y’know, put it all together. Went to the studio, I arranged the harmonies how we had it. Each man had his part, and went to the studio there, I played the bass on it again. And that’s one of the most unusual basslines in reggae music, you don’t think that?
I think the whole song itself is unusual, not just the bassline.
It’s unusual, it’s true. Everything about it, for real. It’s such a great song.
Yeah, it is a masterpiece in every true sense of the word.
Yeah. It is.
A true classic.
Yeah man.
That one came on the ‘Rockers’ soundtrack too.
Yeah, more than one. I think it came on more than one movie, I think so.
I’m pretty sure you didn’t get much in terms of compensation for that?
Not much. I wonder why too because all that… well, maybe it’s not been selling out (laughs)!