Ken Boothe

Ken Boothe

Genres: reggae, rocksteady, roots reggae, jamaica, roots

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About Ken Boothe

Kenneth George Boothe O.D., also known as "Mr. Rock Steady", was born March 22nd, 1948 in Kingston, Jamaica. He's achieved much international success due to his talent in both singing and songwriting, remaining a consistent hitmaker locally and internationally during both the reggae and rocksteady eras of Jamaican sound. Boothe began his musical career in the early sixties, inspired by the musical talent he was surrounded by in his family. He collaborated with with Stranger Cole to form the duo Stranger & Ken, releasing titles including 'World's Fair', 'Hush', 'Artibella' and 'All Your Friends' during 1963-65. Thereafter he released a series of hits on Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's Studio One Label. When the rocksteady rhythm began to evolve during 1966, Boothe recorded 'Feel Good'. In 1968 at the age of 17, Ken Boothe released his first album "Mr. Rock Steady", which included numerous hits such as "The Girl I Left Behind", "When I Fall In Love", "I Don't Want to See You Cry", "Home, Home, Home", and "Puppet On A String", which has been critically acclaimed as one of his best recordings. He continued recording with Dodd until 1970, releasing some of his best and biggest local hits. He also made records for other producers at the same time, including Sonia Pottinger's Gayfeet label, for which he recorded the local hits "Say You" and "Lady With the Starlight" in 1968. In 1971 he recorded his hit song "Freedom Street", co-written with long time collaborator B.B. Seaton, on Leslie Kong's Beverley's label. During the early seventies he freelanced for various producers, including Bunny Lee, B.B. Seaton, Keith Hudson, Randy's, Phil Pratt, and Niney the Observer. In 1974, he recorded the international number one hits "Everything I Own", followed by "Crying Over You" for producer Lloyd Charmers. In 1995, Ken re-recorded his first solo hit 'The Train Is Coming' with DJ Shaggy, which was released on Shaggy's platinum, Grammy winning BOMBASTIC album. The song also was featured on the sound track for the movie Money Train, starring Wesley Snipes and Woody Harrelson. Ken Boothe has so far released a total of twenty-four albums, including the classic gospel 'D00R 2 DOOR', the traditional 'ACCLAIMED', and the collection, 'CRYING OVER YOU': a 23 track retrospective of Ken Boothe's career from 1963~74 recordings from various studios. In 2003, Boothe was awarded the Order of Distinction by the Jamaican government for his contributions to music. Boothe's official Web site is at www.kenboothemusic.com

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