Jo Jo Bennett

Jo Jo Bennett

Jo Jo already had a big hit with the rock steady classic ‘The Lecture’ he had his own band as well The Fugitives. So he was well placed when the reggae era started.

Saxophonists, Tommy McCook, Roland Alphonso, Val Bennett and Karl Cannonball Bryan, needed a rival on the trumpet and they got one with Jo Jo.

This album - produced by Harry Mudie contains a really good recut of ‘The Lecture’ called ‘Lecture Me’ great tunes can and do get recut over and over again in reggae music - often by the same artist and its so good to hear this tune in a reggae style.

The big hit here and probably the one that inspired the album is ‘Leaving Rome’ the cut here as the strings - a magnificent tune - it’s a tune waiting for a film to be added to it!!! That’s how good it is. Harry Mudie’s productions skills in blending the strings with the trumpet of Jo Jo with a excellent rhythm are something else. It seems that the strings were actually added in Jamaica as well - which is unusual for the time. The whole album as got some great tunes that are of the same standard of ‘Rome’ even a soul instrumental doesn’t cut the vibes!!!