Boogie in My Bones: The Early Years 1957-1960

It is not without reason that during his lifetime Laurel Aitken acquired the mantles of The Godfather of Ska and The High Priest of Reggae, for he was true pioneer of the modern Jamaican music industry whose works helped shape the sound of Reggae. His breakthrough came in 1957 when, after making his name on the talent show circuit he recorded a series of hugely popular discs for pioneering producer, Dada Tuari. By the early sixties he was Jamaica's most popular artiste, recording in variety of styles from Calypso and Mento to the local Blues or Boogie Beat, an early form of Ska. In 1960, he relocated to the UK where over the next 45 years he continued to record for an array of labels including Blue Beat, Pama and Trojan, remaining a hugely popular figure on the European Ska scene up until his untimely death in 2005 following a heart attack.

'Boogie In My Bones' is a collecton of Laurel Aitken's early hits from 1957 - 1960. The tail end of the fifties proved a pivotal period in the history of Jamaican music. The indigenous Calypso-flavoured stylings of Mento gradually gave way to home-grown R&B, which in turn paved the way for the Ska sounds that were to dominate the early years of the following decade. And at the heart of each of these developments was Jamaica's first singing superstar: Laurel Aiken. Featuring all of Laurel's major Jamaican hits before his relocation to London in 1960, Boogie In My Bones highlights the Mento and raw R&B flavoured recordings that established him as the Island's number one performer.