Go To Kingston And Sing With The Silvertones In Our New Documentary

The Silvertones, a trio led by Keith Coley, worked on their music in a way that seems like it was written for a movie treatment: like a roving gang or dancers in Michael Jackson videos, they met other groups on the corners of Kingston streets, where they had primordial rap battles determining who could sing the best, who had the best harmonies, and which groups reigned supreme. It was on those very corners, singing some of the songs that would end up on their debut LP, Silver Bullets — this month’s Vinyl Me, Please Essentials Record of the Month — that Coley and the Silvertones got the attention of legendary producer Lee “Scratch” Perry, who eventually had the group cut Silver Bullets in a single night.

In May, we sent the folks at Yours Truly to Kingston to hang out with Coley as he showed them around his city, stopping to talk about the power of music to draw people together, and how roving vocal groups need to make a comeback in Jamaica. The act of hitting the streets and singing together is a lost art that Coley wishes he could bring back, so for the documentary, he tries to do just that.

You can watch the documentary below:

The Silvertones’ Silver Bullets is being newly reissued by Vinyl Me, Please as part of Trojan Records’ 50th anniversary celebration. The album — newly remastered from master tapes — is available for sign up over here.