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For a long time, I had no idea who The Folkes Brothers were but I knew every beat, every drum lick of their 1960s hit song, Oh Carolina. It was the song that once you heard it at a party, you knew two things: it was late (or early morning, depending on your point of view), and it was time to go home. I’m really not sure how it got that designation.
The Folkes Brothers, John, Mico and Junior, were a group that played mento – Jamaican folk music. Oh Carolina was written by John Folkes and produced by Prince Buster, the first hit record for him. Oh Carolina is regarded as pivotal in the development of ska, rocksteady and reggae music. Prior to the release of the song, Jamaican musicians copied Rhythm & Blues music from the U.S. Oh Carolina was the first to depart from what was the norm. By incorporating African drumming and chanting, done superbly by Count Ossie, a legendary Rastafari drummer, it created a new Jamaican sound.
In 1993, Oh Carolina was re-released by reggae singer, Shaggy. It goes without saying that I prefer the original version. After Shaggy’s version became an international hit, Folkes and Prince Buster went to court over its authorship – Folkes prevailed.
Take a listen to Oh Carolina.
Oh Carolina,
Oh Carolina honey darling,
Oh, honey, don’t you cry.
Oh I’m so lonely
Yes, I’m so lonely
Oh, I’m so lonely, Carolina.
Carolina, my darling,
Oh I wanna talk to you
Oh Carolina, my honey
You know I love only you.
Oh Carolina,
Tan bonita (so beautiful),
Come back and make things right.
Carolina, my darling,
Oh how I love you
Carolina, my honey,
You know I love only you
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15 Comments on "Soulful Sundays: The Folkes Brothers"
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Thanks, it’s been tough.. I’m trying to fix that part in my brain where I get play guitar AND sing at the same time.. haha.
http://www.mahoganyfolk.com
Now that you mention it, I realize I assumed that it’d be easy to do.
Hope you do.
Thanks, I’m on a songwriting journey currently myself and this is a little inspiration! If your ever looking to chat about some folk music I love to meet new people on my blog/forum!
http://www.mahoganyfolk.com
You’re welcome, Jeff. I’ll definitely stop by. Good luck on your songwriting journey.
Great walk down memory road… I heard Shaggy’s and saw his pretty funny video. Good to read about the original group.. Nice job Marcia. 😉
Thanks, Elizabeth. Shaggy’s is funny but nothing beats the original.
[…] reggae music. In the early 1960s, he backed The Folkes Brothers on their ground breaking hit, Oh Carolina. […]
Not heard of them before but the lyrics seem beautiful…
Would love to hear them.
Their name isn’t as easily recognizable as their music. Here’s a link to Oh Carolina – http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxgS4WVAWRQ
Thanks for the visit, Arti.
awwe- this song is super sweet.
It really is sweet and so simple.
I always like posts about music – my playlist always gets so dull, and I get a lot of suggestions from others. I don’t know a lot about music, so I look for recommendations where I can! 🙂
I hope you’ll add this to your playlist, Christy.
The Folkes Brothers? Never heard tale of them before. May have to look them up on YouTube. Music sure is something, how artists can mix it up so it sounds fresh again. I think I was a musician back yonder in my other life.
I wouldn’t be surprised, Totsy. You’re so multi-talented and prolific, I’m sure if you got involved in music you’d discover that latent talent.