DREADER LOCKS * LEE PERRY & JUNIOR BYLES * ORCHID * JA

As it is a Lee Perry toast over Junior Byles biggest hit, Curly Locks, recorded at the Black Ark, this should really be credited to Lee Perry & Junior Byles. Junior Byles (Kerrie Byles Jr.) a.k.a. King Chubby, was born in 1948 at Jubilee Hospital in Kingston, Jamaica. He grew up in Jonestown ghetto, and after leaving school he followed in his father's footsteps and  worked as a mechanic. Some time in 1967, he formed the vocal group named the Versatiles, the  details of other members are a bit sketchy, but it is believed that Louie Davis was amongst them.  They made their first recordings that same year for Joel Gibson's Amalgamated label. It was Junior Byles first opportunity to work with Lee Perry, as the tracks Just Can't Win, The time Has Come and Trust The Book, were co produced by him, with musical supplied by Lynn Taitt & the Jets. Byles is said to be a fierce and defiant Rastafarian fundamentalist with a personality described by his contemporaries as profoundly humble. Perry and Junior worked together between 1968 and 1974, issuing such memorable titles as: Curly Locks (the first cut to the above) Rasta No Pickpocket, Place Called Africa, Beat Down Babylon, Cutting Razor and The Long Way.

"Yes, I've been fightin' terrible struggles through creation. At times, I walk barefoot. At times, you only see me with a rod and a bundle of fire beside me. Sometimes I live in the hills. Sometimes, I go away. Sometimes the only t'ing that I have to satisfy my soul is lightning and thunder and the sun that shine to remind me that there is still hope for humanity." Junior Byles


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