Hello Bovine Ska and Rocksteady Friends,

Back on October 6th, we lost the great Johnny Nash.  As Lily is a born and raised Houstonian, like Nash, he has always been a huge source of pride for her as his immense talents as both a singer and producer helped to push reggae onto the global stage.  After he scored a top five hit in 1965 with the soul cut, “Let’s Move and Groove Together,” Nash went to Jamaica with his manager, Danny Sims, and were introduced to Bob Marley and The Wailers.  Loving the new music that he heard, Nash signed The Wailers and started to release their music to the States on his new JAD Label.  Nash himself scored a massive hit with his rocksteady, “Hold Me Tight,” and that success paved the way for rocksteady and reggae in the U.S.  For our memorial, we will hear some of Nash’s big hits, their many Jamaican covers and some of Nash’s wonderful productions in rocksteady and reggae. Rest in peace Johnny XO Generoso and Lily

Hello Bovine Ska and Rocksteady Friends,

Last week we lost two legendary figures in Jamaican music as both Johnny Nash and Bunny Lee passed away. As both men were integral in bringing this music we all love to the world, we decided to honor them with separate programs. This week we looked back on the massive career of Bunny Lee, and as he was the King of Versions, we spent days listening to the riddims that Bunny’s productions made iconic and specially selected a precious few that we love for our tribute.  You’ll hear “The Beatitude” riddim done by The Uniques of course, as well as Dennis Alcapone and John Holt, and many versions of the “Bangarang” riddim, performed by Stranger Cole and Lester Sterling, but also Derrick Morgan, and  Barrington Spence, and many more.  We send our deepest respects to Bunny’s family and so many of his colleagues who loved him a great deal. Rest in power Mr. Lee XO Generoso and Lily

Hello Bovine Ska and Rocksteady Friends,

We hope that you are all doing well this fall so far. We began this week’s program with another rare ska gem from Toots and The Maytals as we will honor him every week for the remainder of the year. The cut, is a scorcher from 1963 that the Maytals cut for Coxsone Dodd on Rolando and Powie, called “Cheer Up!” Our mento set was a massive tribute to fruit and the double meaning that they could be used for in music. Lily selected some super obscure gems for this week’s reggae set that ended the first hour, including the Netfa’s 1975 recording “Love Is the Answer.” Our label spotlight this week is on producer Lloyd A Campbell’s small imprint, Eagle, which has some top tunes from Joy White, Freddie McKay, and Ronnie Davis among others. Stay strong friends XO Generoso and Lily

Hello Bovine Ska and Rocksteady Friends,

Firstly, thank you to everyone here and elsewhere online who sent us good thoughts on our Toots memorial last week. As we will continue to honor Toots throughout the rest of the year, we began our two sets of ska tonight with one from The Maytals from 1965 and Studio One that we know that you’ll enjoy, “My Destination.”   Our mento set this week, took you around the island of Jamaica by singing about Sligoville, Montego, and Solas Market. Our reggae set started with a two-song tribute to Ronald “Khalis” Bell, co-founder of Kool and The Gang, who died earlier this month. For our label spotlight this week, we played some of our favorite releases from Sonia Pottinger’s mid-70s imprint, Sun Plum, which features great reggae cuts from U-Roy, Owen Gray, Ansel Collins and many more. We send you wishes of good health and peace. XO Generoso and Lily