Harry Zephaniah Johnson (6 July 1945 – 3 April 2013), known by the stage name Harry J, was a Jamaican reggae record producer.

Biography

Born in Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica, Johnson started to play music with the Virtues as a bass player before moving into management of the group.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p. 139 When the band split up he worked as an insurance salesman. He first appeared as a record producer in 1968, when he launched his own record label, "Harry J", by releasing The Beltones' local hit "No More Heartaches", one of the earliest reggae songs to be recorded. His agreement with

Coxsone Dodd Clement Seymour "Coxsone" Dodd (26 January 1932 – 4 May 2004) was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of ska and reggae in the 1950s, 1960s and beyond. He was nicknamed "Coxsone" at school due to his talent a ...

allowed him to use Studio One's facilities, where he produced the hit "Cuss Cuss" with singer Lloyd Robinson, which became one of the most covered riddims in Jamaica. Johnson also released music under a subsidiary label, Jaywax. In October 1969, he met success in the UK with " The Liquidator" (number 9 in the UK Singles Chart) recorded with his sessionband, The Harry J All Stars. (it was also a hit again in 1980, reaching number 42.)Harry J All-Stars
Chart Stats, retrieved 23 May 2010Harry J All-Stars And The Pioneers
Chart Stats, retrieved 23 May 2010 This single became one of the anthems of the emerging skinhead youth

subculture A subculture is a group of people within a culture that differentiates itself from the parent culture to which it belongs, often maintaining some of its founding principles. Subcultures develop their own norms and values regarding cultural, poli ...

; together with other instrumental hits released in the UK through his own subdivision "Harry J" on Trojan Records, on a

compilation album A compilation album comprises Album#Tracks, tracks, which may be previously released or unreleased, usually from several separate recordings by either one or several Performing arts#Performers, performers. If by one artist, then generally the tr ...

of the same name. In the beginning of the 1970s, he enjoyed another big success with the vocal duo Bob and Marcia with the song " Young, Gifted and Black". His productions also included Jamaican hits with DJs like Winston Blake or Scotty among others, and many dub versions.

Harry J Studio

Johnson is mainly known for his ''Harry J Studio'' where

Bob Marley & The Wailers Bob Marley and the Wailers (previously known as The Wailers, and prior to that The Wailing Rudeboys, The Wailing Wailers and The Teenagers) were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley (Robert ...

recorded some of their albums in the 1970s.Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 311-2 The studio was also a 'must stop' hangout of many British and other musicians including the

Rolling Stones The Rolling Stones are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1962. Active for six decades, they are one of the most popular and enduring bands of the album era, rock era. In the early 1960s, the Rolling Stones pioneered the g ...

, The Who, and

Grace Jones Grace Beverly Jones (born 19 May 1948) is a model, singer and actress. Born in Jamaica, she and her family moved to Syracuse, New York, when she was a teenager. Jones began her modelling career in New York state, then in Paris, working for ...

. In addition,

Chris Blackwell Christopher Percy Gordon Blackwell (born 22 June 1937) is an English businessman and former record producer, and the founder of Island Records, which has been called "one of Britain's great independent labels". According to the Rock and Roll ...

, founder of

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

, could be found hanging out in the sound room prior to moving to England in the early 1970s. In 1972, Harry Johnson sold his record shop and set up his own recording studio "Harry J", on 10 Roosevelt Avenue, Uptown Kingston, where he employed Sid Bucknor and later Sylvan Morris as resident recording engineer. Harry J Studio soon became one of the most famous Jamaican studios after having recorded several Bob Marley & The Wailers albums from 1973 to 1976 before the Tuff Gong era, such as '' Rastaman Vibration'' and '' Catch A Fire''. Johnson's deal with

led him to record artists such as Burning Spear and The Heptones. Throughout the 1970s and the 1980s, assisted by former Studio One sound engineer Sylvan Morris, he also recorded Ken Boothe,

Augustus Pablo Horace Swaby (21 June 1953 – 18 May 1999),Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 200-202 known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican roots reggae and dub record producer and a multi-instrumentalist, active f ...

, The Cables and the American pop singer, Johnny Nash, and produced albums by Zap Pow and

Sheila Hylton Sheila Hylton (born 1956) is a British reggae singer who spent most of her childhood in Kingston, Jamaica. She is best known for the singles "Breakfast in Bed" and "The Bed's Too Big Without You". Career Born in London in 1956, Hylton was s ...

. In 2000, after seven years of inactivity, Stephen Stewart who worked in the early years alongside Sylvan Morris, refurbished, re-equipped and reopened Harry J Studio. Since then under the management of Stewart the studio has seen the return of Burning Spear, Toots, Shaggy, Sly & Robbie, and newer projects of Shakira, Papa Sam/Kirk Franklyn, Luciano and Sizzla. The studio appeared in the film, '' Rockers''.

Personal life

Johnson died on 3 April 2013 after a long battle with diabetes. He was 67.

Discography

Harry J Allstars

* Harry J Allstars – '' The Liquidator'' – 1969 – Harry J/Trojan * Harry J Allstars – ''Liquidator: The Best Of The Harry J Allstars'' – 2003 – Trojan * Harry J Allstars – ''Dubbing At Harry J's 1972–1975'' – Jamaican Recordings

Compilations

* Various Artists – ''Reggae Movement'' – 1970 – Harry J/Trojan * Various Artists – ''What Am I To Do'' – 1970 – Harry J/Trojan * Various Artists – ''Reggay Roots'' – 1977 – Harry J * Various Artists – ''Computer'' – 1985 – Sunset * Various Artists – ''The Return Of the Liquidator: 30 Skinhead Classics 1968–1970'' – 1989 – Trojan – 2 CD

As a producer

* Sylvan Morris & Harry J – ''Cultural Dub'' – 1978 – Harry J * Sylvan Morris – ''Jah Jah Dub'' – Roosevelt * The Heptones – ''Book of Rules'' – 1973 – Jaywax * The Heptones – ''Cool Rasta'' – 1976 – Trojan * Leslie Butler – ''Ja-Gan'' – 1975 – Trojan * Zap Pow – ''Revolution'' – 1976 – Trojan * Lloyd Willis – ''Gits Plays Bob Marley's Greatest Hits'' – 1977 – Harry J * The Melodians – ''Sweet Sensation'' – 1977 – Harry J * Sheila Hilton – "Breakfast in Bed" – 1977– Harry J * Dennis Brown – ''So Long Rastafari'' – 1979 – Harry J

References

{{Authority control 1945 births 2013 deaths Deaths from diabetes Jamaican guitarists Male guitarists Jamaican people of Scottish descent Jamaican record producers Jamaican reggae musicians People from Westmoreland Parish Trojan Records artists