Ex-Sex Pistol, Indie 103 and "Mr. Rock Steady"

Many Angelenos were disappointed recently when, without warning, the radio station Indie 103 closed up shop and moved onto the Internet. i must admit, i was always suspicious of the station because of its early links to clear channel, and i'm more a kcrw kind of guy anyway.

but i always enjoyed "jonesy's jukebox," the show by former sex pistols guitarist steve jones. (the huge amount of attention given to johnny rotten and sid vicious had led to jones, one of the main architects of the punk guitar style, being an undersung figure, though that has certainly changed of late.)

Here is a fine piece by my old LAT colleague geoff boucher on the station, jonesy and his next chapter.

part of my debt to jones comes from him turning me on to ken boothe. (jamaican music was of course almost the only kind of musical history that punks were allowed to admit to liking. the clash changed this a bit with london calling.) he spun "it it because i'm black" one day while i was driving around and i was delighted to realize there was a major rocksteady/reggea singer whose music i did not know, with a voice almost as sweet as the heavenly alton ellis.

Here's the Boothe song, which i take it from the lovely imagery was a B-side of his cover of Marvin Gaye's "let's get it on." and here's "everything i own," a number one hit in the UK in 1974 and the title track to a very fine 2-cd collection on trojan.

Photo credit xx and Flickr user 16