The
ITALS
Keith Porter
Long
before the Itals were a spark in their
producer's eye, Keith Porter recorded his
first hit single, "Hitey Titey",
with the Westmorelites on the Studio One
label in 1967. Around 1969, Keith became
lead singer for a band named Soul Hermit,
backed by Eugene Gray and Wignal Henry
on guitars, and Reginald Seewell and Nash
on base and drums. They played in numerous
entertainment sectors of Jamaica until
Owen Sinclair put together a new band in
1971. Called Future Generation, the band
was composed of Dalton James and Roy Hilton
on drums, Devon Henry on keyboards, Eugene
Gray, guitar, Scott on sax, and Keith on
vocals. They performed all over Jamaica
for X amount of years, singing all styles
of music, American R&B and love songs
and native Jamaican songs.
Tiring
of the club scene around 1975, Keith ran
into Ronnie Davis on Orange Street in Kingston
and asked him who was auditioning. Ronnie
gave him a cassette with a rhythm he'd
just had a hit on. "I was so happy
with that rhythm I didn't look any further," says
Keith. "In less than a week I had
written Ina Disa Time and came back to
Kingston to record it for Lloyd Campbell's
SpiderMan label. Lloyd felt it needed some
harmonies with my lead, so Ronnie and I
both added harmony parts. There was no
intention of forming a group called the
Itals; the record first came out as Keith
Porter. After the song was on its way to
becoming a hit in Jamaica, we all went
out to do some promotion. Lloyd, Ronnie,
myself and Brian Thomas of RJR were sitting
out back in the cantina, when Brian said
`why not call them the Itals', because
now there was more than one person singing.
Everyone liked that name. It sounded good,
so all of a sudden, Itals was a group.
It was never intentional. I've always wondered
if the name was the result of Brian noticing
how strict I was about the food I ate,
strictly Ital."
Campbell
quickly repressed the record as `the Itals'
to meet demand. Today the song remains
the Itals' signature tune, and has been
described by Keith Richards of the Rolling
Stones as "the perfect reggae track".
It is included on the Rolling Stones' Artist
Choice cd, released in 2003, available
through Starbucks Coffee from Hear Music,
a division of EMI, and in selected major
chains.
The
success of "Ina Disa Time" saw
the group return to the studio with the
addition of Lloyd Ricketts singing a third
harmony part on a series of superb recordings
for the SpiderMan label. Tunes like "Don't
Wake The Lion," "Brutal," and "Temptation" followed
on 7" release in Jamaica and New York
in '77 and `78, establishing the Itals
among the best Jamaican singers and songwriters.
The Itals were twice finalists in the Jamaica
Festival Song Competition, and their 1981
tune, "Jamaican Style," earned
them a place at Reggae Sunsplash that year.
1982 saw the release of the first Itals'
album, "Brutal Out Deh" on Nighthawk
Records. The Itals toured the US and Canada
backed by the Roots Radics. Their second
album, "Give Me Power," was released
to critical acclaim and hit #1 on CMJ's
Reggae Route chart. In 1985, Pollstar Magazine
placed them in the top 100 artists of the
year.
Their
third album, "Early Recordings," gathers
together all the Itals' early singles and
several rare pre-Itals tracks for a collector's
feast from Nighthawk. The Itals' fourth
recording, "Rasta Philosophy," won
a Grammy nomination for best reggae album
in 1987, followed by "Cool And Dread." Next
came the Rhythm Safari album "Easy
to Catch", followed by "Modern
Age" on Ras Records, and continued
touring throughout the U.S., Canada and
Europe.
Over the years, the Itals have performed countless
shows worldwide. Although the background harmonies
sometimes change, they always sound as sweet
as ever, backing the original Itals lead vocalist,
Keith Porter. Now, with the release of "Mi
Livity," Mr. Porter steps a little further
out front and demonstrates why good reggae
music allows no labels or limitations.
http://www.myspace.com/theitals
