Wirl Label [The Rocksteady Label]

WIRL (West Indie Records Limited) Recs. was founded and built up by the Jamaican politican Edward Philip George Seaga (born May 28, 1930 in Boston, Massachusetts). Until 1962 he produced several R&B, early Ska and ballad tunes. In 1962 his studios fell pray to a big fire. In the same year he was elected in the Western Kingston parliament. To concentrate on his political career, he asked his friend Byron Lee (born Byron Aloysius St. Elmo Lee, 27 June 1935, Christiana, Manchester, Jamaica, died 4 November 2008, Kingston, Jamaica) to rebuild his studios and help him out with music productions. Lee had a good connection to Seaga, because he and his band "The Dragonaires" always played in Uptown Clubs, distanced themselves from the ghetto milieu bands like "The Skatalites" were from. In 1964 the WIRL studios opened in a new shape, presenting one of the best equipments in Jamaica. In the same year Jamaicas cultural appointee Seaga sent Byron Lee and his Dragonaires as reprensantives to the New York worldfair, surrounded by musicans like Prince Buster, The Blues Busters and Millie. Climbing the carreer ladder higher and higher Seaga backed out of the music business more and more. In 1965 he   produced his last two Ska records with Sonny Blair. Byron Lee founded Lee Enterprises and was, besides  Ronnie Nasralla, man in charge at the WIRL studios. He rented his studios to other producers which hadn't an own studio or which wanted to try something new. For example Coxsone Dodd produced the Hiltonaires LP "Ska Motion in Ska-Lip-So" at WIRL or Kenneth Khori, owner of the Federal Studios produced there as well.





Ronnie Nasralla was joint owner and financier of the WIRL studios. He runned his own BMN label and produced the Maytals hit tunes 'Daddy', 'It's You' and 'Bam Bam Festival'. He helped out at some Blues Buster productions as well, for example 'How Sweet It Is'.

In 1962 Edward Seaga initiated the first 'Jamaica Independence Festival'. Four years later he invented the 'Popular Song Competition' as a mainact of this festival and 'coincidentally' the first winner was a WIRL production: 'Bam Bam Festival' by the Maytals. But it sould be the first and last time, that a WIRL production won this contest. The Maytals won another two times: 1969 with 'Sweet And Dandy' (Leslie Kong production) and 1972 with 'Pomps And Prides' (Warwick Lyn/Byron Lee production), first time as 'Toots & The Maytals'.

In the Rock Steady era (1966 to 1968) the WIRL studios were on the peak of their succes and producing. More and more producers and artists looked for a good equipped studio and wanted to step into creative and financial independence, after years of ripoff under the bif producers in the Ska era.

SOME of WIRLs sublables in the Rock Steady era were "Caltone" from Blondel Calnek, "Fire" and "Star" from Garnet Hargraves and "Trade Winds". In 1966 Lloyd Robinson produced the Ethiopians hit record "Train To Skaville" with the flipside "You Are The Girl" by Albert Griffiths & The Gladiators.

Garnet Hargraves started as a producer in 1966. His first productions were mainly Skalypso songs like 'Wings Of A Dove' by Cedric 'King' Bravo and the Baba Brooks band, which was renamed to 'WIRL Steel Band'. Later he produced The 3 Tops (f.ex.: 'Lord Have Mercy', 'Get Ready', 'Feel So Lonesome', 'Miserable Friday', 'Hound Dog') and Jimmy Sinclair (f.ex.: 'Girl Of My Dreams' and 'Cassius'). In the Rock Steady years he produced the main part of his catalogue. Roy Shirley failed as a Singer at Blondel Calnek's Caltone stable, but he stayed in the same studio and recorded tunes like 'I Am The Winner', 'The Prophet', 'What To Do' and 'Freedom Time' for his new producer Hargraves. More nice examples for Hargraves Rock Steady are 'The Great Wuga Wuga' by Sir Lord Comic, an early DJ tune from 1967, 'Chain Gang' (a Sam Cooke cover), 'Venus' and 'Time For A Change' by Winston 'Bobby' Francis, 'Rock and cry' by the Ravers and more. These were some examples for his own porductions, but as arranger and producer at the WIRL studios he influenced a lot of productions there.

                                                                                                                                           
 Roy Shirley - The Prophet 1967 Prod By G Hargraves                              " Train To Skaville" Uk Pressing      
       












" The Great Wuga Wuga " Prod By G. Hargraves,Uk Pressing                                   "What To Do " G.Hargaves 1967
                                      



                                                        



                                                                                                      
"Chain Gang" Prod By G. Hargraves















In same year Lee "King" Perry broke up with his former boss Coxsone Dodd in conflict, because he wanted to take more part in the decision-making of music production. One year later he produced his first own Rock Steady songs at WIRL: "Let Them Have A Home" as
allusion to his search for a studio, the clash tune "Run For Cover", "Whup Whop Man" and "Something You've Got", before signing at Joe Gibbs, who produced his revenge song "The Upsetter" which attacks Coxsone Dodd. All his titels were also issued in the UK on Doctor Bird Label.
































The WIRL studios were a stepping stone into independence for a lot of producers like Lee Perry, Blondel Calnek, Edward "Bunny" Lee, Sid Bucknor, Bobby Aitken and more. In 1968 Seaga finally backed out the musical business and left the WIRL Studios to Byron Lee, which renamed it "Dynamic Sounds". With "Dynamic Sounds" Lee produced hits like Boris Gardiner's "Reggae Happening", Hopeton Lewis's "Grooving Out on Life", and The Slickers' "Johnny Too Bad". He developed to one of the best studios in Jamaica (producing songs by The Rolling Stones or Paul Simon) and the biggest record distributer in country.


Bobby Aitkens productions  on Wirl Label

Vocals Lloyd & Glen - You Won´t regret it  `67                                                                    
                                                                   Vocals Lloyd & Glen - Keep On Pushing ´67














Bobby Aitken - Hell And High Water ´67                                                                         Bobby Aitken - I Need You ´67

                                                                            














                                                                                                                                            Bobby Aitken - Sweet For My Sweet UK

Bobby Aitken - How Sweet It Is  UK Pressing ´67



A Mc Dermott Production                                                                                                    The Gay Tones - You Don´t Know ´68

The Gay Tones - Let It Happen Now ´68




Another selfprod. by The Gaylads in Wirl Studios                                                            The Gaylads - She Want It  ´68


The Gaylads - Joy In The Morning ´68



One brilliant example for a deep Bunny Lee Production on the  West Indian Record Limited Label

Suzette (Dawn Penn) - To Sir With Love ´67                                                            The Sensations - Born To Love You


















Here's a short summary of the WIRL labels and their producers:

WIRL, 1959 to 1968 (Various producers: Byron Lee, Lee Perry, Garnet Hargraves, Bunny Lee, Bobby Aitken...)
Kentone 1962 to 1966 (Byron Lee)

Soul, BRA, Dragon' Breath (Byron Lee)

BMN, 1964-1967 (Ronnie Nasralla)
Caltone, 1966 to 1968 (Blondel Calnek, Phil Pratt)
Jontom, 1966 to 1968 (Phil Pratt, Blondel Calnek)
Wail N Soul M 1966 to 1968 (Bob Marley & The Wailers)

Carib Disco 1967 to 1968 (Various producers: Bunny Lee...)

Jolly, 1967-1968 (Ewan McDermott)

Fire 1968 (Garnet Hargraves)
Star 1968 (Garnet Hargraves)
W&C 1968 (Delroy Wilson, Stranger Cole)
Links 1968 (Ken Boothe, Gaylads, Melodians)
Supertone 1968 (Paragons)