John Holt — The Tide Is High
Introduction:
John Kenneth Holt OD (11 July 1947 – 19 October 2014) was one of the greatest vocalists Jamaica has ever produced — a man whose honey-smooth, romantic voice defined the rocksteady and early reggae eras, whose songwriting shaped the sound of an island, and whose 1,000 Volts of Holt gave the UK a Top 10 hit in 1973. Bob Andy called his voice "a velveted tone like Nat King Cole" and described him as having "the most unique balladeer voice in Jamaican music." He is remembered today not only for his solo career but as co-founder of the legendary Paragons — the group whose recordings defined rocksteady's golden age — and as the writer of "The Tide Is High", which became a UK and US number one for Blondie in 1980 and remains one of the most-played Jamaican songs of all time.
Talent Contests, The Paragons & Rocksteady:
Born in Kingston's Greenwich Farm district in 1947, John Holt entered his first talent contest at twelve and won 28 of them — some broadcast live on Radio Jamaica. He recorded his first single for Leslie Kong in 1963, then in 1965 joined Bob Andy, Tyrone Evans and Howard Barrett to form The Paragons — Jamaica's premier rocksteady vocal harmony group. Recording for Coxsone Dodd's Studio One and then Duke Reid's Treasure Isle, the Paragons scored hit after hit: "Ali Baba", "Tonight", "I See Your Face", "Wear You to the Ball", and the Holt-written "The Tide Is High". When the group disbanded around 1970, John Holt stepped seamlessly into a solo career that would span another four decades.
John Holt - The Best Of - Track Listings:
01 Help Me Through The Night.mp3
02 I'd Love You to Want Me.mp3
03 Touch Me in the Morning.mp3
04 Stick By Me.mp3
05 Never Never Never.mp3
06 Mr Bojangles.mp3
07 The Girl From Ipanema.mp3
08 John holt - Morning Of My Life.mp3
09 All I Ever Ask.mp3
10 Wasted Days And Wasted Nights.mp3
11 If I Was A Carpenter.mp3
12 'Ali Baba'.mp3
13 The Tide Is High.mp3
14 Time Is The Master.mp3
15 Queen Of The Ghetto.mp3
16 Police in Helicopter.mp3
17 Up Park Camp.mp3
18 Stealing , Stealing..mp3
19 A Love I Can Feel.mp3
20 A House Is Not A Home.mp3
21 You Baby.mp3
22 I'll Take a Melody.mp3
23 Chinchilla Choons Intro - (George Nooks) The Best Of .mp3
* Play Tracks Directly On Your Mobile Phone.
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* No Jingles Over The Tracks*
Solo Star — Stick By Me to 1,000 Volts:
His solo work with producer Bunny Lee in the early 1970s was extraordinary. "Stick By Me" — arranged to capture the dancehall energy of the John Crow craze — stayed on the Jamaican chart for 23 weeks and became the biggest-selling Jamaican record of 1972. His 1973 Harry Mudie-produced album Time Is the Master combined crisp riddims with lush London orchestral arrangements and was a major hit. Trojan Records brought him to the UK and teamed him with producer Tony Ashfield for 1,000 Volts of Holt — a collection of reggae covers of popular songs. The album spawned "Help Me Make It Through the Night", which peaked at number 6 in the UK. The 1,000 Volts series received BPI Gold certification in February 2022.
His 1983 album Police in Helicopter with Henry "Junjo" Lawes and the Roots Radics was a cultural roots masterpiece — the title track a scathing condemnation of the Jamaican government's marijuana eradication campaign. He later performed with the Royal Philharmonic Concert Orchestra. He was awarded the Order of Distinction (Commander Class) by the Jamaican government in 2004. He died of colon cancer in London on 19 October 2014, aged 67. His funeral at Holy Trinity Cathedral, Kingston, featured performances from U-Roy, Ken Boothe and Luciano.
Key Albums & Singles:
- Stick By Me (1972) — biggest-selling Jamaican single of the year
- Time Is the Master (1973, Harry Mudie)
- 1,000 Volts of Holt (1973, Trojan) — UK BPI Gold certified
- Up Park Camp (1976, Channel One)
- Police in Helicopter (1983, Henry Lawes)
- John Holt in Symphony (2001)
- Wrote "The Tide Is High" — UK/US #1 for Blondie 1980
John Holt on Reggae On A Stick: 
John Holt is one of the featured artists on our Reggae On A Stick USB — 100 of the greatest reggae albums compiled onto a single plug-and-play USB drive. Experience one of Jamaica's sweetest voices alongside 99 other legends.
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