Song:Stop That Train
Album:Riding The Musical Chariot
I'm sure most reggae fans are familiar with Stop That Train but they don't know much about Keith & Tex who had a hit with it in 1967. The story of Keith & Tex begins with Jamaican music pioneer Derrick Harriott. Harriott was a big star in Jamaica in the mid-60s. Then he started his own record company. Keith Rowe and Texas Dixon grew up in the same area of Kingston but didn't know each other. But Rowe wanted to be a singer. He was introduced to Dixon and Keith & Tex was born. It seems they auditioned for and were rejected by every producer in Kingston including Coxsone Dodd and Duke Reid. Then Harriott signed them to his Crystal label. Keith & Tex had a few hits including Tonight, This Is My Song and Don't Look Back. But their biggest hit and most memorable song was Stop That Train in 1967. Stop That Train was recorded by The Spanishtonians in 1965. Herriott and his studio bandleader Lyn Taitt were familiar with the song. Today Stop That Train is considered a classic. You can get it on this Derrick Harriott comp. Stop That Train was sampled by Scotty in the song Draw Your Brakes from the 1972 film The Harder They Come. And it was sampled by The Beastie Boys and Vanilla Ice and covered in 1983 by Clint Eastwood & General Saint. Keith & Tex split up in 1970. Dixon moved to Canada. Rowe moved to the US and was in the US Army for 20 years. He recorded solo with producer Lee "Scratch" Perry. He currently hosts the Sounds of the Caribbean radio show on WBZC in New Jersey. Keith & Tex still perform together occasionally. Here's Keith & Tex performing Stop That Train in Switzerland Apr. 2014.
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