And with those words, the ‘Waterhouse assassin’ Junior Reid staked his claim as the ‘Original Foreign Mind.’  Perhaps the greatest storyteller to ever emerge from the notorious West Kingston ghetto, Reid transcended the high bar set by fellow Waterhouse legends like Don Carlos, Michael Palmer, and Sugar Minott, setting a new standard for songwriting and singing.  In 1985, after releasing several successful singles for Sugar Minott, Junior Reid ushers in a new era for Waterhouse reggae singers with the release of Boom Shacka Lack with Jammys and Original Foreign Mind with Sugar Minott.  His partnership with Jammy’s would produce a string of electrically charged singles that will place Junior Reid on top of the charts in both Jamaica and the UK, eventually leading to Duckie Simpson recruiting him as lead singer for Black Uhuru upon Michael Rose’s departure.

“Row Your Boat” is vintage Junior Reid.  The tune is as a hard-driving and heavy anthem which describes the poverty faced by many in his neighborhood, and across the island.  As you can hear, backed by the Hi-Times Band, Reid rides a hard-driving Jammy’s riddim like no one before or after…

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