by Howard Campbell
[KINGSTON, Jamaica] – Their careers took off at Studio One during the rock steady craze of the 1960s, but Marcia Griffiths and Leroy Sibbles never collaborated on any songs. That all changed recently, as the reggae queen and former lead singer of The Heptones teamed-up for a reggae cover of The Stylistics’ You Make me Feel Brand New.
Produced by Sibbles, the song is scheduled for release in late January.
“Yes, this is the first recording together but we have worked the stage many times before and she has been my friend since we were teenagers,” said Sibbles.
He added that You Make me Feel Brand New “has been a favorite of mine from the longest time”. Released in 1974, the original was written and produced for Philadelphia International Records by Thom Bell, who was born in Jamaica.
According to Sibbles, “The fact that it was written by a Jamaican gives it more traction.”
Griffiths and Sibbles are from west Kingston. In the 1960s, they were two of the hottest acts at producer Clement Dodd’s Studio One label; Griffiths as a solo act, Sibbles as lead vocalist and chief songwriter for harmony trio, The Heptones.
Griffiths had hits there such as Feel Like Jumping, Mark my Word and Melody Life. They paved the way for a fruitful period in the 1970s when she was a member of the I Three, Bob Marley’s backup group, with Rita Marley and Judy Mowatt.
With The Heptones, Sibbles ruled Jamaican charts with songs like Sweet Talking, Fatty Fatty, Baby be True, Sea of Love and Pretty Looks. He was also Studio One’s prime bassist, playing on many of the label’s major hits including Skylarking by Horace Andy and Queen of The Minstrel by Cornel Campbell.
