Chess Records hits the road

Chicago's Chess Records has for the moment seen off its local challengers in the quest to find the greatest record label of all time. It seems we must look further afield and bring in the search's first international challenger. This label is known as the "Motown of Jamaica", which can either be seen as a blessing or a curse given the enormous stature of Motown Records, and what happened to Motown in our first musical beat-down.

Studio One was one of the pioneers of ska, rocksteady and reggae music in Jamaica, as well as helping launch Jamaican music onto the international scene. The man behind Studio One was producer and owner Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, who received the nickname after being compared to English cricketer Alec Coxon. Dodd has been described as "reggae's Phil Spector, its Berry Gordy, and its Dick Clark all wrapped into one."The other essential component of Studio One records was the studio musicians the Skatalites, who were the backbone of most of the recordings through the period of Studio One's success.

While Studio One housed an impressive stable of artists that stayed with the label, it also helped launch the careers of some of the genre's biggest acts including Dennis Brown, Toots & the Maytals and Bob Marley & the Wailers. Although those artists didn't produce their biggest hits while at Studio One, it was there that they got their start and with Dodd's help, learned how to turn songs into hits.

As per the conditions of the competition only the songs recorded on the Studio One label can be considered, so with that in mind, here's the Studio One line-up: (The Chess line-up can be found here)

Team Studio One:
Bob Marley & the Wailers: One Love, Bend Down Low
Toots & the Maytals: Never Grow Old, Six and Seven Books of Moses
Dennis Brown: I'll Never Fall in Love Again, No Man is an Island 
The Skatalites: Guns of Navarone, Phoenix City
Jackie Mittoo: Drum Song, Ghetto Organ
The Heptones: Country Boy, Pretty Looks
Burning Spear: Ethiopians Live It Out, Down By the Riverside
Alton Ellis: Rocksteady, Can I Change My Mind

Verdict: The drawback for Studio One was like Chess' previous challengers Sun Records, it was unable to keep it's biggest artists. But this was more because Dodd always seemed more interested in bringing in new talent, both artists and producers, into the label rather than the financial benefits of holding onto a smaller number of big acts. But like Chess the legacy Studio One left was perhaps larger than the music the label produced.