As
a young boy growing up in Westmoreland, Keith Smith had dreams of becoming a
star. His neighbors in this western Jamaican town included such future legends
as Peter Tosh, Lee 'Scratch' Perry and Ronnie Davis of the Itals. At the age of
17, like many aspiring artists, Keith headed to Kingston to find a vehicle for
his talents. In 1968, he formed his own band, 'Rocking Horse,' and began
playing at local clubs and festivals. After a string of singles with Rocking
Horse, Keith's wide vocal range and dynamic studio
presence soon earned him the nickname 'poppin', from the original slang verb
poppin',
as in "poppin' all the right notes.'' He worked with Lloyd Parks in the
early seventies, and in 1973 released his first solo single 'Same Thing For
Breakfast.' This roots classic marked the beginning of a long and successful
recording career, topping the charts in England and Jamaica and selling over
50,000 records.
Now
performing as 'Keith Poppin,' his bittersweet wail took him to number one again
with the underground anthem 'Envious' in 1974, another number one song in
Jamaica, and led to the album of the same name released in 1975. Keith continued
his string of international hits, with the top five releases 'Why Make Believe'
and 'Someday Girl' followed by 'Who Are You' which cracked the top ten in the UK
in 1976 and appeared on the 1977 album 'Pop Inn' on the Burning Rockers label.
Pop Inn featured the legendary rhythm section of Sly Dunbar and Robbie
Shakespeare, and also featured the work of none other than Aston 'Family Man'
Barrett. After that came more singles for LLoyd Campbell's Spiderman Label,
"Whenever There is Moonlight' on Eagle and 'Get Together,' which was
produced by Glen Brown. Thoughout the late seventies, Keith had many
additional releases on a variety of imprints such as 'Hold Not Thy Peace' on
Taurus and more singles on Impact, Pressure Disk, Chanan Jah, Galaxy and
Pilgrim.
The collection
'More of Keith Poppin' was released by popular demand on Phil Pratt's Sunshot
Records soon after. In 1980, Keith Poppin became the first reggae artist to be
released on Peter Tosh's short-lived Intel-Diplo label, which only released a
handful of singles including a groundbreaking duet featuring Peter Tosh and Mick
Jagger. The internationally flavored song 'Jam Down Festival' was produced by
Kay Claire and arranged by Dean Fraser. Following a brief hiatus from recording
after the death of Peter Tosh, Keith Poppin reappeared on the Jamaican music
scene with the song 'In My Hometown' which took him to the finals of the annual
Jamaican Song Festival. He also began producing other acts and promoting
concerts with Jungle Lion Promotions, putting together shows with artists like
Barrington Levy, Tiger, Tony Rebel and Mad Cobra during the eighties and early
nineties.
A seasoned
veteran and forefather of reggae music, Keith Poppin now lives with his wife
Yvonne in Raleigh, North Carolina. His new album 'Journeys' was recently
recorded at Dwight Pickney's Abeng Studio in Kingston, ER Studios in Brooklyn and at
NY South and 9th Hour Studios in Raleigh.
Musicians include Dean Fraser, Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare as well as
contributions from Jimmy London, the Tamlins, former Wailer Glen Adams, Johnny Lee, Glen Brown and even
former Squirrel Nut Zipper saxman Tim Smith. Returning to the birth of his craft
with a vinyl Jamaican 45, "When We Gonna Learn" was released
as a single in 2005 on KP Productions. Keith linked up with West Coast producer
Jerry Andrews in 2006 and after a year of tracking down the right songs and a
bit of studio wizardry, he finally released the retrospective compilation 'Get
Together: Original Recordings 1970-79' to rave reviews in late 2007. With his latest album getting
airplay from NYC to Sweden, a reinvigorated Keith Poppin is ready to take the
world by storm once again, and take his rightful place as one of the top reggae
singers in the world today.
As
a young boy growing up in Westmoreland, Keith Smith had dreams of becoming a
star. His neighbors in this western Jamaican town included such future legends
as Peter Tosh, Lee 'Scratch' Perry and Ronnie Davis of the Itals. At the age of
17, like many aspiring artists, Keith headed to Kingston to find a vehicle for
his talents. In 1968, he formed his own band, 'Rocking Horse,' and began
playing at local clubs and festivals. After a string of singles with Rocking
Horse, Keith's wide vocal range and dynamic studio
presence soon earned him the nickname 'poppin', from the original slang verb
poppin',
as in "poppin' all the right notes.'' He worked with Lloyd Parks in the
early seventies, and in 1973 released his first solo single 'Same Thing For
Breakfast.' This roots classic marked the beginning of a long and successful
recording career, topping the charts in England and Jamaica and selling over
50,000 records.
Now
performing as 'Keith Poppin,' his bittersweet wail took him to number one again
with the underground anthem 'Envious' in 1974, another number one song in
Jamaica, and led to the album of the same name released in 1975. Keith continued
his string of international hits, with the top five releases 'Why Make Believe'
and 'Someday Girl' followed by 'Who Are You' which cracked the top ten in the UK
in 1976 and appeared on the 1977 album 'Pop Inn' on the Burning Rockers label.
Pop Inn featured the legendary rhythm section of Sly Dunbar and Robbie
Shakespeare, and also featured the work of none other than Aston 'Family Man'
Barrett. After that came more singles for LLoyd Campbell's Spiderman Label,
"Whenever There is Moonlight' on Eagle and 'Get Together,' which was
produced by Glen Brown. Thoughout the late seventies, Keith had many
additional releases on a variety of imprints such as 'Hold Not Thy Peace' on
Taurus and more singles on Impact, Pressure Disk, Chanan Jah, Galaxy and
Pilgrim. 
The collection
'More of Keith Poppin' was released by popular demand on Phil Pratt's Sunshot
Records soon after. In 1980, Keith Poppin became the first reggae artist to be
released on Peter Tosh's short-lived Intel-Diplo label, which only released a
handful of singles including a groundbreaking duet featuring Peter Tosh and Mick
Jagger. The internationally flavored song 'Jam Down Festival' was produced by
Kay Claire and arranged by Dean Fraser. Following a brief hiatus from recording
after the death of Peter Tosh, Keith Poppin reappeared on the Jamaican music
scene with the song 'In My Hometown' which took him to the finals of the annual
Jamaican Song Festival. He also began producing other acts and promoting
concerts with Jungle Lion Promotions, putting together shows with artists like
Barrington Levy, Tiger, Tony Rebel and Mad Cobra during the eighties and early
nineties.
A seasoned
veteran and forefather of reggae music, Keith Poppin now lives with his wife
Yvonne in Raleigh, North Carolina. His new album 'Journeys' was recently
recorded at Dwight Pickney's Abeng Studio in Kingston, ER Studios in Brooklyn and at
NY South and 9th Hour Studios in Raleigh.
Musicians include Dean Fraser, Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare as well as
contributions from Jimmy London, the Tamlins, former Wailer Glen Adams, Johnny Lee, Glen Brown and even
former Squirrel Nut Zipper saxman Tim Smith. Returning to the birth of his craft
with a vinyl Jamaican 45, "When We Gonna Learn" was released
as a single in 2005 on KP Productions. Keith linked up with West Coast producer
Jerry Andrews in 2006 and after a year of tracking down the right songs and a
bit of studio wizardry, he finally released the retrospective compilation 'Get
Together: Original Recordings 1970-79' to rave reviews in late 2007. With his latest album getting
airplay from NYC to Sweden, a reinvigorated Keith Poppin is ready to take the
world by storm once again, and take his rightful place as one of the top reggae
singers in the world today.