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The Folkes Brothers are a Jamaican group, composed of John Folkes (the lead singer), Mico Folkes, and Eric Joseph ("Junior") Folkes, and are the originators of the hit single "Oh Carolina". [1]
The group's 1961 single "Oh Carolina" was written by John Folkes, the sole author, as established in court in England. In 1960, Prince Buster (then a relative unknown who was working as a DJ and bouncer for Duke Reid) approached the legendary Rastafarian percussionist Count Ossie, who had established one of the first Rastafarian camps in Wareika Hill, to record for him. After much encouragement from Prince Buster that he would keep the essence of the Niyabinghi -style drumming intact on the recording, he booked Count Ossie and his drummers along with Owen Gray on piano and Ronnie Bop on bass drum into a small recording studio. Once there, Buster did handclaps and imitated horn riffs while The Folkes Brothers, a trio of teenagers, led by John and backed by his brothers Mico, and Junior, did the back up vocals capturing it in just two takes. It was the only recording the group ever did.
In 1994, John, Eric (Junior ) and Mico Folkes were involved in a legal dispute with Buster over the authorship of the song, after a cover version by Shaggy, who became an international hit. [2] [3] It was eventually ruled by the High Court in London, England, that John Folkes held the copyright. [2] [4] John Folkes assigned the copyright to Greensleeves so that Shaggy's Pure Pleasure album could be released. This included listing Henry Mancini as co-author, because it was alleged that Shaggy sampled the "Peter Gunn" theme song. It has been noted that John Folkes never agreed to this nor any assignment of the copyright to Greensleeves. This is no longer in dispute.
In 2011, a new group (now consisting Mico Folkes and Eric J. Folkes) recorded an album with their close musician friend, Jah D, in efforts to help promote his studio, while Jah D provided background music for 15 of the Folkes brothers' songs, solely written by Mico and Eric J. "Junior". The original group was created by John. As such, he has been the only group member to receive any royalties and his estate is the sole owner of the copyright, as has always been the case.
John Folkes passed away August 29, 2022 at the age of 81, survived by his wife Vilma, and three children Shawn, Paula, and Angel. Junior Folkes passed away January 8, 2024, leaving Mico Folkes the last surviving member of The Folkes Brothers, who has recreated a different group, and has never been entitled to any royalties because Dr. John Folkes (PhD summa cum laude in English from the University of Toronto) is and has always been the sole author.
Further references can be found at: "Marco On The Bass: The Story Behind 'Oh Carolina': Jamaican Music Pioneers The Folkes Brothers Reunite!" http://marcoonthebass.blogspot.com/2011/06/story-behind-oh-carolina-jamaican-music.html?m=1.
"Shaggy's 'oh Carolina' Celebrates 20th Anniversary - Jamaicansmusic.com" http://www.jamaicansmusic.com/news/Music/Shaggy_s_Oh_Carolina_Celebrates_20th_Anniversary
"Oh Carolina: The Folkes Brothers – Heather Augustyn" https://skabook.com/2014/04/11/oh-carolina-folkes-brothers/
"The Music Diaries | The drama of 'Oh Carolina' | Entertainment | Jamaica Gleaner" https://jamaica-gleaner.com/article/entertainment/20181104/music-diaries-drama-oh-carolina
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