Folly Ranking, by Johnny Osbourne

Folly Ranking

by Johnny Osbourne

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1.	Mr. Walker 03:47	buy track
2.	Jah Ovah 04:10	buy track
3.	Cool Down 03:35	buy track
4.	Trench Town School 02:48	buy track
5.	Fret You A Fret 04:12	buy track
6.	Fally Ranking 03:46	buy track
7.	Love Song 03:59	buy track
8.	Live Right 02:39	buy track
9.	Mr. Marshall 03:46	buy track
10.	Time Is Getting Dread 03:17	buy track

about

Johnny Osbourne puts this rude boy posse firmly in their place, "Folly Ranking, you're bound to get a spanking," he warns them, far from enthralled by the gang's exploits. The Folly bad boys, top ranking yardies, were running wild across Kingston at the time. Their defiant behavior and frequent recourse to their guns may have impressed some, and certainly they glorified themselves, pilfering stars' names for their own, but the singer reduces them to what they are, naughty, if extremely dangerous, children who have earned themselves a good thrashing.

"Throw away your guns and lemme have some fun, live some life before your judgement comes," Osbourne wisely counsels, while behind the sonorous backing singers harmonize around him.

Producer Prince Jammy set the song to a fabulous rhythm, all insistent beats and percussion and deep roots flavor, and shot through with sublime guitar flourishes, beautifully delivered up by the Roots Radics.

A popular single from 1980, this song would title Osbourne's superb Jammy produced album released this same year. Incidentally, the singer would ride a version of this same rhythm on "Folly Lover", a single cut for Junjo Lawes that would also title a full-length album. - Jo-Ann Greene

credits

released January 1, 1980

Bass – Micky, Robert Shakespeare
Drums – Santa, Sly Dunbar
Harmonica – Johnny Bumpy Osbourne
Horns – Deadly Headly, Bobby Ellis
Lead Guitar – Boo Peep, Dougie Bryan
Liner Notes – John Williams
Mastered By – Bob Jones
Organ – Ansel Collins, Winston Wright
Percussion – Scully, Sticky
Piano – Ansel Collins, Gladdy, Kieth Sterling
Producer, Arranged By, Engineer – Prince Jammy
Rhythm Guitar – Bingy Bunny

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VP Records Queens, New York

Miles Ahead

NYC • MIA • KIN • LDN • TYO • JHB • RJ

With origins in Kingston, Jamaica in the late 1950s as Randy’s Record Mart, Vincent and Patricia Chin’s small used record business would grow to become one of the world’s largest independent record labels, with a catalog of 35,000 recordings. ... more