While the name "Randy" was synonymous
for a radio show by Randy Wood in the US presenting the latest R&B
to the south of the US and also heard in Jamaica, there was a young music
lover of chinese-jamaican origin, called Vincent Chin who picked up the
name ... and made him famous all over the world.
Mid 1950s:
Vincent Chin was working for Isaac
Issa who controlled the jukebox market in Jamaica. Later, Vincent started
to sell the old, used records from those jukeboxes.
In 1959 he opened his first record
shop on the corner of East Street and Tower Street in central Kingston.
1961:
Chin opened a new record shop in
17 North Parade, "Randy's". At the same time he started recording: his
first session featured the duo Bunny & Skitter and his longtime
friend Rico Rodriguez
with Jah Jerry on guitar and 'Bra' Gaynair on sax; it took place at Ken
Khouri's Federal Studio. "The music they made ... still followed closely
the US models that had inspired it. Included were a couple of boogie-shuffle
instrumentals ..." (Steve Barrow, 2003)
1962:
Chin recorded with Lord Creator
"Independent Jamaica" which was released later the same year in
the UK on Chris Blackwell's
Island Records label.
1963:
Randy's catalogue by then included
the whole range of popular Jamaican music and many of the great names of
his time.
1964:
Randy recorded The
Skatalites while they were already highly popular.
mid 1960:
Vincent Chin opened his own Randy's
Studio at 17, North Parade above his shop
1970s:
In the early 1970s The Wailers made
their epochal recordings with Lee Perry in his studio.
Later the family decides to relocate
to the US, where they started VP Records (VP stands for Vincent
and Patricia, Vincent's wife) in New York and in Miami. - VP developed
to be the greatest reggae distributor worldwide.