In 1977, as Lee Perry and The Congos worked
on the legendary 'Heart of the Congos' LP,
Jeremy Marre, an English film maker, was in
Jamaica gathering footage for a BBC
documentary entitled 'Roots Rock Reggae'.
When Marre knocked on the door of The Black
Ark and asked if he could film some
musicians at work in the studio, Scratch,
Junior Murvin, The Congos, The Upsetters and
The Heptones obligingly improvised a tune
for the camera crew entitled, 'Play On Mr
Music'. It was subsequently assumed that the
song remained unfinished, with the only
evidence of it's existence captured in these
brief, priceless moments from the
documentary.
In 2012, however, the DVD release of 'Beats
of the Heart; Roots Rock Reggae'
unexpectedly included a complete version of
this most sought after of lost Black Ark
nuggets amongst it's bonus features. Now, 35
years later, the tune is finally available for all
to enjoy. One can only imagine what other
gems might be stashed away in the Black Ark
vaults.
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