CORNELL CAMPBELL – My Destination (Reissue) – LP – Vinyl [DEC 5]

LP – Standard Edition Black Vinyl (2025 Repress).

“The mighty Falsetto voice of Mr Cornell Campbell is another we believe, unsung hero of the Jamaican music scene. Who in our opinion should have broke through to a wider audience, than his cult status currently provides. We have unearthed straight from the master tapes an album that was due for release around the mid 70s. A few of these cuts, found their way out on limited 7s, that were mainly for the domestic Jamaican market. But as a complete body of work, never found a release until now. We hope like us, once you have played the tracks, you will feel that this set of cuts, stands up amongst Cornells finest work.

Cornell Campbell (born 1948, Jamaica), made his first recordings in the early 1960s for Coxone Dodd at Studio 1. Tracks like Under the Old Oak Tree, My Treasure and later as a duo with Roy Patton Salvation and Sweetest Girl, were local hits on the Jamaican Sound Systems. A short spell with the Uniques was followed by his roll as lead vocalist with the Eternals, under the monicker of Don Cornell. Their finest moment being the classic Stars / Queen of the Minstrels cuts which still stand up today as some of Jamaicas finest.

The 1970s saw Mr Campbell move on to work with producer Bunny Striker Lee, for whom he cut most of his big tunes. He and fellow singer Johnny Clarke, would become Bunnys 70s equivalent to his 1960s stable of singers like Slim Smith, Pat Kelly and Ernest Wilson. They would provide the voice to his many hits of the day. Bunny not being called Striker for nothing. Cornell also had a series of hits around his theme as the Gorgon. The mighty figure unbeatable at the dances in the Greenwich Town district of Kingston. The Gorgon, The Conquering Gorgon. Natty Dread in a Greenwich Farm. These were all firm favourites at the dances in Jamaica.

He also worked with other notable producers around this time. Winston Niney Holness I Heart is Clean, Tappa Zukie Follow Instruction and culminating in a massive hit Boxing in 1979 for producer Joe Gibbs. But it was his time with Bunny Lee that set the levels for his record output. This unreleased album is from this period in time, when Cornell Campbell never sounded sweeter……

Tracklist:

A1 How Does It Feel
A2 Everyday Is A Holiday
A3 My Destination
A4 Politricks
A5 You Lie, You Cheat
A6 Fire, Mek It Come
A7 It’s A Miracle

B1 Have Some Mercy
B2 All In The Game
B3 Righteous Man
B4 If You Want To Cry
B5 Give Me Strength
B6 Send Another Joshua