Disc 1
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| Song Title | Sample |
| 1. Forever I'll Stay ~ John Holt |  |
| 2. Happy Go Lucky ~ John Holt | |
| 3. On The Beach ~ John Holt | |
| 4. Only A Smile ~ John Holt | |
| 5. Tide Is High, The ~ John Holt | |
| 6. Wear You To The Ball ~ John Holt | |
| 7. Taking Love ~ John Holt | |
| 8. My Best Girl ~ John Holt | |
| 9. Silver Bird ~ John Holt | |
| 10. Memories By The Score ~ John Holt | |
| 11. Left With A Broken Heart ~ John Holt | |
| 12. Got To Get Away ~ John Holt | |
| 13. My Satisfaction ~ John Holt | |
| 14. I'll Be Lonely ~ John Holt | |
| 15. Tonight ~ John Holt | |
| 16. Equality And Justice ~ John Holt | |
| 17. Ali Baba ~ John Holt | |
| 18. Never Hurt My Baby ~ John Holt | |
| 19. Share My Rest ~ John Holt | |
| 20. Have Sympathy ~ John Holt | |
| 21. Don't Break Your Heart ~ John Holt | |
| 22. Fat Girl, Sexy Girl ~ John Holt | |
| 23. Stealing Stealing ~ John Holt | |
| 24. Love I Can Feel, A ~ John Holt | |
| 25. Sometimes ~ John Holt | |
| 26. Let's Linger Awhile ~ John Holt | | Disc 2
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| Song Title | Sample |
| 1. My Heart Is Gone ~ John Holt | |
| 2. Strange Things ~ John Holt | |
| 3. Sister Big Stuff ~ John Holt | |
| 4. Let's Build Our Dreams - (with Leroy Sibbles) ~ John Holt | |
| 5. Riding For A Fall ~ John Holt | |
| 6. Stick By Me (And I'll Stick By You) ~ John Holt | |
| 7. Pledging My Love ~ John Holt | |
| 8. Looking Back ~ John Holt | |
| 9. Stagger Lee ~ John Holt | |
| 10. Anymore ~ John Holt | |
| 11. Land Of Ecstasy ~ John Holt | |
| 12. Don't Break Your Promise ~ John Holt | |
| 13. Further You Look, The ~ John Holt | |
| 14. Help Me Make It Through The Night ~ John Holt | |
| 15. Dusty Roads ~ John Holt | |
| 16. In The Springtime ~ John Holt | |
| 17. Let The Wicked Run Away ~ John Holt | |
| 18. Up Park Camp ~ John Holt | |
| 19. Ghetto Girl ~ John Holt | |
| 20. Don't Fight Your Brothers ~ John Holt | |
| 21. You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine ~ John Holt | |
| 22. Rock With Me Baby ~ John Holt | |
| 23. Country Boy, (I'm Just A) ~ John Holt | |
| 24. You Are Everything To Me ~ John Holt | |
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| Album Notes and Credits |
Notes & Personnel Info |  | Recorded between 1962 & 1979. Includes liner notes by Laurence Cane-Honeysett. | | All tracks have been digitally remastered. | | Beyond a simple career retrospective, THE TIDE IS HIGH: ANTHOLOGY 1962-79 manages to encapsulate the history of reggae on two discs, as distilled through the voice of John Holt. It starts with his earliest ska side, "Forever I'll Stay." It then chronicles the rise of the Motown-influenced vocal groups and the simmering down of the beat into rocksteady, as epitomized by Paragons, including the influential title track and proto-lovers rock like "Left With A Broken Heart" and "Wear You to The Ball." "Equality and Justice," a rarity in the Holt canon, finds Holt dealing with political/social issues. But it's as one of the leading proponents of lover's rock that Holt truly shines. While the orchestrations on some of his later work might offend purists, there's no denying the puissance of Holt's voice, especially in such relatively stripped-down contexts as "Riding For a Fall" and "My Heart Is Gone," as well as such eccentric covers as "Help Me Make it Through the Night" and "Sister Big Stuff." |
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| Artist Overview |
| John Holt started singing as a young boy, appearing in talent shows at age 12, and releasing his first single at the age of 16. Like many Jamaican singers of his generation, he was strongly influenced by American R&B, and his smooth, soulful crooning style caught on in a big way. He moved with the changes in the Jamaican music scene, from rocksteady with '60s group the Paragons, to reggae. Holt's '70s covers of American pop tunes made him both a seminal reggae performer and a crossover success. His first major visibility in the US came in the early '80s with Blondie's hit version of the Paragons' "The Tide is High," but he had already been hugely influential on the UK reggae scene for some time. |
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| Compilation Appearances |
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