David Berthy Posts

Hortense Ellis was just out of her teens when “Cry Together” was recorded. The song, composed by Hortense’s legendary brother Alton and the producer Coxsone Dodd, pairs Hortense’s young voice with a gospel organ and a choral backup to produce a scorching, deep soul effect with a Jamaican twist. The song reminds me of another Jamaican classic, the 1966 song “It Hurts to Be Alone,” which was penned by a young Bob Marley. Junior Braithwaite sung lead on this track, his last recording session with the group then known as the Wailing Wailers, with Bob Marley, Beverly Kelso, and Peter Tosh providing backup vocals. As far as I can tell, Braithwaite was in his early-to-mid teens at the time. Both these songs slay me. I think it’s because, while there are a lot of songs that deal with shattered innocence, there aren’t too many that make you re-live it.


Cry Together

It Hurts to be Alone