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Over
the next few years I had many recording sessions. Among them
were some of the old members of S.S. Fools. Joe Schermie
always had a project going of some kind and had an engineer
friend named Chuck Mellone that was part of our gang out at
the studio. A great guy, Chuck was dating Franchesca Hilton
(daughter
of Zsa Zsa Gabor)
at the time and Fran came out a number of times to hang out.
In fact, she was a good friend and lots of fun. I saw her
again briefly in Washington, D.C. when we played the DC
BEACH PARTY with the Beach Boys, Ringo Starr, America and
Hank Williams Junior in July of 1984.
Joe
had also introduced me to a percussionist from Jamaica named
Baboo Pierre. "Boo" was a natural talent of the highest
order. I was greatly influenced by him in the reggae area.
To you rhythm guitarists this translates as "Oo-chinkah
(rest)
Pachinka Oo-chinkah (rest)
Pachinka." Clear as mud, eh? Baboo was so funny in his
talent and island heritage. Once when I was sick as a dog
with a fever he came by my house. I told him I didn't feel
like getting up and doing music. He responded with, "NO MON.
You must git up, go outside and run. Dis will git de DREAD
out of your body. You need to sweat, not lie in de bed." I
loved it. I suppose there was some logic to his advice, but
I stayed in bed just the same. He was a loud talker and was
always singing Jamaican rhythms like this, "Oom chickee Oom
chickee," so I wrote a partial song as a joke for him. He
loved it when I sang it to him. It went like this: "De nigga
talk loudly to me ... every night and every day he's singin'
Oom chickee Oom chickee (rest)
a chickee Oom chickee. Oom chickee Oom chickee
(rest)
a chickee Oom chickee." He fell out laughing. We lost
contact with each other and years later Schermie told me
that he heard Baboo had died. I can't confirm it, but that
is what I heard. I miss him. He loved the music as I do. I
do still have a couple of tapes with him playing and
singing. I asked him once was there a special brand of
guitar that the local musicians in Jamaica liked to use to
get that great percussive reggae sound. He told me there was
one called a "Parang" guitar, but I have never found or even
heard of one. I asked around when I was in Montego Bay, but
nobody knew what I was talking about. Bummer. Even if it is
a piece of sh_t, it might have a sound! I'll continue with
my quest. I believe Baboo's full name was George Baboo
Pierre. A great one.
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