Keith & Tex

Texas Dixon entered the world in Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies, in 1948, while Keith Rowe was born in the same city on 22 October 1950. Late in the 1960s the pair auditioned for Derrick Harriott, whose immediate enthusiasm for their vocal abilities prompted him to sign them and usher them directly into his studio. Supported by players of the stature of Lynn Tait and Hux Brown, they laid down the reggae staples ‘Tonight’ and ‘Stop That Train’, two songs that have proved among the most durable and frequently versioned in the genre. Soon after those releases the duo slipped from sight, although ‘Hypnotizing Eyes’ and a cover of the Temptations’ ‘Don’t Look Back’ briefly extended their visibility. Rowe subsequently cut ‘Groovy Situation’ for Lee Perry before emigrating to the USA and enlisting in the army, while Dixon moved to Canada. Vanilla Ice’s early-90s recording of ‘Stop That Train’ prevented their permanent disappearance from memory. Crystal Records marked the resurgence by issuing a well-curated anthology of the pair’s early work, a release that strengthened rather than undermined their established standing.