Capital Letters were a reggae band out of Wolverhampton, England. A move to Shepherds Bush, Middlesex in 1977 set them in place to become one of the Greensleeves label's first signings. Their single "Smoking My Ganja" blew the woofers out of UK soundsystems throughout '78, and propelled them into the studio to record a full-length. The resulting LP, Headline News, was Greensleeves' seventh release and one of the more critically acclaimed reggae records of 1979 with its finely balanced blend of African, Jamaican, and English influences and songs that covered topics ranging from religion to marijuana legalization to the bloody reign of Idi Amin. Capital Letters were a big band, eight-strong (adding another guitarist/vocalist for their 1979 John Peel radio session), that boasted four vocalists, two drummers (one the conga player) and two percussionists among their ranks. In Jamaica, brass and/or organ filled out the arrangements. Unfortunately, Capital Letters were also a relatively-short lived band. After Headline News they only released one other LP--Vineyard on a minor German label in 1982--and it is rarely in print. That and a handful of fine 12" were all the Capital Letters wrote. Goodnews CAPITAL LETTERS the band are now practising and will be playing out soon doing all their tracks and more , I should know I'm the keyboard player Perch.
