Desmond Dekker - Intensified (Charly Records BLP004)

"‘007 (Shanty Town)’ had kickstarted his run of hits in the UK two years earlier, but it was ‘Israelites’ that propelled him to international fame. Both singles originally appeared on the Beverley’s label owned by Leslie Kong, who was the most successful Jamaican record producer of the early reggae era. The Kingston born Dekker made his debut for Beverley’s in 1963 and remained loyal to Kong thereafter. Both men were then rewarded handsomely when ‘Israelites’ became the first Jamaican recording to top the UK charts and went to No. 1 in at least half a dozen other countries as well, including South Africa and West Germany. It also made an impressive showing in America after becoming the first Jamaican record to manage a Top 10 placing on Billboard’s Hot 100. Within less than a year, ‘Israelites’ had sold a million copies worldwide and made Desmond Dekker a household name.

“’Israelites’ was the first reggae song to reach the charts everywhere,” he told Echoes Magazine. “Not only in England, but also all over the world! What I’m happy about is that a lot of those places had never heard of reggae music before. They might have heard of ska or Blue Beat but not reggae, because that was something new at the time.”"