One of Jamaica's most outstanding vocal talents, Johnny Clarke has never achieved the international acclaim of some of his compatriots, and he even fell from favor in his homeland in the 1980s. However, in his heyday, during the mid- through late '70s, the singer recorded a stream of crucial cuts, as well as a bundle of seminal albums. Clarke has also had an inestimable impact on the dancehall scene, which in his day was still the preserve of DJs. His ability to write new lyrics, mostly in a cultural vein, to classic rocksteady hits opened the dancehall door for vocalists, and most critics acknowledge him as the first of the dancehall singers. Certainly his influence on such stars as Sugar Minott is evident.

Clarke was born in Whitfield Town, Jamaica, in January, 1955. He began his career in the talent contest circuit, and a win in 1971 at Tony Mack's talent show brought him a meeting with Clancy Eccles. The producer was impressed enough to record the singer's debut single, "God Made the Sea and the Sun," but was apparently unwilling to publicize it, at least that's how Clarke interpreted the song's lack of success. Impatient, he left Eccles and eventually hooked up with producer Rupie Edwards. Perhaps Clarke's complaint was correct, for he immediately scored a clutch of hits with Edwards. "Julie," "Everyday Wondering," and "Ire Feelings" all shook the charts in 1973. The latter single provided the template for the producer's own massive success with "Ire Feelings (Skanga)."

The following year, Clarke cut a number of singles for a variety of different producers, including "Jump Back Baby" for producer Glen Brown. However, although Clarke was already a well-known figure, it was only after he joined forces with producer Bunny Lee that the singer reached his full potential. Lee, who had made his name in the rocksteady era and helped inaugurate the shift to reggae, was undergoing his own period of creative brilliance, introducing the "flying cymbal" sound that swiftly became his trademark and earned him the nickname "Striker," whilst also delving into the possibilities of dub. Together the two men would unleash a host of unforgettable singles, opening with the massive hit "None Shall Escape the Judgement."

Intriguingly, Clarke would divide his time between radical roots and exquisite lovers rock, with a third pole of remarkable cover versions, with by John Holt and Delroy Wilson particular favorites. Over the next two years, the singer inundated Jamaica with hit singles including "Move Out of Babylon Rastaman," "Rock With Me Baby," "Enter Into His Gates With Praise," "Too Much War," "Joyful Festival." But most notable of all was a cover of Bob Marley's "No Woman No Cry," an international smash which sold a whopping 40,000 copies in Jamaica alone but was to have unforeseen consequences. The singer's first two albums, 1974's None Shall Escape the Judgement and the following year's Moving Out, were both hits-heavy collections while also boasting some hefty doses of cover versions. The U.K. Vulcan label's I'm Gonna Put It On, also released in 1975, featured both. The Trojan label would later also compile up much of this material for the Enter Into His Gates With Praise album. Half the record was culled from None Shall Escape, with the rest rounding up other hits and covers. The British Attack label's Don't Trouble Trouble offered up more recordings from this period and includes songs that didn't make it onto None Shall Escape the Judgement album. Virtually all of the tracks, however, were worthy of inclusion on that debut record. There was little surprise when Clarke clinched the Artist of the Year award in 1975 and 1976 (and then annually for another three years after that).

By 1976, the singer had come to the attention of the Virgin label's Front Line subsidiary, to whom he now signed. The new relationship was cemented with the fabulous Authorized Version album, again produced by Bunny Lee and boasting another big hit, "Roots Natty Roots Natty Congo." That album was masterful; Rockers Time Now was an absolute masterpiece. The production is a dream, the flying cymbal rhythms as sharp as a scythe, with Lee's house band, the Aggrovators, laying down a potent mix of roots, rock, and almost dreamy backing as always. With King Tubby giving it all a dubby mix, the record remains one of the crucial releases of the roots era. Again a mixture of originals and covers, Rockers is pure dread and boasts incredible versions of gems from the likes of the Abyssinians and the Mighty Diamonds; the former's "Satta Massa Gana" is an absolute stunner, as is the cover of the latter group's "Them Never Love Poor Marcus." However, apparently the sales of the album didn't live up to Front Line's expectations, and the label, having received one of the greatest record's of the age, promptly dropped the artist. In 1991, the label would cull from both these albums for the Authorized Rockers compilation.

Undeterred, Clarke released his third album for the year, Don't Stay Out Late, made available in Britain by the Paradise label. The only reason it received somewhat less acclaim than Rockers Time Now is because people were still raving about that album. However, it was its equal and features such seminal songs as "Judgement Day" and "Blood Dunza."