July 9, 2024
To mark the 35th anniversary of the Tasty Talent Competition, former judge Howard McGowan recently donated 50 vinyl albums to Tasty, the company that organized the event from 1979 to 2013.
The presentation took place at Tasty’s Crossroads headquarters in Kingston last month, where McGowan, a judge during the competition and former entertainment editor of The Gleaner, handed the record over to Tasty director Simone Champon.
“Tasty has arguably contributed more to the local entertainment industry than any other organisation, from discovering talent through the Tasty Talent Competition for 34 years to writing sheet music and providing free concerts every year,” he told the Jamaica Observer.
The first competition was won by Nadine Sutherland, an 11-year-old pupil at St Andrew’s High School, with second place going to Paul Blake, who went on to become lead singer for Bloodfire Posse, and third place going to Yellowman.
The win earned Sutherland a recording contract with reggae star Bob Marley’s Tuff Gong Records, and his first recordings for the label were the hits “Starvation on the Land” and “A Young One Like Me”.
Marley’s “Kaya,” Burning Spear’s “Hail HIM,” Lee “Scratch” Perry’s “Chicken Scratch,” Chalice’s “Stan’ Up” and Shinehead’s “Real Rock” are among the albums McGowan has donated to the Tasty archive.
He is the latest media personality to donate music from his personal collection. Dermot Hussey and the Burns brothers (Jeff, Winston and Ed) have also made similar donations to the Jamaica Music Museum and the Jamaican government, respectively.
