"Jumping The Gun" - Rico Rodriguez

SONG: "Jumping The Gun" (PDF)
ALBUM: Blow Your Horn
YEAR: 1969
LABEL: Trojan Records

On an album intended to showcase the reggae music of trombonist Rico Rodriguez, the song "Jumping The Gun" is the only track that credits Rodriguez as its composer. Being the album's only original work is perhaps why "Jumping The Gun" was released as a single by Trojan Records, backed with "Long Shot Kick The Bucket" by The Pioneers. The Jamaican vocal group experienced a revival of popularity with the 1969 recording - a sequel to their earlier hit "Longshot," written by Lee "Scratch" Perry - and the commercial success of the split single likely led Rico to revive The Pioneers’ song with The Specials on their 1980 live album, Too Much Too Young.