Inna De Yard

A famous French chemist and philosopher once said, “Nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed”. Does the same apply to music? From Mozart to Serge Gainsbourg, the greatest creators have always drawn on the works of their predecessors and contemporaries, before becoming influences themselves. So yes, music is about influence, borrowing from others, covering songs and… performing.

This is particularly true of Jamaica, where producers record the same hit several times, performed by different singers. Artists cover – and sometimes change – other people's songs, and the public and producers have always looked to their American neighbours for inspiration, drawing from its catalogue. In this respect, Ken Boothe is definitely a very Jamaican artist.

The first track on his new album (his first for 25 years, at least internationally), “Speak Softly Love”, has a back story that perfectly illustrates this aspect of music. The song is known for having been written by Italian composer Nino Rota (lyrics by Larry Kusik) for the film “The Godfather” by Francis Ford Coppola. The original soundtrack became legendary at the time but was disqualified from its category at the Oscars: Nino Rota had already used the theme in another film twenty years before!1 What's even more intriguing is that this famous theme tune was itself borrowed from… Verdi's opera “La forza del destino”.