Meeting Philip Smart

Like King Jammy and Scientist, Philip Smart was a student of the late great Jamaican dub pioneer KING TUBBY, who gave him the chance to learn the art of sound engineering. At Tubby's he mixed classics like Johnny Clarke's "None Shall Escape the Judgment" for producer Bunny “Striker” Lee, who gave him the title "Prince Philip." But unlike Tubby's other students, Smart relocated to the U.S. in the late 1970s, taking classes in multitrack production and radio in New York. After working for various producers in Brooklyn and the Bronx, Smart established HC&F Studios in Freeport, Long Island, which rapidly became the center of New York's thriving reggae scene.

As I walked into the studio in the f-r-ee-zing NYC weather Philip Smart is laying on the couch taking the weight off his feet waiting for us to arrive. Unfortunately the drive down had taken a detour as the sattelite nav got confused with directions. After initially ending up on Freeport the 'street' in Brooklyn we finally made our way to Freeport the 'area' in Long Island!

But eventually we arrive and we’re really lucky to have caught Philip as his voice was super croaky. He soooo needs to be at home keeping warm and not hanging out in an air-conditioned studio with dancehalll beats on loop—in the middle of a session. But he's a man of his word and everything is irie.

Philip has a lot of knowledge to share but that doesn't mean he's automatically gonna give it all up. I am humbled at being at his legendary studio and frankly I think he sees this and decides to let me into his world—I feel privileged.

The first project recorded at HC&F was Monyaka's "Go Deh Yaka," a crossover hit that charted in the UK.  JAH LIFE  recorded many of his most important projects here including BARRINGTON LEVY's "Murderer" and CARLTON LIVINGSTON's "100 Weight of Collie Weed," which inspired hip-hop hits like BDP's "100 Guns" and JA RULE & FAT JOE's smash "New York."

New York dancehall was often viewed with a certain skepticism by reggae purists, but HC&F soon earned a reputation as the best studio in New York to get the authentic Jamaican reggae sound. Artists like SUPER CAT, SHABBA RANKS, and SHAGGY all made some of the most important music of their careers at Philip's studio.

That’s when you know what’s really up! I for one had no idea at age 12 what I was gonna be doing as an adult. Some of my fantasy career occupations have ranged from pharmacist (more parental pressure than fantasy) to Playboy Bunny (complete fantasy) but Philip was SMART from the get-go I guess, So listen up as one of the pioneers of the NYC reggae scene tells his own tale.

“My dear friend who has passed away now, Augustus Pablo, we got together and started to produce some songs... Pablo had his mobile disco; I had mine, and that’s how we got together and started to produce.”

“Pablo plays piano and melodica and he has a piano at home, so he worked out the songs at home—and we’re still in school, we’re in high school. Save up some lunch money, book a HALF an hour in those days.

''I had no idea. Cause when you’re in music, it’s a world by itself. We put so much time and energy into producing a song or learning how to mix a record or whatever it is that you don’t have time for anything else.”

“That would be a lesson to kids now: if you don’t start from early I don’t think it makes sense to start because if you’re 21 and you’re trying to get into the business it’s already late—unless you’ve got tons of money to push what you want to do through.”

''We started to take the mixes and then go over to Tubby’s and cut them on acetate to play them on the sound. That was the connection. I used to go there every evening and just stand there and watch. Until one day him say ‘Jackson, take that voice!’ So I had to just get behind the board and record the voice.

''Yeah I was scared when him say that. I never knew he would ever say that. He was also evolving. His business was expanding and he actually needed someone to fit in while he dealt with the business. So that’s where I came in. And I got behind the chair and started to do sessions.”

“He actually taught me to cut a dub. I broke a few number of needles, which made him mad—needles cost money and they were hard to get. But once I got it down we were cutting dubs like we were pressing records.”

“I got tired of working with just four tracks. I wanted to learn more about multi-tracking, and also about radio. I did a radio stint in Jamaica on JBC FM. I had a half an hour segment of the hottest American hits. I said ‘I like radio,’ so I came to America to do a class in radio for like three months and get my certificate. Plus my mother wanted me to get my green card before I got too old."

“So I came up, did that. And then I went back home and worked back for Tubs again. After that I said, ‘Bwoy, I still need to learn more.’ Plus I met my wife before I left in New York. So I came back up and got married.”

“I worked for various producers at various studios. I started building a clientele based on my credits. There was a record store in the Bronx named Brads. He used to produce a lot of records. He used to pick me up every night. Luckily the studio was close to my home in Brooklyn. And we did multiple albums. You ever heard of an album called Macka Dub? We did that one together.”