Ska Boom-Episode 014: Josh Harris/The Untouchables "Wild Child" Album

My guest on this episode of the Ska Boom podcast  is Josh Harris, keyboardist and vocalist for The Untouchables, who has a long history helping to popularize Jamaican music in the US. He also has the distinction of being in two the band featured in my forthcoming book Ska Boom: An American Ska & Reggae Oral History which will be published in 2021.Josh was one of the very first American musicians to play reggae after he joined a band called Huey & The Titans in Berkeley, CA in 1973. They later became The Shakers -- the first American reggae band signed to a major label deal).  Ten years later in 1983, Josh joined The Untouchables -- one of the earliest American ska bands -- just as their career was taking off and he was integral to writing, arranging and recording songs the band  recorded for their "Live and Let Dance" EP released in 1984 and their "Wild Child" album for Stiff Records in 1985.Josh and I discuss his introduction to reggae and his education in how to play a reggae "bubble" on his keyboard and the chance meeting he had with The Untouchables that led to him joining the band.  We then take a deep dive into how the band's most well known songs -- "Free Yourself", "What's Gone Wrong" and some of my personal favorites like "I Spy For The FBI" and "Laser Show" were written, arranged and recorded. If you are a fan of The Untouchables and their music then this is a must listen! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices