Police In Helicopter

Militancy is normally found amongst the young, with age revolution's fire tends to sputter. At 36, John Holt could look back across a more than two-decade-long glittering pop career, both as a solo singer and as a member of the Paragons. Holt was in his early twenties when he deliberately began courting a maturer audience, transforming himself into a family entertainer, old before his time. 

But in 1982, he found a new lease on life, publicly announced his Rastafarian beliefs, and began deliberately courting the dancehall crowds. By the following year he had gained their attention, now he would earn their respect. "Police in Helicopter" was produced by Junjo Lawes, who was instrumental in the singer's resurrection. Backed by Roots Radics, the single was a stunningly militant song, set to a deeply rootsy rhythm that reverberated with the booming beats beloved by the dancehalls, and laced by moody guitar passages. "If you continue to burn up the herbs," Holt adamantly declares, "we're going to burn down the cane fields." 

His fiercesome threat against Jamaica's eradication policy echoes across the grooves as passionately as the police searched for marijuana fields. "Helicopter" was a massive hit and titled the singer's new album, which was also released in 1983.

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