Skylarking (Horace Andy song)
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| "Skylarking" | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Single by Horace Andy | |
| from the album Skylarking | |
| B-side | "Skylarking Version" |
| Released | 1971 |
| Genre | Reggae |
| Length | 2:49 |
| Label | Bongo Man |
| Songwriter(s) | H. Hinds (Horace Andy) |
| Producer(s) | Coxsone Dodd |
"Skylarking" is a single by Jamaican singer and songwriter Horace Andy, produced by Studio One founder Coxsone Dodd.[1] The song, lyrically an admonishment of loitering youths who expect handouts, has been described as Andy's signature tune.[1][2] It was first issued, rendered "Sky Larking", on Dodd's Jamaica Today - The Seventies compilation in 1971.[3] The song became a popular sound system hit, prompting a release as a single on the Studio One subsidiary Bongo Man.[4] It topped the Jamaican singles chart published in The Gleaner in August 1972.[2][3] Andy cut the song again in 1974 for Bunny Lee, who licensed the recording to the UK-based Venture Records.[3] A 1992 cover by Garnett Silk revived the song's popularity in Jamaica.[3] Andy sings excerpts from "Skylarking", as well as his later song "Money Money" (1980), on Massive Attack's "Five Man Army" (1991).[5]