Capital Letters


 * (Adapted from lastfm)

Capital Letters were a reggae band from Wolverhampton, England. A move to Shepherds Bush, Middlesex, in 1977 set them in place to become one of the Greensleeves label's first signings. Their single "Smoking My Ganja" blew the woofers out of UK sound systems throughout '78, and propelled them into the studio to record a full-length. The resulting LP, Headline News, was Greensleeves' seventh release and one of the more critically acclaimed reggae records of 1979 with its finely balanced blend of African, Jamaican, and English influences and songs that covered topics ranging from religion to marijuana legalization to the bloody reign of Idi Amin.

Capital Letters were a big band, eight-strong (adding another guitarist/vocalist for their 1979 John Peel radio session), that boasted four vocalists, two drummers (one the conga player) and two percussionists among their ranks. In Jamaica, brass and/or organ filled out the arrangements.

Unfortunately, Capital Letters were also relatively short-lived. After Headline News, they only released one other LP, Vineyard, on a minor German label in 1982.

In 2013, Capital Letters reformed. The albums Wolverhampton and Wolverhampton In Dub followed in 2015, both on Sugar Shack Records, and Vineyard was re-released with bonus material (including Peel session tracks).

Links to Peel


Peel was a huge fan of the band’s debut single, "Smoking My Ganja", which he described as “the best British record of the year” in November 1978. A session soon followed, which he subsequently repeated among the best sessions for 1979. The 12” double-header "UK Skank / Run, Run, Run" was equally enthusiastically received, described by Peel as “really ridiculously good”[2], while the Headline News LP also enjoyed repeated plays on his show.

After 1980, however, Peel seemed to lose track of Capital Letters, and currently available tracklistings suggest he failed to air anything from 1983’s Vineyard LP. In 2002, while responding to a listener request to play "Smoking My Ganja", he noted that the single had "disappeared into the BBC Record Library in 1979 (and) this is the first time that it's been out, which I think is really sad."

Festive Fifty Entries

 * None

Sessions
One session. Released on Vinyard, CD expanded re-release, 2015 (Greensleeves GRE2099).

1. Recorded 1979-01-16. First broadcast 24 January 1979. Repeated: 13 February 1979, 01 January 1980.
 * Fire / Smokin My Ganja / Rasta Say

Other Shows Played

 * 1978
 * 20 October 1978: Smoking My Ganja (12") Greensleeves
 * 31 October 1978: Smoking My Ganja (12”) Greensleeves
 * 13 November 1978: Smoking My Ganja (12") Greensleeves
 * 13 November 1978: Natty Walk (12" - Smoking My Ganja) Greensleeves
 * 27 November 1978: Smoking My Ganja (12") Greensleeves (JP: 'The best British record of the year. How's that for a contentious remark?')


 * 1979
 * 28 May 1979: UK Skanking (12") Greensleeves (At the start of the show, Peel trails “really ridiculously good new singles from Capital Letters and the Ruts, both sides of both of those”.)
 * 28 May 1979: Run Run Run (b/w UK Skanking - 12") Greensleeves
 * 30 May 1979: Run Run Run (LP - Headline News) Greensleeves
 * 26 June 1979: Run, Run, Run (b/w 'UK Skanking' 12") Greensleeves (Wrong Track Moment – Peel had intended to play the other side)
 * 06 August 1979: Run Run Run (12" Single) Greensleeves
 * 16 August 1979: Run Run Run (12” single) Greensleeves
 * 04 October 1979: Run Run Run (LP - Headline News) Greensleeves
 * 11 October 1979: Out Of Africa (LP – Headline News) Greensleeves
 * 16 October 1979 (Virgin In-Store): Unemployed (LP - Headline News) Greensleeves


 * 1980
 * 01 July 1980: Bread & Water (7" EP) Greensleeves


 * 1990s and 2000s
 * 06 April 1991: Smoking My Ganja (12") Greensleeves (JP, before playing track: "Older listeners may recall that there was a band called Capital Letters who had one of our favourite records back in 1978.)
 * 13 February 2002: Smoking My Ganga (12" single) Greensleeves (Played in response to a listener request. Peel says the record "disappeared into the BBC Record Library in 1979 (and) this is the first time that it's been out, which I think is really sad.")