Robert Ffrench - Contributed

I'm getting back in the heads of a lotta young people with this song, and that has shown people who even know mi dat I still have what it takes.

In the 1980s when beaver hats and dub plates were on their way out, Robert Ffrench emerged as one of the singers expected to chart a new course for dancehall and reggae.

After enjoying a purple patch that lasted until the early 1990s, Ffrench is eyeing a return to local charts. The song he hopes will do the trick is I Do, a recently released ballad he co-produced with Horace Davis, his partner in the Sing Jock label.

Although he has been off the radar for some time, Ffrench says he is not daunted by the transformation of Jamaica's music scene.

"I'm getting back in the heads of a lotta young people with this song, and that has shown people who even know mi dat I still have what it takes," Ffrench said in a recent interview with The Gleaner.

Ffrench has to go back to the early 1990s for his last hit song, the self-produced Bun and Cheese which was done with deejay Clement Irie. What More Do You Want, Modern Girl, Ruff And Tuff and On The Dance Floor were other songs that entered the charts and made him one of the top lovers rock singers of the 1980s.

On The Dance Floor was written by Beres Hammond, produced by Joe Gibbs and covered by rhythm and blues group Force MDs. The Force MDs version was a minor hit but helped introduce Ffrench to a group of American young bloods, like rapper Heavy D, who were crafting an edgy sound called 'new jack swing'.

He recorded several well-received songs with the Kingston-born Heavy D, including Free And Single, but Ffrench admits his years in New York City may have done his career more harm than good.

"It cause mi fi stray from certain things, now mi haffi get back to mi roots," he said.

Ffrench says his listening taste was diverse while he was growing up in central Kingston. He began recording during his years at Kingston College and got his first hit, Joker Family, shortly after leaving high school.

Impact

With What More Do You Want and Modern Girl, Ffrench followed in the footsteps of established lovers rock vocalists like Dennis Brown, Freddie McGregor, Barrington Levy and Hammond. Apart from Hammond, it has been rare for singers over 40 to make an impact on contemporary Jamaican radio.

Ffrench insists he can break that trend. "Mi can adjust to any situation musically. I'm still a good singer and songwriter and it shouldn't tek any long time for mi to get back," he said.

Ffrench's comeback continues on August 5 when he appears on the St Mary Mi Come From show.