Ken Boothe was born in   Denham Town ,   Kingston . He attended Denham Primary Elementary School and during this period developed an interest in music after receiving encouragement from his eldest sister,   Hyacinth Clover , who was an established vocalist. [2] [3]   Boothe cites singer   Owen Gray   as a major influence, particularly after hearing Gray perform the   Leiber and Stoller   rhythm and blues version   of the 1920s   blues standard , " Kansas City Blues ", written by E L Bowman and notably performed by   Jim Jackson   in 1927.   Stranger Cole , who was an established artist and neighbor to Boothe, had already worked with Boothe on the Sir Percy sound system as well as recording two songs for independent producer Sir Mike though Boothe's major breakthrough came in 1963 after Cole arranged an audition at Duke Reid's studio. [3]   The audition with Cole and Boothe performing the song "Uno Dos Tres" was a success and Boothe and Cole formed the duo 'Stranger & Ken' with the first track released by them being "Hush Baby" on the B-side of Cole's   Island Records   single "Last Love". [4]   This was followed by the singles "Thick in Love" both released in 1963 on R&B Records. [5]   They released several more popular singles between 1963 and 1965, including "World's Fair", "Hush", and "Artibella". [4]   Boothe also recorded as a duo with   Roy Shirley   (as Roy & Ken), which resulted in the release of the single "Paradise" in 1966. [5]

Boothe's first solo tracks were recorded in 1966 after   Clement "Coxsone" Dodd   had signed him to his Studio One Label. [4]   He also recorded material for   Phil Pratt   and   Sonia Pottinger   the same year. [4]   He had almost immediate success with songs including " The Train Is Coming " (on which he was backed by   the Wailers ), the first, ska version, of later reggae song   You're No Good   with   Soulettes   (the group Bob Marley's future wife   Rita Anderson   was in) on B-side, and "Lonely Teardrops". The following year, Boothe and   Alton Ellis   had a successful UK tour with the Studio One session group, the   Soul Vendors . Boothe was promoted as " Mr. Rock Steady " by Dodd during this period. The rocksteady classic "Moving Away" was released in 1967 or 1968 on the Coxsone label. "Moving Away" is a song still popular today, and covered or sampled by many artists, among them   Dennis Brown ,   Jackie Mittoo   ("Macka Fat"),   Jack Radics   I-Roy ,   U-Roy   ("African Message"),   Janet Key ,   Jaime Hinckson ,   Romain des Bois ,   Bruno Mars ,   Al Campbell   ("Dress Black"   Garnett Silk   ("It's Growing"),   Half Pint   ("Substitute Lover"),   Wayne Wonder   ("Time To Say Good Bye"),   Leroy Smart   ("Talk About Friends"),   Sanchez   ("Don't Worry"),   Admiral Tibet   ("Nuthin Nah Run" among many others. Many of Boothe's songs have been reused in one way or another. On the B-side of the single "Moving Away" was the instrumental "Streets Of Gold" by the   Skatalites . Boothe continued to record for Dodd until 1970, when he switched to producer Leslie Kong's   Beverley's Records   and reggae, where his success continued with hits such as "Freedom Street" and "Why Baby Why". [4] [6]

After Kong died, Boothe recorded for many of Jamaica's top producers during the early 1970s, including   Keith Hudson ,   Herman Chin Loy ,   Vincent "Randy" Chin , and Phil Pratt. [6]   He then formed the group Conscious Minds with   B. B. Seaton .[ citation needed ]

Under a new direction from record producer   Lloyd Charmers , Boothe released " Everything I Own " on   Trojan Records , which reached   Number One   in the   UK Singles Chart   in 1974. [4]   The song, written by   David Gates , was given a sympathetic light   reggae   feel and it received airplay and an appreciative audience in the   West Indies   and was regularly played on the radio stations of the UK due to its "crossover" appeal.   David Gates ' own group,   Bread , had had a minor UK hit with the song in the spring of 1972, but it had only reached No. 32. [7]   Boothe's reggae version of the song " Everything I Own " reached Number One in the   UK Singles Chart   on 26 October 1974, and stayed at the top of the charts for three weeks. [8]   It featured   Lloyd Parks   on bass guitar,   Paul Douglas a.k.a. Paul Williams   on drums, Willie Lindo on guitar, and   Lloyd Charmers   on organ, piano and percussion. The recording was produced by Lloyd Charmers. [9]

Boothe had one more hit in the UK Singles Chart during the 1970s, "Crying Over You", [4]   which made No. 11, [8]   with Trojan Records' collapse and a split with Charmers losing much of the momentum built up by his two hits. [1] [10]   Boothe recorded a reggae version of the standard   "When I Fall In Love"   which was released in 1974 on the Studio One label.

In 1978, along with   Dillinger ,   Leroy Smart , and   Delroy Wilson , Boothe was   referenced   by   lyricist   Joe Strummer   in   the Clash 's song, " (White Man) In Hammersmith Palais ". Boothe reunited with Charmers in the late 1970s when a revived Trojan Records released the albums   Blood Brothers   (first issued on LTD in 1976) and   Who Gets Your Love , but the reunion proved to be short-lived. [1]   He continued to record during the 1980s and had a few hits during 1986 and 1987. [1]

In more recent times, Boothe has recorded for   Bunny Lee ,   Phil Pratt ,   King Jammy , Pete Weston,   Jack Ruby , Hugh "Red Man" James, Castro Brown and Tappa Zukie. In 1995 a version of "The Train Is Coming", re-worked with   Shaggy , was used in the soundtrack for the film   Money Train . [1]

A two-disc set of Boothe's recordings for   Trojan ,   Crying Over You , was released in 2001. [1]

Boothe was awarded the   Order of Distinction   for his contribution to Jamaican music by the Jamaican government in 2003. [11]