PATRICK Buddo was in primary school when Junior Byles was making hit records in the early 1970s, but he remembers being inspired by the singer’s rootsy songs like Curly Locks.

A cover of that 1974 number about a confused Rastafarian youth living in an intolerant society is Buddo’s latest recording. The self-produced song was done for the 51-year-old’s Romero Music label.

“I’ve never been through anything like that, but it’s a powerful song. I’ve always loved the melody,” he said.

Curly Locks, which was originally produced by Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry, is another Buddo version of a Junior Byles song. Previously, he has covered A Place Called Africa, Fade Away and Beat Down Babylon.

Those songs were hot in Jamaica when Buddo was growing up in the Cockburn Pen community of Kingston. At the time, Byles was a rising star in roots-reggae.

“I’ve never exchanged a word with him, but I’ve always loved his songs,” he said.

Buddo was a producer prior to launching his own singing career in 2004. He has produced songs by Super Cat, Junior Cat and Lloyd Robinson for Romero Music.

A video for Curly Locks, directed by his daughter Chaleta Buddo, has also been released.