AFTER over 25 years in the music business, singer Michael Dawkins has developed an appreciation for patience.

So, one year since the release of his debut album Sojourn, he is still promoting songs from it which include covers of The Hollies’ He Ain’t Heavy and Rain From the Sky, made popular by Delroy Wilson.

“These songs have longevity. No matter who does them, they’re timeless,” said Dawkins.

Sojourn also has original songs such as the title track and Brighter Day, written by Dawkins. The album is produced by John Allen, a veteran Jamaican session musician who lives in New York.

It is Dawkins’ comeback project, having taken a break from music and returning to his ‘trades’ as an upholsterer and mechanic.

“I took a break to take care of the family an’ was waiting on the right connection to get back into the music. Yuh have to be careful in dis business,” he said.

Dawkins began recording in the late 1980s, his first released song being Nuh Gimme nuh Crack. Other songs, like Thursday Night and Assassin, were done during the 1990s.

— Howard Campbell