The thanksgiving service for music producer Joseph “Jo Jo” Hoo Kim takes place on October 20 at Stella Maris Roman Catholic Church in St Andrew, starting at 11:00 am.

Hoo Kim, principal of the venerable Channel One studio, died September 20 from liver cancer in New York at age 75. He and his three younger brothers (Paul, Kenneth and Ernest) started Channel One at Maxfield Avenue in 1972.

Under Hoo Kim’s guidance, Channel One became a hit factory, producing a flood of hit songs that are considered reggae classics. They include It’s A Shame (Delroy Wilson), I Need A Roof (The Mighty Diamonds), Ballistic Affair (Leroy Smart), Woman Is Like A Shadow (The Meditations), Jah Jah Give Us Life (The Wailing Souls) and MPLA, a militant instrumental by The Revolutionaries, the studio’s house band which included drummer Sly Dunbar, bassist Ranchie McLean and saxophonist Tommy McCook.

The Hoo Kims are originally from Greenwich Farm, a seafaring community not far from Maxfield Avenue. Their family operated an ice cream parlour, slot machines and a sound system before opening the studio and moving into music production.

Paul was murdered in Greenwich Farm in 1977 and Kenneth died from lung cancer five years ago.