Record of 1980, selected by Peter Dalton:

RAT IN THE CENTRE - ARCHIE & LYN (HIGH NOTE)

The "Real Rock" rhythm, originally employed as a late 1960s instrumental from Studio One, is one of the most versioned in Jamaican music, with notable cuts produced by both Augustus Pablo and Joe Gibbs in the roots era.

Yet "Real Rock" fever will always be most associated with the dawn of the dancehall era in 1979/1980. The deejay duo Papa Michigan & General Smilie kicked things off with their brilliant "Nice Up the Dance" over an overdubbed cut of the the Brentford Road original. An enormous hit in the reggae market worldwide, this was soon followed not only by vocals - including Willie Williams's renown "Armageddon Time" - but a series of deejay cuts, such as Nigger Kojak's "Nice Up Jamaica", Jah Thomas' "Dance Pon the Corner" and Errol Scorcher's "Roach Ina De Corner". Despite some fierce competition, the otherwise unknown Archie & Lyn's "Rat In the Centre" was perhaps the most off-the-wall and entertaining of them all.

Employing a sprightly Revolutionaries' interpretation of the Soul Vendors' rhythm, Archie takes on the role of the acting manager of a community centre suffering from an infestation of rats. The rodents appear to be of a particularly bold and stylish variety, with some wearing bow ties, others neckties, and the lady rats sporting head ties! Lyn's role in the proceedings is largely restricted to complaining about said rats, and being blamed by Archie (for reasons not entirely clear) for their appearance in the centre. None of Archie's measures succeed until the disc's producer eventually lends her cat. Mrs Pottinger must have owned a particularly tough tabby, as this eventually proves the solution to the problem.

Obviously inspired by Errol Scorcher's tale of decisive action against pests, the stronger storyline of "Rat In the Centre" makes it the most memorable of that era's "Real Rock" versions, and arguably the deejay tune of 1980. After all, any record that includes allusions to Shorty the President's "President A Mash Up De Resident" must have something going for it. Not to be missed by cat lovers - or rat haters - anywhere.