Can you help solve this ska mystery?
I attended Reggae Fest Chicago last weekend, which was extraordinary, by the way, and had a chat with fellow ska fan Jim Cascino, co-host of the Windy City Sound System podcast on Mix Cloud. He asked me if I knew if Prince Buster had been to Chicago in 1964 or prior, and I admitted that I had no idea and I was curious why he asked. He explained that he thought that Prince Buster may have worn a Chicago Bears cap in that now-famous “This Is Ska” film from 1964 at the Sombrero Club narrated and emceed by Tony Verity. I was familiar with the film, of course, but had never noticed Prince Buster’s cap! Jim’s brother Kevin produced a photo on his phone, a still from this film, and there it was! Or so it appears. Could it be the Chicago Bears? Or perhaps, as Jim noted, it is the Cincinnati Reds logo from the mid-1960s? Jim has supplied me with the photo and the logos below so that you all can sleuth an answer for us!
Thoughts?
Chicago Bears Logo
In the meantime, check out Jim Cascino’s show HERE.
And if you missed my Radio M two-hour show with Tony Sarabia on WBEZ to promote Reggae Fest Chicago artists Toots & the Maytals, Keith & Tex, Charley Organaire, Derrick Morgan, Hepcat, and the Prizefighters, listen HERE (thanks to Jim Cascino for recording this for me).