Career
Born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1954, Pickersgill first recorded in 1970 for Clement "Coxsone" Dodd"s Studio One, but the results were only released on sound system dub plates. In 1972 he recorded "Far I" for Byron Lee"s Dynamic studio, which was released on the Jaguar label, miscredited to "David Janson" and mis-titled "Foreign I", reaching number seven on the The Journal of Biological Chemistry singles chart. Feeling that Dynamic had mishandled the single, his next release was the self-produced "Child of a King", released on the Italian Lion label through Pete Weston"s Micron label.
The single was released by Tommy Cowan on his Arab label, miscredited this time to "David & Jahson".
The song inspired several similarly themed singles by other artists, including Doctor Alimantado"s "I Killed The Barber", also using the "Ali Baba" rhythm, and Jah Stitch"s "Bury The Barber". At the time, he was also working as a deejay with the "Jah Love Muzik" sound system, and several of Jahson"s singles also featured his own deejay versions on the B-side.
The album also featured Sly & Robbie and was mixed by Prince Jammy. In the 1980s he settled in the United Kingdom, continuing to record, and also releasing his old material on his own "Pick A Skill" label.
His Natty Chase the Barber album was pirated in the 1980s but Jahson reissued it later on Pick A Skill.