Beginning as a shoestring operation in a Malton, Ontario basement, Summer Records brought forth the vibrant and studio tight Earth Roots & Water. The label was founded by Jerry Brown in 1974 and while it had low-key roots, it housed big names like the Skatalites, Jackie Mittoo, Leroy Sibbles, Stanger Cole, Johnny Osbourne and many other major players. The studio became a congregation for Toronto reggae artists and was coined as the Canadian response to Lee Perry’s Ark. The many flow of musicians that frequented Summer Records began playing together and calling themselves Earth Roots & Water. Members included Adrian “Homer” Miller (vocals), Anthony “Base” Hibbert (base), Colin “Zuba” Suban (drums), Matt Shelley (guitar), and Tony “KB” Moore (keyboards).

The group began touring in and around Toronto, gaining notoriety in the reggae and punk scenes that were beginning to evolve. The band collaborated with musicians Johnny Osbourne, Otis Gayle, Jerry Brown, and Bumby Jones among others. They became the house band for the studio and in 1977, they mixed the studios first longest playing album, Innocent Youths. They only released 500 copies of the album, one of which was given to Sting after they opened for The Police and The Stranglers on their North American tour. The album has a ‘rub-a- dub’ style and taps into the bedrock of reggae consciousness. In 2008 Light in the Attic Studio, Jerry Brown, and producer Kevin Howes, remastered and re-released Innocent Youths; the album continues to be a highly sought after and rare piece of Canadian reggae history.