Don Letts' Eternal Fashion: "When I wear this shirt now, how do I feel?" Thinner than I should be'

I knew the late designer Scott Crolla a bit, as we were in the same circles in London. He had a shop in the early 80s. I have three or four of these shirts. His use of exotic fabrics presented in this traditional English style first caught my attention, although he had a soft spot for the Nehru collar. He favors floral velvet and cashmere, but what really sets him apart is that the fabrics he chooses seem more suited to making sofas and curtains. I remember lending this shirt to Ziggy Marley for one of the first videos I made for him.

The shop had been open for about 10 years, selling shirts, pants and suits, but using unusual fabrics that flew against the trends. It created a cool juxtaposition that appealed to the eternal dandy in me.

I'm all about culture shock. I guess what would have seemed like exotic fabrics to Caucasians immediately appealed to me, as they had references to Indian and African fabrics. The shirt I'm wearing looks a lot like something out of Nigeria to me - it appealed to the duality of my existence, which was black and British.

For working-class children raised in the 60s and 70s, the only way to achieve status or identity, c "is about finding our tribe and expressing our sexuality to us, was through the clothes we wore and the music we listened to. We made an art form of that. I was really part of the generation that used the clothes and the art to gain status and identity.

I'm not really into fashion because by its very nature it comes and goes. I'm on style - it's forever. Style is an intrinsic part of who I am as a working class black kid of Jamaican descent. I am a child of the Windrush generation. Look at these people when they get off the boat; how are they dressed? Gaberdine suits and floral dresses. We've brought flavor and color to the UK.

When I wear it now, how do I feel? Thinner than I should be, but I don't wear it often, because I have to fit in my stomach to wear it. I don't get too hung up on it because I'm about to move on, but it's stuck in my wardrobe and I guess that's because it's out of fashion; he has an eternal style. You could release it then, you could release it 10 years later and, indeed, here we are 40 years later.

Don Letts' first solo album , Outta Sync, out May 26 on Cooking Vinyl