Roots Radics

The Roots Radics Band was formed in 1978 by bass player Errol “Flabba” Holt and guitarist Eric “Bingy Bunny” Lamont. As a combined force the Roots Radics became a well respected studio and stage band, which dominated the sound in the first half of the 1980s.  Roots Radics beat can be heard supporting the likes of Bunny Wailer, Gregory Isaacs, and Israel Vibration as well as releasing many albums themselves.

‘Radix’ which sounds like ‘Radics’ is the Latin word for ‘Root’.

Chaka Demus and the Pliers

Chaka Demus and the Pliers are a duo of Jamaican made up of DJ, ChakaDemus and singer, Pliers.  Each of the two had already established himself in the music world before they even teamed up for international recognition in the 1990’s.  They were the first Jamaican act to have three consecutive top five hits on the Singles Chart in the England(a record that stood for nearly 20 years, until a guy named Shaggy came along).  “Twist and Shout” (written by the Isley Bros)is one of their most popular covers that helped earn them the number one spot.

Buju Banton

Buju Banton (born Mark Anthony Myrie in 1973), is a politicaly outspoken musician who got his “Buju” nickname(meaning chubby) from his mother at an early age.  Ironically Banton is extremely thin in stature.  Banton is a Jamaican word for ‘respected storyteller’, in which, he uses due to his admiration of Burro Banton.  At age 15, he wrote his most controversial song “Boom Bye Bye” which calls for the killing of homosexuals.  In 1992, he broke Bob Marley’s record of greatest number of number one singles in a year.

Don Drummond

Don Drummond (1932-1969) was a ska trombonist and composer,  as well as one of the original members to the Skatalites.  Drummond has been credited with composing many of those great songs.  His musical career began in the mid-1950s with the Eric Deans All-Stars. He continued into the 1960s with others, including Kenny Williams.  He became a household name with his success until he began suffering mental problems.  In 1965 he was convicted of the murdering Anita “Margarita” Mahfood, an exotic dancer and singer. He was imprisoned at Belle Vue Asylum, Kingston where he remained until his death. The official cause of death was “suicide”, but other theories remain; some of his colleagues believed it was a government plot against the Kingston musical scene, and some believed that he was killed by gangsters as revenge for the murder of Mahfood.

The Melodians

Many say they are the finest rocksteady group to come out of Jamaica, The Melodians were formed in the Greenwich Town area of Kingston in 1965 by Tony Brevett (brother of Skatalites bassist Lloyd Brevett), Brent Dowe and Trevor McNaughton. Close friend, Renford Cogle, assisted with writing and arranging material. In 1966 The Melodians made their recording debut with Clement “Coxsone” Dodd’s Studio One label with the releases “Lay It On” “Meet Me”, “I Should Have Made It Up” and “Let’s Join Hands (Together).”