The music of Jamaica includes Jamaican folk music and many popular genres, such as mento, ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub music, dancehall, reggae fusion and related styles.
The Maytals, known from 1972 to 2020 as Toots and the Maytals, are a Jamaican musical group, one of the best known ska and rocksteady vocal groups. The Maytals were formed in the early 1960s and were key figures in popularizing reggae music.
Don Drummond was a Jamaican ska trombonist and composer. He was one of the original members of The Skatalites, and composed many of their tunes. In 1966, Drummond was convicted of murdering his 23-year-old lover, Anita "Marguerita" Mahfood.
Studio One is one of Jamaica's most renowned record labels and recording studios; it has been described as the Motown of Jamaica. The record label was involved with most of the major music movements in Jamaica during the 1960s and 1970s, including ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub and dancehall.
Lester "Ska" Sterling OD, also known as Mr. Versatile, was a Jamaican trumpet and saxophone player.
Vin Gordon is a Jamaican trombone player.
Derrick Clifton Harriott OD is a Jamaican singer and record producer. He was a member of the Jiving Juniors with Herman Sang before embarking on a solo career. He has produced recordings by Big Youth, Chariot Riders, The Chosen Few, Dennis Brown, The Ethiopians, Keith & Tex, The Kingstonians, Rudy Mills, Scotty, Sly & Revolutionaries, and Winston McAnuff.
The Order of Distinction (OD) is a national order in the Jamaican honours system. It is the sixth in order of precedence of the Orders of Societies of Honour, which were instituted by an Act of Parliament in 1968. The motto of the Order is "Distinction Through Service".
Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace is a Jamaican drummer who worked for several years at Studio One, and has worked with numerous reggae artists including The Gladiators, Inner Circle, Prince Far I, Sound Dimension, Gregory Isaacs, Burning Spear, Ijahman Levi, Bruno Blum and Pierpoljak. He starred as himself in the lead role of the film Rockers. Wallace attended the Alpha Boys School in the 1960s and early 1970s, where he studied under Lennie Hibbert. Wallace also joined The Skatalites when they reformed in the mid-1970s. Wallace has been credited with inventing the 'Rockers' rhythm.
Johnny Osbourne is one of the most popular Jamaican reggae and dancehall singers of all time, who rose to success in the late 1970s and mid-1980s. His album Truths and Rights was a roots reggae success, and featured "Jah Promise" and the album's title track, "Truths and Rights".
The Skatalites are a ska band from Jamaica. They played initially between 1963 and 1965, and recorded many of their best known songs in the period, including "Guns of Navarone." They also played on records by Prince Buster and backed many other Jamaican artists who recorded during that period, including Bob Marley & The Wailers, on their first single "Simmer Down." They reformed in 1983 and have played together ever since.
Wilton "Bogey" Gaynair was a Jamaican-born jazz musician, whose primary instrument was the tenor saxophone. "Blue Bogey", "Kingston Bypass" "Debra", and "Wilton Mood" are among his better known songs.
Sister Mary Ignatius Davies was a Sister of Mercy and inspirational music teacher known for her work at the Alpha Boys School.
John Arlington "Dizzy" Moore OD was a Jamaican trumpet player and founding member of pioneering Jamaican ska and reggae act The Skatalites.
Lennie Hibbert OD was a Jamaican musician who was bandmaster at the Alpha Cottage School, and also a vibraphone virtuoso, recording two albums for Studio One.
Felix Headley Bennett OD, also known as Deadly Headley, was a prolific Jamaican saxophonist who performed on hundreds, possibly thousands, of recordings since the 1950s.
Winston Foster, better known by the stage name Yellowman and also known as King Yellowman, is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay. He first became popular in Jamaica in the 1980s, rising to prominence with a series of singles that established his reputation.
Herman Sang is a pianist from Bournemouth Gardens, Jamaica. He played an integral part in the pre-ska and early-ska development of Jamaican music.
Ferdinand "Bobby Little Bra" Gaynair was a saxophone player from Jamaica who later lived in Canada. He was born in East Kingston in the 1920s. He received an Order of Distinction. He was part of the Alpha Boys School. He played and recorded with various musicians including Count Ossie.
Clifton "Jackie" Jackson is a Jamaican bass player, who was an important and prolific session musician and bassist on ska, rocksteady, reggae, dub and discomix records throughout the 1960s and 1970s, and was later a member of Toots and the Maytals.
