The Sensations were a Jamaican vocal group which performed backing on many of the reggae hits of the late 1960s and early 1970s. Membership was fluid but centred on the original members Jimmy Riley, Cornel Campbell, Buster Riley and Harold "Bobby" Davis. [1]
They released "Just One Smile" as a single in 1969. [2]
Harold "Bobby" Davis died in London on 21 April 2024, at the age of 77. [3]
Cecil Bustamente Campbell, known professionally as Prince Buster, was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer. The records he released in the 1960s influenced and shaped the course of Jamaican contemporary music and created a legacy of work that would be drawn upon later by reggae and ska artists.
Bob Marley and the Wailers were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae band. The founding members, in 1963, were Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and Bunny Wailer.
Alfarita Constantia "Rita" Marley OJ OD is a Cuban born Jamaican singer-songwriter and entrepreneur. She is the widow of reggae legend Bob Marley. Along with Marcia Griffiths and Judy Mowatt, Rita was a member of the reggae vocal group the I Threes, the backing vocalists for Bob Marley and the Wailers.
Leslie Kong was a Jamaican reggae producer.
Aston Francis Barrett, CD, often called "Family Man" or "Fams" for short, was a Jamaican musician and Rastafarian. He was best known as the bandleader of Bob Marley's backing band, as well as co-producer of the albums, and the man in charge of the overall song arrangements.
The Stalag riddim is a popular reggae riddim, which came to prominence in the 1980s. It was originally written and recorded as "Stalag 17" by Ansel Collins and released by Winston Riley's Techniques record label in 1973. The riddim has been used on hundreds of derivative records.
The Melodians are a rocksteady band formed in the Greenwich Town area of Kingston, Jamaica, in 1963, by Tony Brevett, Brent Dowe and Trevor McNaughton. Renford Cogle assisted with writing and arranging material.
The Wailers Band is a Jamaican reggae band formed by former members of Bob Marley and the Wailers after Marley's death in 1981. It was led by bassist Aston "Familyman" Barrett until 2016, when he passed the role onto his son, Aston Barrett Jr.
The Wailing Souls are a Jamaican reggae vocal group whose origins date back to the 1960s. The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years with Winston "Pipe" Matthews and Lloyd "Bread" McDonald the only constant members. They have been nominated for Grammy Awards three times.
Robert Nesta Marley was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive vocal and songwriting style. Marley increased the visibility of Jamaican music worldwide and made him a global figure in popular culture. He became known as a Rastafarian icon, and he infused his music with a sense of spirituality. Marley is also considered a global symbol of Jamaican music and culture and identity and was controversial in his outspoken support for democratic social reforms. Marley also supported the legalisation of cannabis and advocated for Pan-Africanism.
The Gaylads are a Jamaican vocal group. They were one of the top rocksteady vocal groups active in Jamaica between 1963 and 1973.
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.
Soul Syndicate, originally called the Rhythm Raiders, were one of the top reggae session bands in Jamaica from the early 1970s to the mid-1980s.
Donald Kinsey was an American guitarist and singer, best known as a member of the Word Sound and Power Band, the reggae backing group for Peter Tosh.
Martin James Ziggy Norman Riley, better known as Jimmy Riley, was a Jamaican singer who in addition to recording solo was also a member of the Sensations and The Uniques and was the father of Tarrus Riley.
Cornel Campbell aka Don Cornel or Don Gorgon is a reggae singer, best known for his trademark falsetto voice, and his recordings at Studio One in the late 1960s and his later work with Bunny Lee in the 1970s.
Neville O'Riley Livingston, known professionally as Bunny Wailer, was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and percussionist. He was an original member of reggae group The Wailers along with Bob Marley and Peter Tosh. A three-time Grammy Award winner, he is considered one of the longtime standard-bearers of reggae music. He was also known as Jah B, Bunny O'Riley, and Bunny Livingston.
Winston Hubert McIntosh, professionally known as Peter Tosh, was a Jamaican reggae musician. Along with Bob Marley and Bunny Wailer, he was one of the core members of the band the Wailers (1963–1976), after which he established himself as a successful solo artist and a promoter of Rastafari. He was murdered in 1987 during a home invasion.
Paul Douglas is a Jamaican musician, best known for his work as the drummer, percussionist and bandleader of Toots and the Maytals. His career spans more than five decades as one of reggae's most recorded drummers. Music journalist and reggae historian David Katz wrote, "dependable drummer Paul Douglas played on countless reggae hits."
Jimmy Riley, Cornel Campbell, Winston Riley's brother Buster, and Aaron "Bobby" Davis, (whose nickname was Deeper Sensation) were all members of the Sensations at the outset. The Techniques had introduced them to Duke Reid but ...