Tommy Cowan

Last updated

Tommy Cowan
Birth nameThomas Lincoln Cowan
Born (1946-04-06) 6 April 1946 (age 74)
Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica
Genres Reggae, ska, rocksteady, gospel
Occupation(s)Singer-songwriter, musician, record producer
InstrumentsVocals
Years activemid-1960s–present
LabelsTalent Corporation, MIC, Glory Music
Associated actsThe Merricoles, The Jamaicans

Tommy Cowan CD (born Thomas Lincoln Cowan, 6 April 1946, Saint Elizabeth, Jamaica) is a producer and singer, initially working in reggae but later concentrating on gospel, who has been involved in the music business since the 1960s. [1] [2] He is also an ordained Gospel minister and a justice of the peace.

Contents

Biography

Cowan entered the music business in the mid-1960s as a member of The Merricoles, a vocal group who won a local talent contest. [1] The group changed their name to The Jamaicans in 1967, and won the Jamaican Song Festival with the Duke Reid-produced "Baba Boom", which also topped the Jamaican chart. [1] More hits followed in the form of "Sing Freedom", "Things You Say You Love", and "Woman Go Home", before the group split up.

Cowan then took up a job as Sales & Marketing manager at Byron Lee's Dynamic Studios, which gave him the experience needed to move into record production, working with artists including Jacob Miller and Inner Circle, Earl Zero, Ray I, Leroy Smart, Ras Michael, The Cimarons, Dean Stone, and Junior Tucker. [1] [3] An album of dubs of Cowan's productions from this era, Ras Claat Dub was issued on the Grounation label. Several other Cowan-produced sets were credited to the Fatman Ridim Section. Cowan also produced Israel Vibration's The Same Song and Why Worry albums and the latter's associated dub set, Israel Tafari, mixed by King Tubby. [3] Cowan became Inner Circle's manager and set up the Top Ranking record label. Cowan also worked as a Master of Ceremonies at Reggae Sunsplash festivals and at the One Love Peace Concert, organised by Bob Marley. [1] Cowan helped Marley to set up his Tuff Gong studio, [4] and Marley invited Cowan to accompany him on his tour of Europe, and then Zimbabwe in 1980, where he compered the Zimbabwe Independence Day Concert in Salisbury. Back in Jamaica, Cowan with then wife Valerie Chang-Cowan built up his Talent Corporation company, which he had founded in 1975, [4] with artists such as John Holt, Dobby Dobson, Ruddy Thomas, Toots Hibbert, Ernie Smith, Scotty, Jack Radics, and Cowan's second wife Carlene Davis. [1] In 1982, he released an album, The King's Music, credited to Tommy Cowan & Thunder, and featuring musicians such as Willie Lindo, Robbie Lyn, Lloyd Parks, Bongo Herman, and Dean Fraser, with backing vocals from his wife Carlene Davis, and Beres Hammond.

Previously a Rastafarian, Cowan converted to Christianity in 1996. In 1998 Tommy, together with his wife Carlene, began Vessel Ministries and today they both operate the Judah Recording Studio and the Glory Music record label, concentrating on Gospel music. [5] [6] Cowan is also the producer of Jamaica's largest Christian music festival, Fun in the Son. This event was awarded "Gospel Event of the Year in 2014 by the Love Gospel International Awards, Bronx, New York /Kingston, Jamaica. [2]

In 2006, Pressure Sounds issued a compilation of Cowan's productions, Life Goes in Circles (Sounds From The Talent Corporation 1974 to 1979). [4]

In June 2013, Cowan was sworn in as a Justice of the Peace. [7]

Awards

Cowan has received various musical accolades from organisations such as the Jamaica Federation of Musicians, Rockers Awards, the JAMI Awards, and Martin's International Reggae & World Music Awards. He received the Rocksteady Union Lifetime Achievement Award for his contribution to Jamaican music, and both the Mega Jamz Award and Maja awards for Gospel Promoter of the Year in 2007. He and his wife, Carlene Davis was officially inducted into the Gospel Hall Of Fame in 2015 by The Jamaica GHF president and Founder Bishop Dr. J.O Baker in Kingston, Jamaica. [2]

He was also awarded an Honorary Doctorate of Divinity from the Trinity Theological Seminary of South Florida for his work in the Gospel, and he is also ordained as a Gospel minister.

In October 2007, Cowan was awarded the Order of Distinction (Commander Class) by the Jamaican Government. [6]

Albums

Related Research Articles

Burning Spear Jamaican roots reggae musician

Winston Rodney OD, better known by the stage name Burning Spear, is a Jamaican roots reggae singer-songwriter, vocalist and musician. Burning Spear is a Rastafarian and one of the most influential and long-standing roots artists to emerge from the 1970s.

Coxsone Dodd Jamaican musician

Clement Seymour "Sir Coxsone" Dodd was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of ska and reggae in the 1950s, 1960s and beyond.

Gregory Isaacs Jamaican singer

Gregory Anthony Isaacs OD was a Jamaican reggae musician. Milo Miles, writing in The New York Times, described Isaacs as "the most exquisite vocalist in reggae".

Stephen Marley (musician) Jamaican American musician

Stephen Robert Nesta Marley is a Jamaican-American musician who is the son of Bob Marley and his wife Rita Marley. Marley is an eight-time Grammy Award winner, three times as a solo artist, twice as a producer of younger brother Damian Marley's Halfway Tree and Welcome to Jamrock albums, and a further three times as a member of his older brother Ziggy Marley's group Ziggy Marley & The Melody Makers.

Christafari is a Christian reggae band formed in 1989. It is centered on the personality of ordained religious minister Mark Mohr, an American, born-again Christian. Until the age of 17, Mohr was a Rastafarian.

Israel Vibration band

Israel Vibration are a reggae harmony group, originating from Kingston, Jamaica. Lascelle "Wiss" Bulgin, Albert "Apple Gabriel" Craig, and Cecil "Skelly" Spence all suffered from childhood polio, and went on to be a Jamaican roots reggae group Jamaica in the 1970s. The trio initially met as children at a rehabilitation center.

Donat Roy Mittoo, better known as Jackie Mittoo, was a Jamaican-Canadian keyboardist, songwriter and musical director. He was a member of The Skatalites and musical director of the Studio One record label.

Dennis Brown Jamaican reggae singer

Dennis Emmanuel Brown CD was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, which began in the late 1960s when he was aged eleven, he recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the major stars of lovers rock, a subgenre of reggae. Bob Marley cited Brown as his favourite singer, dubbing him "The Crown Prince of Reggae", and Brown would prove influential on future generations of reggae singers.

People of African descent from the Caribbean have made significant contributions to British Black music for many generations.

Michael George Henry OD, better known as Ras Michael, is a Jamaican reggae singer and Nyabinghi specialist. He also performs under the name of Dadawah.

RAS Records

RAS Records, also known as Real Authentic Sound, is a reggae record label.

King Sporty Jamaican DJ

Noel George Williams, better known as King Sporty, was a Jamaican DJ, reggae musician, and record producer for the Tashamba and Konduko labels. He is best known for co-writing the song, "Buffalo Soldier", made famous by Bob Marley.

Bob Marley Jamaican singer-songwriter

Robert Nesta Marley, was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and musician. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, his musical career was marked by fusing elements of reggae, ska, and rocksteady, as well as his distinctive vocal and songwriting style. Marley's contributions to music increased the visibility of Jamaican music worldwide, and made him a global figure in popular culture for over a decade. Over the course of his career Marley became known as a Rastafari icon, and he infused his music with a sense of spirituality. He is also considered a global symbol of Jamaican music and culture and identity, and was controversial in his outspoken support for the legalization of marijuana, while he also advocated for Pan-Africanism.

Rolando Ephraim McLean, better known as Yami Bolo, is a Jamaican reggae singer.

Tony Rebel Jamaican singer

Patrick George Anthony Barrett, better known by his stage name Tony Rebel, is a Jamaican reggae deejay.

Carlene Davis is a Jamaican gospel and reggae singer active since the 1970s. Successful since the early 1980s as a reggae artist, she survived cancer in the mid-1990s, after which she dedicated her career to gospel music. She has released over ten albums.

Gospel reggae has a way of becoming a homecoming sort where so much of the music is influenced by the SKA, RockGospel reggae. This kind of music originated from Jamaica with Christian themed lyrics.

The Mystic Revealers are a reggae band formed in the late 1970s in the seaside town of Bull Bay east of Kingston, Jamaica. Originally, the band was known as just the Revealers, but when another group with that name popped up, it was decided the word "Mystic" would help convey their Rastafari-inspired message of truth, justice, honor and unity. The band's four founding members form the heart of the group and include Kingston-born vocalist, guitarist, and songwriter Billy "Mystic" Wilmot; former Jalan and Earth Disciples drummer and record producer Nicholas "Drummie" Henry, bass guitarist Leroy "Lion" Edwards and guitarist and vocalist Steve Davis. They draw upon Jamaica's rich, established reggae tradition of outspoken political awareness when writing and performing their original material.

Bunny Wailer Jamaican musician

Neville O'Riley Livingston, OM, best known as Bunny Wailer, is a Jamaican singer songwriter and percussionist and 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 is also known as Bunny Livingston and affectionately Jah B.

Peter Tosh Jamaican reggae musician

Peter M. Tosh, OM 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.

References

  1. 1 2 3 4 5 6 Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae. Virgin Books. ISBN   0-7535-0242-9.
  2. 1 2 3 Brooks, Sadeke (2008) "Tommy Cowan, OD? Yes indeed! Archived 20 March 2012 at the Wayback Machine ", Jamaica Gleaner, 2 November 2008
  3. 1 2 Barrow, Steve; Dalton, Peter (1997). Reggae: The Rough Guide . Rough Guides. ISBN   1-85828-247-0.
  4. 1 2 3 "Various Artists – Life Goes in Circles (Sounds From The Talent Corporation 1974 to 1979)". Pressure Sounds. Archived from the original on 28 October 2007. Retrieved 10 February 2008.
  5. ↑ "Tommy Cowan and Carlene Davies". jackrusselmusic.net. Jack Russell Music. Archived from the original on 6 May 2009. Retrieved 10 February 2008.
  6. 1 2 Reid, Tyrone S. (2007) "Tommy and Carlene: A Gospel Affair [ permanent dead link ]", Sunday Observer, 2 September 2007
  7. ↑ Henry, Balford (2013) "Tony Rebel, Tommy Cowan sworn in as JPs", Jamaica Observer , 22 June 2013. Retrieved 30 June 2013
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.