R.I.P. Byron Lee

picoandsepulvedapicoandsepulveda 1,026 Posts
edited November 2008 in Strut Central
a href="http://yardflex.com/" target="_blank"1http://yardflex.com//a1b,121b,121Old folk say the time eventually comes when many memorial services become the order of the day. Well for Jamaican music veterans, it appears to be that appointed time these days.b,121b,121Soon after laying one musical hero to rest another has passed on. We now regret deeply to announce the passing of Byron Lee.b,121b,121Byron Lee, who had been battling transitional cell and bladder cancer, succumbed to the debilitating disease this morning at the Tony Thwaites Wing of the University Hospital of The West Indies. He was flown in from a Miami treatment center recently and was also awarded the Order of Jamaica for his magnanimous stance as a businessman and musician who continually put Jamaica, the Caribbean and its culture all over the map for more than 50 years.b,121b,121Forming the band Byron Lee and the Dragonaires around 1950 with school mate Carl Brady, the St Georges College old boy played private parties at first and soon became a fixture on the hotel circuit. From there the band???s development brought them fame as a top backing band for visiting R&B and rock and roll artists from the US. Priding themselves with being able to play any genre of music, The Dragonaires soon became the vehicle for sounding off Jamaica???s new beats; the ska, rock steady and reggae around the world; and they eventually embraced soca and calypso for their repertoire.b,121b,121Over the years The Dragonaires have backed icons like: the Blues Busters, The Charmers, The Maytals, Stranger Cole and Ken Booth and was credited with initiating the reggae-soca style of music after putting out the 1990 hit, ???Dancehall Soca??? with Admiral Bailey. Byron Lee and The Dragonaires have a discography that is laden with about 59 albums including a 1999 release called, ???Jump for Jesus.???b,121b,121R.I.P. Byron Lee!

  Comments


  • Oh man that is terrible news.. this man was truly a legend and defined the music of Jamaica. He will always be remembered for the fun times that his music brings.. RIP

  • kalakala 3,359 Posts
    saw him in a rooftop bar in miami in the early 90s and they killed itb,121i talked to him after the show at the bar and he was the nicest most humble guyb, 21b, 21rip to a jamaican legend

  • Damn...RIP

  • tuneuptuneup 586 Posts
    the vastness of his importance cannot be described.b,121basically he brought the sound to the world, to those folks who would have ignored Jamaican and West Indian music, and MADE them enjoy it. Respect to him, much love. He will be missed.

  • bassiebassie 11,710 Posts
    /font1
    Quote:/font1h,121b,121the vastness of his importance cannot be described.b,121 b, 21b, 21h,121
    font class="post"1b,121b,121Bittersweet to get the O.J right before his passing. Full life still. RIP.

  • Love Byron Lee. "Tighten Up" and "Dance the Ska" are two of my all-time favorite records!

  • There used to be an all-Carribean record store in my neighborhood growing up, in the seventies...about half the albums displayed in the window were by Byron Lee...that's how influential he was, and that was my first exposure to him, through those LP covers seen through the glass. I kept my eyes and ears open and realized all those albums were displayed up front for a reason...

  • rest in peace

  • mannybolonemannybolone Los Angeles, CA 15,025 Posts
    Bums me out - such a prolific artist.

  • bassiebassie 11,710 Posts
    Toronto people - this is open to the public: "All are welcome."b, 21b, 21Byron Lee Memorial Service/Tributeb, 21b, 21Presented by Ontario chapter of St. George's College Old Boys Associationb, 21Tuesday, December 9, 7 PM service folowed by receptionb, 21St. Aidan's Catholic Churchb, 213501 Finch Avenue E (between Warden and Birchmount)

  • damn, that's a shame. I ride for dude, I always pick up or at least check his records out. Lee would always kill it with the covers.

  • luckluck 4,077 Posts
    Lee's version of William Bell's "Every Day Will Be Like A Holiday" (JAD) is a nice cover of a nice song.b, 21He will be missed by many.
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