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Freddie McKay

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Freddie McKay
Born1947
OriginSaint Catherine Parish, Jamaica
Died19 November 1986(1986-11-19) (aged 38–39)
GenresReggae, Roots Reggae, Rocksteady, dub
InstrumentVocals
LabelsBamboo

Freddie McKay (sometimes Freddy McKay) (1947 – 19 November 1986)[1][2] was a Jamaican singer, whose career spanned the rocksteady and conscious spiritual roots reggae eras.

Biography

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McKay, born in Saint Catherine Parish, Jamaica,[3] is regarded as one of the most soulful singers to come out of Jamaica.[4] McKay first recorded for producer Prince Buster in 1967, his first hit coming the same year with "Love Is A Treasure", recorded for Duke Reid's Treasure Isle set-up.[5] McKay then enjoyed a fruitful spell with Coxsone Dodd, recording a number of popular songs for Studio One, such as Discomix vocal and dub " Love Is A Treasure", backed by The Soul Defenders, a band that included Bobby Kalphat and Joseph Hill of Culture, [6] including "High School Dance", "Sweet You Sour You", and "Picture on the Wall", the latter the title track of his 1971 debut album.[5]

A second album, Lonely Man followed in 1974. McKay recorded a duet with Horace Andy in 1975, "Talking Love" which was also a hit in Jamaica.[7] McKay enjoyed another hit in 1976 with "Dance This Ya Festival", which won the Jamaican Independence Popular Song Contest that year.[7]

In 1977 McKay teamed up with Alvin Ranglin to produce the misleadingly titled The Best Of Freddie McKay (it was an album of new recordings), adapting to the prevailing roots reggae conscious Rockers style, also releasing a number of highly regarded Discomix vocal and dub showcase works, produced, engineered and mixed by Leonard Chin, Joe Gibbs (producer), Augustus Pablo, King Tubby and Scientist.

An Ossie Hibbert-produced showcase album Creation followed in 1979, featuring McKay's versions of Burning Spear's and Johnny Clarke's Creation, a cover of Horace Andy, Coxsone Dodd, and Wentworth Vernal's The Rainbow as well as a Discomix take on Dennis Brown's Here I Come.

Another album,Tribal Inna Yard, was released in 1983, backed by Roots Radics and engineered by Scientist.

McKay maintained a faithful, serious following amongst conscious roots rockers and sound system devotees until his death in 1986[2] from a heart attack,[2] shortly after finishing his final album, I'm a Free Man, cut at Joseph Hoo Kim's Channel One Studios with Sly and Robbie,Eric "Bingy Bunny" Lamont, Dean Fraser and Earl "Chinna" Smith, with backing vocals provided by The Tamlins.[5]

His son, Andrew Chin, known under the pseudonym Brushy One String, is a musician known for playing a one-stringed guitar.[8][9]

Discography

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Albums

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  • Picture On The Wall (1974 Bamboo[10]
  • Lonely Man (1974, Dragon UK / Dynamic Jamaica) (reissued 1996, Lagoon)
  • Fire is Burning (1976, Amethyst Records)
  • The Best Of Freddie McKay (1977, GG's)
  • Creation (1979, Plant and Joe Gibbs)
  • Harsh Words (1982 Gorgon)
  • Tribal Inna Yard (1983, Move)
  • I'm a Free Man (1988 Uptempo)
  • Freddie McKay & Soul Defenders at Studio One (1991, Heartbeat)
  • The Right Time Recordings (1997, GG's) (with Jah Stone)
  • The Right Time (1999, Rhino)
  • When You're Smiling (2002, Rhino) (Lonely Man + bonus tracks)
  • Doin' It Right (2003, Charly)

Single

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  • Freddie McKay – "Dance Dis A Festival" – 1976 Carifest Winning Song

References

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  1. ^ "Freddie McKay Biography, Songs, & Albums". AllMusic. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  2. ^ a b c "Artists". 20 November 2008. Archived from the original on 20 November 2008. Retrieved 27 September 2021.
  3. ^ Colin Larkin, ed. (1992). The Guinness Encyclopedia of Popular Music (First ed.). Guinness Publishing. p. 1573. ISBN 0-85112-939-0.
  4. ^ Foster, Chuck (1999) Roots Rock Reggae, Billboard Books, ISBN 0-8230-7831-0, p. 260
  5. ^ a b c Larkin, Colin: The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae, 1998, Virgin Books, ISBN 0-7535-0242-9
  6. ^ Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter: "Reggae: The Rough Guide", 1997, Rough Guides, ISBN 1-85828-247-0
  7. ^ a b Thompson, Dave:"Reggae & Caribbean Music", 2002, Backbeat Books, ISBN 0-87930-655-6
  8. ^ McKnight, Laura (4 May 2013). "Brushy One-String entertains with many musical styles at New Orleans Jazz Fest". New Orleans Picayune. Retrieved 17 May 2021.
  9. ^ "Biography | Brushy One String". Archived from the original on 16 June 2017. Retrieved 3 July 2017.
  10. ^ "Freddie McKay – Picture On The Wall (1974, Vinyl)". Discogs. 7 November 2022. Retrieved 20 November 2023.
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