The most successful track of his Ironically although he went to worldwide fame his former welding colleague Marley never had a UK number one. View history " 007 (Shanty Town) " is a 1967 rocksteady song by Jamaican band Desmond Dekker and the Aces, released as a single from their debut album of the same name. Following his mother's death, he moved to the parish of St. Mary and later to St. Desmond Dekker in Comanche Park video Sony Records (1994), Saint Andrew Parish (Greater Kingston), Jamaica, Jamaica Independence Festival Song Contest, "Desmond Dekker - full Official Chart History", "Desmond Dekker Top Songs / Chart Singles Discography", "British certifications Desmond Dekker", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Desmond_Dekker&oldid=1133815021, Short description is different from Wikidata, All Wikipedia articles written in Jamaican English, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, Aubrey Mulrain keyboard player and session musician, Steve Roberts guitarist and session musician (also a member of the British band Dubzone), Stan Samuel guitarist and session musician, Charles Nelson keyboard player and session musician, Delroy Williams Vocals (also featuring guests Winston 'Mr Fix It' Francis and Glenroy Oakley from Greyhound 'Black & White'), Gordon Mulrain bass guitarist and session musician, Learoy Green drums, backing vocals and session musician, Bryan Campbell Keyboard player and session musician, Steve Baker Guitarist, backing vocals, peripatetic guitar teacher and session guitarist. The British hitmaker Robert Palmer produced Mr. Dekker's next album, "Compass Point," in 1981. generations of fans. Browse 99 desmond dekker stock photos and images available, or start a new search to explore more stock photos and images. Too Much Too Soon 6. Desmond Adolphus Dacres was born in Saint Andrew Parish (Greater Kingston), Jamaica, on 16 July 1941. international hit. Mr. Dekker had a total of 20 No. "He died peacefully but it still hurts. Black and Dekker It's Not Easy 3. [3] Dekker's version uses the same backing track as Cliff's original. He found fame with his band Desmond Dekker and the Aces - their international hit Israelites topped the UK charts and made the top 10 in the US. introduced Marley to the record label executives who shaped his own Nincom Poop 8. Dekker's trademark falsetto, singing lyrics in a Mr Dekker, who was divorced with a son and a daughter, played his last gig at Leeds University on May 11. The artist died on May 25, 2006, of a heart attack at his home in Thorton Heath in the Croydon Borough of London. He was a composer, known for Fool's Gold (2008), Idiocracy (2006) and Forgetting Sarah Marshall (2008). The vocal melody is syncopated and is centred on the tone of B flat. A few He was preparing to headline The World Music Festival in Prague. From a very young age he would regularly attend the local church with his grandmother and aunt. It Mek 7. The song has appeared in numerous movies and television programs,[14] including the soundtracks of the 1989 American film Drugstore Cowboy and the 2010 British film Made in Dagenham. The artist took a permanent residency in the UK in 1969. Together with his backing group The Aces (consisting of Wilson James and Easton Barrington Howard), he had one of the earliest international reggae hits with "Israelites" (1968). career, "Israelites," was released in December of 1968 and an ex-wife and a son and daughter, but Dekker was mourned by several He was orphaned as a teenager but made a success for himself after signing with Leslie Kong's Beverley's record label and releasing his first single, Honour Your Father and Mother, in 1963, a paean. [1] Kong employed the group as backing singers for Dekker and they can be heard on the song "Get Up . The chords of the guitar accompaniment are played on the offbeat and move through the tonic chord [B flat], the subdominant [E flat], the dominant [F], and the occasional [D flat],[5] viz, [B flat] - [E flat] - [F] - [B flat] - [D flat]. "independence in 1962 had bestowed a new cultural confidence, journalist Jocelyn Y. Stewart. But in 1984 Mr. Dekker declared bankruptcy, blaming his former manager. career. The music began Musical [2] The single featured Roland Alphonso's "El Torro" on the B-side.[2]. Photograph: PA. Desmond Dekker, the Jamaican singer whose 1969 hit, "The Israelites," opened up a worldwide audience for reggae, died on Wednesday. Early Life "The Israelites" was the peak of Mr. Dekker's extensive career, selling more than a million copies worldwide. But while Mr. Dekker kept up a busy performing career, the death of Mr. Kong in 1971 ended his streak of hits. My Father lived with his Grandmother along with his Father in Kingston. As a subscriber, you have 10 gift articles to give each month. [11] In June 1969 it reached the Top Ten in the United States, peaking at #9 on the Billboard Hot 100 singles chart. "Honour Thy Father and Mother" was released in Britain in 1964 on Chris Blackwell's Island label, which would later release Bob Marley's albums. He had been due to perform at the Respect Festival in Prague on 2 June, and numerous dates across Europe during the summer. An instrumental figure in the development of ska and its slightly mellower cousin, rocksteady, Dekker was also one the first reggae performers to break big in the U.K., laying the groundwork for that country's late 1970s 2 Tone movement. For Once in My Life (Missing Lyrics) 10. The Desmond Dekker. Dekker became associated with bluebeat, a more uptempo Compass Point All tracks composed by Desmond Dekker; except where indicated "It Mek" (Dekker, Leslie Kong) - 1:40 "Too Much Too Soon" (Dekker, Leslie Kong) - 2:38 "Coconut Water" - 3:27 "Sweet Music" - 2:29 Desmond Dekker was born on 16 July 1941 in Kingston, Jamaica. Desmond Dekker, was born in Jamaica's Saint Andrew Parish on July 16, 1941, and was an early influencer with one of the earliest reggae hits, "Israelites." The ska, reggae and rock steady singer, songwriter and musician was introduced to music through the local church he attended as a child. there. 1 in Jamaica. Dekker was the first Jamaican artist to have a hit record in the US with Jamaican-style music. His last concert was at Leeds Metropolitan University on 11 May. community, and in 1967 his song "0.0.7 (Shanty Town)" [1], Jamaica Independence Festival Song Contest, "Jamaica Ska Legend Winston Samuels Is Dead - News Americas NowCaribbean and Latin America Daily News", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=The_Aces_(Jamaican_group)&oldid=1117842044, Easton Barrington "Barry" Howard (19651969), Winston James Samuels (left 1969, died 2017), This page was last edited on 23 October 2022, at 21:37. 1961. Notable groups who have covered "007 (Shanty Town)" include: The song has been sampled by Special Ed ("I'm the Magnificent") and Shaggy ("Bonafide Girl"). He had been due to perform at the Respect Festival in Prague on 2 June, and numerous dates across Europe . "Honour Your Father and Mother" reached the No. "007 (Shanty Town)" has been called "the most enduring and archetypal" rude boy song. Ska legend Desmond Dekker has died suddenly from a heart attack, his manager said today. [2] While at St. Thomas, Dekker embarked on an apprenticeship as a tailor before returning to Kingston, where he became a welder. [3] In Dekker's words: "The students had a demonstration and it went all the way around to Four Shore Road and down to Shanty Town. It took two years before Kong let Dekker record a song, and when he did, It hit #1 in the United Kingdom,[12] the Netherlands, Jamaica, South Africa, Canada, Sweden and West Germany. Left to earn a living on his own, he apprenticed as a welder. Jamaican music, and Dekker was at its cutting edge," his Desmond Dekker, the Jamaican singer whose 1969 hit, "The Israelites," opened up a worldwide audience for reggae, died on Wednesday. Dekker recorded the song again for his 1980 album Black and Dekker. Manager Delroy Williams said the Jamaica-born performer had seemed fine when they met a day earlier, adding: "I don't think I will ever get over this. [10], In 1969 Dekker took permanent residency in the UK. Anyone can read what you share. 1972 film A man of many talents, Desmond Adolphus Dacres, a.k.a. years earlier, when both worked as welders in Kingston, and Dekker On November 3, 2019, "Israelites" was prominently featured in the third episode of HBO's Watchmen. On the 22 August 1970 edition of American top 40, Casey Kasem claimed that Dekker had more than 40 #1 records in Jamaica. of musicians and producers Dekker cut two more albums, The two had met lament, whose lyrics Dekker had written in his head while walking in a which Dekker admitted was the result of a swindle by his former manager. and became one of his country's first recording stars to achieve Albums include The Harder They Come, The Harder They Come, and Tougher Than Tough: The Story of Jamaican Music. Chicago Tribune Mr Williams said Dekker had led the way for reggae stars such as Bob Marley. [9] Desmond headlined Jools Holland's 2003 Annual Hootenanny. The star was divorced with a son and daughter. wider renown. version of ska. Desmond Adolphus Dacres (Desmond Dekker), singer and songwriter, born July 16 1941; died May 25 2006, Jamaican singer best known for The Israelites and It Miek, he helped launch the career of Bob Marley, Original reporting and incisive analysis, direct from the Guardian every morning. He was already a major star in Jamaica and well known in Britain. Dubbed "the King of Ska," Desmond Dekker is one of the key artists in the history of Jamaican music. The song established Dekker as a rude boy icon in Jamaica and also became a favourite dance track for the young working-class men and women of the United Kingdom's mod scene. [3], Only a single live album was released in the late '80s. [7], "007" was Dekker's first international hit. Musical pioneer Desmond Dekker dominated Jamaica's pop charts in the 1960s, and became one of his country's first recording stars to achieve wider renown. considered the genre's first genuine star, but his fame would later The "007" riddim was revived in 2007 for a series of releases on Beverley's Records, forming the basis of singles from Joseph Cotton ("Ship Sail"), Mike Brooks ("Blam Blam Blam"), The Blackstones ("Out a Road"), and Dennis Alcapone ("D.J. I don't think anyone knew how close we were - we go back so far. his music thanks to Desmond Adolphus Dacres - Born in Saint Andrew Parish Kingston Jamaica 16th July 1941. Desmond Dekker 1. The initial line-up of The Aces consisted of Clive Campbell, Barry Howard, Carl Howard, and Patrick Howard. This double disc set features every major UK and Jamaican chart hit by the first King of Reggae, all sourced from the original analog master tapes. Mr. Dekker's songs were rediscovered, and he was signed by Madness's label, Stiff Records. [2] A gold record was presented by Ember Records, the distributors of Dekker's recordings.[2]. "He was at his peak fitness, he had this big tour coming up for this summer and he was looking forward to it - and then that was it," Mr Williams said. the Jamaican charts. 007: The Best of Desmond Dekker is a two-disc collection that features 25 classic hits from Dekker's catalog, as well as another 25 rare and unreleased sides including alternate takes of some of the artist's fan favorites of the '60s and '70s. The Top 14 Jamaican Recipes Searched for by Canadians. Dekker was born on 16 July 1941 in Kingston, Jamaica, and began his working life as a welder before turning to singing full-time. It was one of the first reggae songs to become an international hit, despite Dekker's strong Jamaican accent which made his lyrics difficult to understand for many listeners outside Jamaica.[10]. Originally issued in Jamaica as "Poor Me Israelites",[7] it remains the best known Jamaican reggae hit to reach the United States Hot 100's top 10,[5] and was written almost two years after Dekker first made his mark with the rude boy song "007 (Shanty Town)". ", He added: "I didn't even get the chance to say goodbye properly.". The track was written by Dekker (under his real name of Desmond Dacres) and his record producer, Leslie Kong, and was recorded in Jamaica with the brass . Ska legend Desmond Dekker has died suddenly from a heart attack, his manager said today. "Desmond Dekker and the Aces: Artist Chart History", https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=It_Mek&oldid=1057544344, Short description is different from Wikidata, Single chart usages for Belgium (Flanders), Single chart usages for Belgium (Wallonia), Articles with MusicBrainz work identifiers, Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike License 3.0, This page was last edited on 28 November 2021, at 07:27. The singer and songwriter, whose 1969 . They provided the backing vocals on Dekker's major hit "007 (Shanty Town)" as well as the track "Music Like Dirt (Intensified '68)" (the winning song of the 1968 Jamaica Independence Festival Song Contest). Desmond Dekker passed away. The themes of Dekker's songs during the first four years of his career dealt with the moral, cultural and social issues of mainstream Jamaican culture: respect for one's parents ("Honour Your Mother and Father"), religious morality ("Sinners Come Home") and education ("Labour for Learning"). celebrity on the island and throughout the Caribbean. His mother had passed away from a young age. park one day, was a homage to Jamaica's underclass, who were still ", He added: "People like Desmond Dekker only come along once in a lifetime. [3], Despite achieving a record deal, it was two years before Dekker saw his first record released. Together with his backing group The Aces, he had one of the earliest international reggae hits with "Israelites". Desmond Dekker, 64, Pioneer of Jamaican Music, Dies, https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/27/arts/music/27dekker.html. Two UK ska-punk band Sonic Boom Six used a sample of the chorus as the outro to "Rum Little Skallywag". 2, p. 11; Times [1] Little more was heard from the group until 1982 when they released "One Way Street". offbeat." , May 27, 2006, sec. For the secondary James Bond theme, see, O'Brien Chang, Kevin & Chen, Wayne (1998), Soundtrack for the ages: 40 Years of Harder They Come, https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=007_(Shanty_Town)&oldid=1099693912, This page was last edited on 22 July 2022, at 03:53. pioneer Desmond Dekker dominated Jamaica's pop charts in the 1960s, Dekker wrote the song after watching news coverage of a student demonstration against government plans to build an industrial complex on land close to the beach, which descended into violence. Born Desmond Adolphus Dacres, July 16, c. 1941, in Kingston, Jamaica; died Copyright Simbis Inc.All rights reserved. With "The Israelites," released in Jamaica in December 1968, Mr. Dekker had an international impact. I related to those things and began to sing a little song: 'You get up in the morning and you're slaving for bread.' Singer. Join our newsletter to get the latest articles, news, & videos. The initial line-up of The Aces consisted of Clive Campbell, Barry Howard, Carl Howard, and Patrick Howard. In 1975 "Israelites" was re-released and became a UK top 10 hit for a second time. died on May 25, 2006, in London, at the age of 63 or 64.