Joe Gibbs (record producer)
Encyclopedia
Joe Gibbs born Joel A. Gibson (14 October 1942, Montego Bay
— 21 February 2008) was a Jamaica
n reggae
producer
.
before his career in music started. Gibbs eventually returned to Kingston, Jamaica
and opened an electrical repair shop with television repairs and sales as its main concern. It was in this shop that he first started to sell records. The fast growth of the local music scene encouraged him to get more involved in the music business, and in 1967 he started to record some artists in the back of his shop with a two-track tape machine, working with Lee Perry who had just ended his association with Clement "Coxsone" Dodd
. In 1968, with the help of Bunny Lee
, he launched his Amalgamated record label, and had his first success with one of the earliest rocksteady
songs, Roy Shirley
's "Hold Them".
When Perry decided to leave to start his own record label, Upsetter, Gibbs enrolled the young Winston "Niney" Holness (later known as Niney The Observer
) who helped Gibbs maintain his productions at the top of the charts
. During the rocksteady period until 1970, he had hit records with numerous artists including The Pioneers
, Errol Dunkley
, and Ken Parker
. He also worked with backing bands such as Lynn Taitt and the Jets
(including the organist Ansel Collins, and horns players Tommy McCook
, Johnny "Dizzy" Moore
, Bobby Ellis
and Vin Gordon
), or The Hippy Boys
(featuring the Barrett
brothers as the rhythm section
).
He concentrated exclusively on the production of the then new reggae sound after his first international success "Love of the Common People" by Nicky Thomas
(#9 in the UK Singles Chart
in summer 1970). Gibbs still recorded the rock-steady artists that he had initially worked with; artists like The Ethiopians
, Delroy Wilson
, and The Heptones
. The two volumes of his singles compilations The Heptones and Friends were bestsellers in Jamaica. During this period, he launched three new labels —Jogib, Shock, and Pressure Beat.
In 1972, after having moved his studio in the Duhaney Park district, he set up a new one at Retirement Crescent and started to work with sound engineer Errol Thompson, who used to be at Randy's Studio. Together they were known as "The Mighty Two", and along with his studio band The Professionals (including bassist Robbie Shakespeare, drummer Sly Dunbar
and guitarist Earl "Chinna" Smith), they produced hundreds of singles, including the hits "Money In My Pocket" by Dennis Brown
, "Ah So We Stay" by Big Youth
and "Eviction" by Black Uhuru
. The duo worked on over 100 Jamaican number one hits.
In 1975, he set up his new 16-track studio and record pressing plant and kept producing Jamaican artists under numerous label names (Crazy Joe, Reflections, Belmont, Town & Country). He had success again with roots reggae
, rockers, lovers rock
and Dub music
artists including: Dennis Brown, Jacob Miller
, Sylford Walker
, The Mighty Diamonds
, Gregory Isaacs
, Prince Alla
and Junior Byles
.
The 1977 Culture
album Two Sevens Clash was a major influence on the then emerging punk scene and an internationally acclaimed production. The album was cited by punk rock
band The Clash
. Other successful artists produced by the Mighty Two during the end of the 1970s include: Marcia Aitken
, Althea & Donna
, John Holt
, Barrington Levy
, Cornell Campbell
, Dean Fraser
, Delroy Wilson
, Beres Hammond
, Ranking Joe
, Prince Jazzbo
, Prince Mohammed, Dillinger
, Trinity
, Prince Far I
, Clint Eastwood
, I-Roy
and Kojak & Liza.
In the 1980s, Gibbs had an international hit with J.C. Lodge's "Someone Loves You Honey" and again in the 1990s–2000s teamed up with Errol Thompson, and Sydney "Luddy" Crooks
of The Pioneers
, to produce some new music way into the new millennium. Before his death, Gibbs also went into business with Chris Chin of VP Records, which was one of his last business ventures.
He was not married when he died of a heart attack on 21 February 2008 and is survived by his 12 children.
Montego Bay
Montego Bay is the capital of St. James Parish and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population .It is a tourist destination with duty free shopping, cruise line terminal and the beaches...
— 21 February 2008) was a Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n reggae
Reggae
Reggae is a music genre first developed in Jamaica in the late 1960s. While sometimes used in a broader sense to refer to most types of Jamaican music, the term reggae more properly denotes a particular music style that originated following on the development of ska and rocksteady.Reggae is based...
producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
.
Biography
Joe Gibbs worked as an electronics engineer in the United StatesUnited States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
before his career in music started. Gibbs eventually returned to Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
and opened an electrical repair shop with television repairs and sales as its main concern. It was in this shop that he first started to sell records. The fast growth of the local music scene encouraged him to get more involved in the music business, and in 1967 he started to record some artists in the back of his shop with a two-track tape machine, working with Lee Perry who had just ended his association with Clement "Coxsone" Dodd
Coxsone Dodd
Clement Seymour "Sir Coxsone" Dodd, CD was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of ska and reggae in the 1950s, 1960s and beyond...
. In 1968, with the help of Bunny Lee
Bunny Lee
Edward O'Sullivan Lee, better known as Bunny "Striker" Lee is a prominent, prolific and successful record producer best known for his work in the 1960s and 1970s.-Biography:...
, he launched his Amalgamated record label, and had his first success with one of the earliest rocksteady
Rocksteady
Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor to ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was performed by Jamaican vocal harmony groups such as The Gaylads, The Maytals and The Paragons. The term rocksteady comes from a dance style that was mentioned in the Alton...
songs, Roy Shirley
Roy Shirley
Roy Shirley also known as King Roy Shirley and The High Priest was a Jamaican singer whose career spanned the ska, rocksteady and reggae eras, and whose "Hold Them" is regarded by some as the first ever rocksteady song...
's "Hold Them".
When Perry decided to leave to start his own record label, Upsetter, Gibbs enrolled the young Winston "Niney" Holness (later known as Niney The Observer
Niney the Observer
Winston Holness, better known as Niney the Observer , is a Jamaican record producer and singer who was a key figure in the creation of many classic reggae recordings dating from the 1970s and early 1980s....
) who helped Gibbs maintain his productions at the top of the charts
Record chart
A record chart is a ranking of recorded music according to popularity during a given period of time. Examples of music charts are the Hit parade, Hot 100 or Top 40....
. During the rocksteady period until 1970, he had hit records with numerous artists including The Pioneers
The Pioneers
The Pioneers: The Sources of the Susquehanna; a Descriptive Tale is a historical novel, the first published of the Leatherstocking Tales, a series of five novels by American writer James Fenimore Cooper...
, Errol Dunkley
Errol Dunkley
Errol Dunkley is a Jamaican reggae musician, born in Kingston, Jamaica in 1951.-Biography:Dunkley's recording career began in 1965, when he was fourteen, with "Gypsy" for Linden Pottinger's Gaydisc label, "My Queen" for Prince Buster, and "Love Me Forever" on the Rio label...
, and Ken Parker
Ken Parker (musician)
Ken Parker is a Jamaican musician who first recorded in the 1960s.-Biography:Like many of Jamaica's singers of the era, Parker began by singing in church, where his father was a preacher. He formed a group called the Blues Benders in the mid-1960s, and their first recording was "Honeymoon by the...
. He also worked with backing bands such as Lynn Taitt and the Jets
Lynn Taitt
Lynn Taitt was a reggae guitarist born in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, closely associated with Jamaican rocksteady music.-Biography:...
(including the organist Ansel Collins, and horns players Tommy McCook
Tommy McCook
Tommy McCook was a Jamaican saxophonist. A founding member of The Skatalites, he also directed The Supersonics for Duke Reid, and backed many sessions for Bunny Lee or with The Revolutionaries at Channel One Studios in the 1970s.-Biography:McCook was born in Havana, Cuba, and moved to Jamaica in...
, Johnny "Dizzy" Moore
Johnny Moore (trumpeter)
John Arlington "Dizzy" Moore OD was a Jamaican trumpet player and founding member of pioneering Jamaican ska and reggae act, The Skatalites.-Biography:...
, Bobby Ellis
Bobby Ellis
Bobby Ellis born 2 July 1932, is a Jamaican trumpet player. He has worked with many reggae artists including Peter Tosh, Burning Spear, and The Revolutionaries.-Biography:...
and Vin Gordon
Vin Gordon
Vin Gordon is a Jamaican trombone player.-Biography:Gordon grew up in Jones Town, Kingston, Jamaica as one of eight children. He went to Kingston's catholic Alpha Boys School where he learned to play trombone and string bass. One of his tutors was Lennie Hibbert...
), or The Hippy Boys
The Hippy Boys
The Hippy Boys was formed in 1968 by Lloyd Charmers. The band included guitarist Alva "Reggie" Lewis, organist Glen Adams and brothers Aston 'Family Man' Barrett on bass guitar and Carlton Barrett drums respectively....
(featuring the Barrett
Aston Barrett
Aston Barrett , often called "Family Man" or "Fams" for short, is a Jamaican bass player and Rastafarian.-Biography:...
brothers as the rhythm section
Rhythm section
A rhythm section is a collection of musicians who make up a section of instruments which provides the accompaniment section of the music, giving the music its rhythmic texture and pulse, also serving as a rhythmic reference for the rest of the band...
).
He concentrated exclusively on the production of the then new reggae sound after his first international success "Love of the Common People" by Nicky Thomas
Nicky Thomas
Nicky Thomas was a reggae singer who enjoyed considerable chart success in the 1970s.-Biography:...
(#9 in the UK Singles Chart
UK Singles Chart
The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ...
in summer 1970). Gibbs still recorded the rock-steady artists that he had initially worked with; artists like The Ethiopians
The Ethiopians
The Ethiopians were a ska, rocksteady, and reggae vocal group, founded by Leonard Dillon , Stephen Taylor and Aston Morris.-History:...
, Delroy Wilson
Delroy Wilson
Delroy Wilson was a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae singer.-Biography:Wilson released his first single "Emy Lou" in 1961 for record producer, Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, at the age of thirteen...
, and The Heptones
The Heptones
The Heptones are a Jamaican rocksteady and reggae vocal trio most active in the 1960s and early 1970s. They were one of the more significant trios of that era, and played a major role in the gradual transition between ska and rocksteady with their three-part harmonies.-History:Leroy Sibbles, Earl...
. The two volumes of his singles compilations The Heptones and Friends were bestsellers in Jamaica. During this period, he launched three new labels —Jogib, Shock, and Pressure Beat.
In 1972, after having moved his studio in the Duhaney Park district, he set up a new one at Retirement Crescent and started to work with sound engineer Errol Thompson, who used to be at Randy's Studio. Together they were known as "The Mighty Two", and along with his studio band The Professionals (including bassist Robbie Shakespeare, drummer Sly Dunbar
Sly Dunbar
Lowell "Sly" Fillmore Dunbar is a drummer.-Biography:Dunbar, whose nickname was reportedly given for his passion for Sly & the Family Stone, launched his musical career while still in his adolescence, playing with a local group, The Yardbrooms, at the age of fifteen...
and guitarist Earl "Chinna" Smith), they produced hundreds of singles, including the hits "Money In My Pocket" by Dennis Brown
Dennis Brown
Dennis Emmanuel Brown 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 sub-genre of reggae...
, "Ah So We Stay" by Big Youth
Big Youth
Manley Augustus Buchanan , better known as Big Youth , is a Jamaican deejay, mostly known for his work during the 1970s....
and "Eviction" by Black Uhuru
Black Uhuru
Black Uhuru are a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru . The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Duckie Simpson always maintaining group control and ownership...
. The duo worked on over 100 Jamaican number one hits.
In 1975, he set up his new 16-track studio and record pressing plant and kept producing Jamaican artists under numerous label names (Crazy Joe, Reflections, Belmont, Town & Country). He had success again with roots reggae
Roots reggae
Roots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of the artists concerned, including the spiritual side of Rastafari and with the honoring of God, called Jah by rastafarians. It also is identified with the life of the ghetto sufferer, and the rural poor...
, rockers, lovers rock
Lovers rock
Lovers rock is a style of reggae music noted for its romantic sound and content. While love songs had been an important part of reggae since the late 1960s, the style was given a greater focus and a name in London in the mid 1970s.-History:...
and Dub music
Dub music
Dub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
artists including: Dennis Brown, Jacob Miller
Jacob Miller
Jacob Miller was a Jamaican reggae artist who first recorded with Clement Dodd. While pursuing a prolific solo career, he became the lead singer for reggae group Inner Circle with whom he recorded until his death in a car accident at the age of 27.-Biography:Jacob Miller was born in Mandeville,...
, Sylford Walker
Sylford Walker
Sylford Walker is a Jamaican reggae singer who first recorded in the mid-1970s and, with reissues renewing interest in him, returned to recording and performing in the 21st century.-Biography:...
, The Mighty Diamonds
The Mighty Diamonds
Mighty Diamonds are a Jamaican harmony trio, recording roots reggae with a strong Rastafarian influence. The group, which comprised Donald "Tabby" Shaw, Fitzroy "Bunny" Simpson, and Lloyd "Judge" Ferguson, was formed in 1969, and remains together as of 2010...
, Gregory Isaacs
Gregory Isaacs
Gregory Anthony Isaacs was a Jamaican reggae musician. Milo Miles, writing in the New York Times, described Isaacs as "the most exquisite vocalist in reggae". His nicknames include Cool Ruler and Lonely Lover....
, Prince Alla
Prince Alla
Prince Alla aka Prince Allah or Ras Allah is a roots reggae singer whose career began in the 1960s, and has continued with a string of releases into the 2000s.-Biography:...
and Junior Byles
Junior Byles
Kerrie Byles is a reggae singer, born July 17, 1948 in Kingston, Jamaica.-The Versatiles:...
.
The 1977 Culture
Culture (band)
Culture was a Jamaican roots reggae group founded in 1976. Originally they were known as the African Disciples.The members of the trio were Joseph Hill , Albert Walker and Kenneth Dayes ....
album Two Sevens Clash was a major influence on the then emerging punk scene and an internationally acclaimed production. The album was cited by punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
band The Clash
The Clash
The Clash were an English punk rock band that formed in 1976 as part of the original wave of British punk. Along with punk, their music incorporated elements of reggae, ska, dub, funk, rap, dance, and rockabilly...
. Other successful artists produced by the Mighty Two during the end of the 1970s include: Marcia Aitken
Marcia Aitken
Marcia Aitken is a reggae singer best known for her recordings in the late 1970s, produced by Joe Gibbs along with Errol Thompson.-Biography:...
, Althea & Donna
Althea & Donna
Althea & Donna were a Jamaican reggae singing duo, best known for their 1977 single "Uptown Top Ranking" which was a number one hit in the United Kingdom in 1978.-Career:...
, John Holt
John Holt (singer)
John Holt is a reggae singer and songwriter.-Biography:Holt was born in Kingston in 1947. By the age of 12, he was a regular entrant in talent contests run at Jamaican theatres by Vere Johns...
, Barrington Levy
Barrington Levy
Barrington Levy is a reggae and dancehall artist from Jamaica.-Career:In 1976, Levy formed a band with his cousin, Everton Dacres, called the Mighty Multitude; the pair released "My Black Girl" in 1977...
, Cornell Campbell
Cornell Campbell
Cornell Campbell aka Don Cornell 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.-Biography:Cornel has one of the sweetest falsettos of any Jamaican vocalist and uses it...
, Dean Fraser
Dean Fraser
Dean Fraser is a Jamaican saxophonist who has contributed to hundreds of reggae recordings since the mid-1970s. He was awarded the Musgrave Medal by the Jamaican government in 1993 in recognition of his services to music.-Biography:Fraser started to play the clarinet at the age of 12...
, Delroy Wilson
Delroy Wilson
Delroy Wilson was a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae singer.-Biography:Wilson released his first single "Emy Lou" in 1961 for record producer, Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, at the age of thirteen...
, Beres Hammond
Beres Hammond
Beres Hammond is a reggae singer known in particular for his romantic lovers rock and soulful voice...
, Ranking Joe
Ranking Joe
Ranking Joe aka Little Joe is a reggae deejay who rose to prominence in the 1970s and had continuing success in the 1980s.-Biography:...
, Prince Jazzbo
Prince Jazzbo
Prince Jazzbo is a Jamaican reggae and dancehall deejay and producer.Prince Jazzbo began recording with Coxsone Dodd's Studio One label in the early 1970s...
, Prince Mohammed, Dillinger
Dillinger (musician)
Dillinger is a reggae artist.-Biography:As a young man growing up in Kingston, Dillinger would hang around Dennis Alcapone's El Paso sound system...
, Trinity
Trinity (musician)
Trinity aka Junior Brammer is a reggae deejay and producer, whose career began in the mid-1970s and continued into the 1990s.-Biography:Born in 1954, Brammer was educated at the Alpha Boys School...
, Prince Far I
Prince Far I
Prince Far I was a Jamaican reggae deejay, producer and a Rastafarian. He was known for his gruff voice and critical assessment of the Jamaican government. His track "Heavy Manners" used lyrics against measures initiated towards violent crime.-Biography:He was born Michael James Williams in...
, Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood (musician)
Clint Eastwood is a Jamaican reggae deejay, who recorded as a solo artist in the late 1970s and early 1980s before teaming up with UK deejay General Saint as the duo Clint Eastwood & General Saint.-Biography:...
, I-Roy
I-Roy
Roy Samuel Reid better known as I-Roy was a Jamaican DJ who had a very prolific career during the 1970s.-Biography:...
and Kojak & Liza.
In the 1980s, Gibbs had an international hit with J.C. Lodge's "Someone Loves You Honey" and again in the 1990s–2000s teamed up with Errol Thompson, and Sydney "Luddy" Crooks
Sydney Crooks
Sydney Crooks , also known as Sidney Crooks, Sidney George, Luddy Pioneer, and Luddy Crooks, is a Jamaican singer and record producer, and a member of The Pioneers since 1962.-Biography:Crooks was born in Westmoreland and after moving to Trench Town aged 17, entered the music business in...
of The Pioneers
The Pioneers
The Pioneers: The Sources of the Susquehanna; a Descriptive Tale is a historical novel, the first published of the Leatherstocking Tales, a series of five novels by American writer James Fenimore Cooper...
, to produce some new music way into the new millennium. Before his death, Gibbs also went into business with Chris Chin of VP Records, which was one of his last business ventures.
He was not married when he died of a heart attack on 21 February 2008 and is survived by his 12 children.
Albums
- Joe Gibbs - Dub Serial - 1972
- Joe Gibbs - African Dub All-Mighty - 1973
- Joe Gibbs - African Dub Chapter 2 - 1974
- Joe Gibbs - State Of Emergency - 1976
- Joe Gibbs - African Dub All-Mighty Chapter 3 - 1978
- Joe Gibbs - African Dub Chapter 3 & 4 - 1978-1979
- Joe Gibbs & Professionals - African Dub Chapter 4 - 1979
- Joe Gibbs - Majestic Dub - 1979
- Joe Gibbs Family - Wish You A Merry Rockers Christmas - 1979
- Joe Gibbs - Rockers Carnival - 1980
- Joe Gibbs - Reggae Christmas - 1982
- Joe Gibbs - African Dub Chapter 5 - 1984
Compilations
- Various Artists - Reggae Masterpiece Vol 01 - 1978 - Joe Gibbs
- Various Artists - Irie Reggae Hits - 1979 - Joe Gibbs
- Various Artists - Top Ranking DJ Session - 1979 - Joe Gibbs
- Various Artists - Shining Stars - 1983 - Joe Gibbs
- Various Artists - Best Of Vintage - Joe Gibbs
- Various Artists - Explosive Rock Steady - 1967-1973 - Heartbeat Records (1991)
- Various Artists - The Mighty TwoThe Mighty Two-Track listing:#"Rent Man / Resident Area" - Black Uhuru / Jah Grundy – 7:18#"Heavy Manners" - Prince Far-I – 3:16#"Rockers" - Glen Washington – 2:34#"Rockers Dub" - Joe Gibbs and The Professionals – 2:45#"Navel String" - Dennis Walks – 3:14...
- Heartbeat Records (1992) - Joe Gibbs & Friends - The Reggae Train 1968-1971 - Trojan Records (1988)
- Various Artists - Love Of The Common People 1967-1979 - Trojan Records (2000)
- Various Artists - Uptown Top Ranking - 1970-1978 - Trojan Records (1998)
- Joe Gibbs & The Professionals feat. Errol Thompson - No Bones For The Dogs 1974-1979 - Pressure SoundsPressure SoundsPressure Sounds is a British record label, specializing in releasing reggae music. It is run by Pete Holdsworth although Adrian Sherwood was involved at the inception of the imprint...
(2002) - Various Artists - Joe Gibbs Productions - Soul Jazz RecordsSoul Jazz RecordsSoul Jazz Records is a British-based record label. The label started in the 1990s, releasing compilation albums of predominantly black music, including reggae, soul, ska, Dub and jazz...
(2003) - Various Artists - Joe Gibbs Original DJ Classics - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Joe Gibbs Original DJ Classics Vol 02 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Joe Gibbs Original DJ Classics Vol 03 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Joe Gibbs Revive 45's Vol 01 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Joe Gibbs Revive 45's Vol 02 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Spotlight On Reggae Vol 01 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Spotlight On Reggae Vol 02 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Spotlight On Reggae Vol 03 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Spotlight On Reggae Vol 04 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Spotlight On Reggae Vol 06 - Rocky One
- Various Artists - Spotlight On Reggae Vol 07 - Rocky One
- Joe Gibbs - Scorchers From The Mighty Two - VP Records (2008)