Johnny Ringo (musician)
Encyclopedia
Johnny Ringo was a reggae
/dancehall
deejay
active from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.
, the two enjoying a long association since. He worked as an operator on the Soul Express and Rippa-Tone sound systems, before being given the chance to record in the late 1970s, and released his first single with "Trouble Never Set Like Rain". His recordings became popular in Jamaica, with slack
lyrics proving particularly popular, two notable examples being "Two Lesbians" and "Push Lady Push". In 1982, he had an international reggae hit with "Dub and Lef", and this was followed by further Jamaican hits with tracks such as "Pain a Back", "Nah Fight Over Woman", and "Married for the Opportunity". He also contributed the opening track to the album Superstar Yellowman Has Arrived With Toyan in 1982. He continued to work on sound systems, Lees Unlimited and Ray Symbolic's Hi Fi, the latter touring internationally with Ringo, Squiddly Ranking, and Welton Irie. He contributed to some of the early live dancehall albums in 1983 and 1984. While touring the UK, he recorded a brace of singles for Fashion Records
, and recorded with Sugar Minott
. He continued to record until the early 1990s, sometimes credited simply as Ringo.
He died in July 2005, after suffering for some time from cocaine
addiction.
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...
/dancehall
Dancehall
Dancehall is a genre of Jamaican popular music that originated in the late 1970s. Initially dancehall was a more sparse version of reggae than the roots style, which had dominated much of the 1970s. In the mid-1980s, digital instrumentation became more prevalent, changing the sound considerably,...
deejay
Deejay
A deejay is a reggae or dancehall musician who sings and toasts to an instrumental riddim .Deejays are not to be confused with disc jockeys from other music genres like hip-hop, where they select and play music. Dancehall/reggae DJs who select riddims to play are called selectors...
active from the late 1970s to the early 1990s.
Biography
Ringo worked in a Kingston record shop, where he met Welton IrieWelton Irie
Welton Irie , sometimes credited simply as Welton, is a Jamaican reggae deejay, best known for his work in the late 1970s and early 1980s.-Biography:...
, the two enjoying a long association since. He worked as an operator on the Soul Express and Rippa-Tone sound systems, before being given the chance to record in the late 1970s, and released his first single with "Trouble Never Set Like Rain". His recordings became popular in Jamaica, with slack
Slackness
Slackness refers to vulgarity in West Indian culture, behavior and the music. It also refers to a subgenre of dancehall music with straightforward sexual lyrics performed live or recorded. Its form and pronunciation varies throughout the Caribbean....
lyrics proving particularly popular, two notable examples being "Two Lesbians" and "Push Lady Push". In 1982, he had an international reggae hit with "Dub and Lef", and this was followed by further Jamaican hits with tracks such as "Pain a Back", "Nah Fight Over Woman", and "Married for the Opportunity". He also contributed the opening track to the album Superstar Yellowman Has Arrived With Toyan in 1982. He continued to work on sound systems, Lees Unlimited and Ray Symbolic's Hi Fi, the latter touring internationally with Ringo, Squiddly Ranking, and Welton Irie. He contributed to some of the early live dancehall albums in 1983 and 1984. While touring the UK, he recorded a brace of singles for Fashion Records
Fashion Records
Fashion Records is a UK-based record label publishing reggae music.Founded in summer 1980, Fashion Records is one of the more successful UK-based reggae labels , and one of only a very few British reggae labels to release records that were produced in their own recording studio.The label was the...
, and recorded with Sugar Minott
Sugar Minott
Lincoln Barrington "Sugar" Minott was a Jamaican reggae singer, producer and sound-system operator.-Biography:...
. He continued to record until the early 1990s, sometimes credited simply as Ringo.
He died in July 2005, after suffering for some time from cocaine
Cocaine
Cocaine is a crystalline tropane alkaloid that is obtained from the leaves of the coca plant. The name comes from "coca" in addition to the alkaloid suffix -ine, forming cocaine. It is a stimulant of the central nervous system, an appetite suppressant, and a topical anesthetic...
addiction.
Albums
- Sweet Christmas (197?) Top Ranking (Dobby DobsonDobby DobsonHighland "Dobby" Dobson is a Jamaican reggae singer and record producer, nicknamed 'The Loving Pauper' after one of his best known songs.-Biography:...
featuring Ringo) - Two Coxman (1981) Ariola
- Woman a Ginal (1981) Top Ranking
- Riding West (1982) VPVP RecordsVP Records is an independent reggae record label, located in Queens, New York. It is best known for producing Caribbean singers.-The foundation:...
/Jah Guidance - Johnny Ringo (1982) Abissa
- Cool Profile (1982) Musical Ambassador
- Eyewitness (1982) MC
- Pancoot (1982) Hitbound
- Cool Profile (1984) Negus Roots
- JA to UK MC Clash (1985) Fashion (Johnny Ringo meets Asher Senator)
- Face to Face (200?) JA Classics (with Louie Lepkie)
- Dancehall Legend (2007) Musical Ambassador
Compilations, guest appearances, etc.
- Green Bay Killing (1978) Pantomime, features "Green Bay Killing"
- Vintage Classics (197?) Rohit, features "Rub-A-Dub"
- Roots Reggae Party Vol 1 (1981) Silver Camel, features "Living For Tomorrow - Keycard Moves"
- Roots Reggae Party Vol 2 (1982) Silver Camel, features "Tense Me Tense - Suspended Sentence"
- Superstar Yellowman Has Arrived With Toyan (1982) Joe GibbsJoe Gibbs (record producer)Joe Gibbs born Joel A. Gibson was a Jamaican reggae producer.-Biography:Joe Gibbs worked as an electronics engineer in the United States 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...
, features "I Am Getting Married" - Junjo Presents A Live Session With Aces International (1982) GreensleevesGreensleeves RecordsGreensleeves Records & Publishing is a record label specialising in dancehall and reggae music. The company was founded by Chris Cracknell and Chris Sedgwick and started as a small record store in West Ealing, London, in November 1975 and is based in Britain....
, features "Ringo" - DJ Connection (1982) Circle, features "DJ Connection"
- Junjo Presents Two Big Sound - Live (1983) Greensleeves
- King Stur-Gav Hi Fi Lee Unlimited (1983) Live & Learn, features "Special Request"
- George PhangGeorge PhangGeorge Phang is a reggae producer born in the 1950s in south Saint Andrew, Kingston, Jamaica where still resides today.Phang started his reggae label Powerhouse in the early 1980s. His first hits were Little John's "True Confessions" and "Roots Girl", both released in 1983...
& Friends At Skateland Live (1984) Power House - Black & White Reggae Classics Vol 1 (198?) Black & White, features "One Time Ringo", "Push Lady Push"
- Johnny OsbourneJohnny OsbourneJohnny Osbourne is a popular Jamaican reggae and dancehall singer, who rose to success in the late 1970s and mid 1980s. His album Truths and Rights was a notable roots reggae success, and featured "Jah Promise" and the album's title track, "Truths and Rights"...
- Nightfall Showcase (1997) Munich, features "Qua She Take Over" - Total Recall Vol 10 (1998) VP, features "One Time Ringo"
- When The Dances Were Changing (1998) 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...
, features "Working Class", "Working Class (Version)" - A Dee-Jay Explosion (200?) HeartbeatHeartbeat RecordsHeartbeat Records is an independent record label based in Burlington , Massachusetts. The label specializes in Jamaican music. Founded by reggae music enthusiasts Bill Nowlin and Duncan Brown, the label's first release was a vinyl LP reissue of Linton Kwesi Johnson's Dread Beat an' Blood...
, features "Push Lady Push" - DJ's Of The 70s Creole, features "Love Me Country", "Sure Time", "Plaid Shirt", "Calypso Fi Granny"
- Dynamite Series #3 Tabou, features "Johnny Ringo"