Artists


Reggae | Soul | Rock | R&B | Pop | Other

Reggae


Bob Marley

Reggae's most transcendent and iconic figure, Bob Marley was the first Jamaican artist to achieve international superstardom, in the process introducing the music of his native island nation to the far-flung corners of the globe.

Byron Lee

In the years before reggae or even ska was known outside of the Caribean, Byron Lee was the first band leader to achieve an international following playing Jamaican music, and played a vital role in popularizing it around the world.

Jackie Mitto

Keyboard virtuoso Jackie Mittoo was among the true legends of reggae-a founding member of the Skatalites and an extraordinarily prolific songwriter, he was perhaps most influential as a mentor to countless younger performers,

Jimmy Cliff

It's one of life's great ironies that today, outside of reggae circles, Jimmy Cliff is better known for his film appearances than his music.

Johnny Nash

Johnny Nash was a pivotal force behind the mainstream acceptance of reggae with the international success of his 1972 chart-topper "I Can See Clearly Now."

Max Romeo

The singer who put the rude in rude boy, Max Romeo was responsible for launching an entirely new sub-genre of reggae, whose overtly suggestive lyrics caused an outcry but took a massive hold of the music scene regardless.

Neville Livingston

As a founding member of the Wailers, and the trio's only surviving member, Bunny Wailer, has become a respected elder statesmen of the Jamaican music scene.

Peter Tosh

Singer, musician, composer, and rebel Peter Tosh cut a swathe through the Jamaican musical scene, both as a founding member of the Wailers and as a solo artist.

Rita Marley

Best known as Bob Marley's wife, Rita Marley was also a solo artist in her own right both before and after her marriage, and served as the caretaker of her husband's legacy following his premature death in 1981.

UB40

Named after a British unemployment benefit form, pop-reggae band UB40 was formed in a welfare line in 1978, and its multiracial lineup reflected the working-class community its members came from.

back to top


Soul

Betty Wright

Singer Betty Wright proved to be a consistently strong presence on the Miami music scene, primarily throughout the '70s and '80s, although she continues to record.

Geno Washington

Initially stationed in England for the Air Force during the early '60s, American soul shouter Geno Washington fronted a British group known as the Ram Jam Band for a series of moderate U.K. chart hits during 1966-1967.

Gloria Gaynor

Perhaps second only to Donna Summer, Gloria Gaynor has become one of the best known female disco artists from the '70s due to the ongoing success of her monster 1979 hit (and subsequent "woman's anthem"), "I Will Survive".

Howard Tate

Highly regarded by soul music cultists and virtually unknown by anybody else, Howard Tate had some minor success with the Verve label in the late '60s.

Johnny Daye

Johnny Daye may have been the best blue-eyed soul singer of the '60s. He had an electrifying stage act that wasn't fake or contrived.

Richard 'Dimple' Fields

Eighties soft-toned vocalist Richard "Dimples" Fields topped the R&B charts with the world weary-toned mid-tempo groover "If It Ain't One Thing, It's Another" with its everyman spoken section.

Sidney Barnes

Sidney Barnes is one of the more enduring R&B and soul talents of the mid 20th century.

back to top


Rock

Backstreet Crawler

Former Free guitarist Paul Kossoff called his 1973 solo album Back Street Crawler, then formed a group of the same name in 1975.

Eric Clapton

By the time Eric Clapton launched his solo career with the release of his self titled debut album in mid-1970, he was long established as one of the world's major rock stars.

Free

Famed for their perennial "All Right Now," Free helped lay the foundations for the rise of hard rock, stripping the earthy sound of British blues down to its raw

The Coasters

The Coasters were one of the few artists in rock history to successfully straddle the line between music and comedy. Their undeniably funny lyrics and on-stage antics might have suggested a simple troupe of clowns, but Coasters records were no mere novelties.

back to top


R&B

Gordon Rosco

Rosco Gordon was best known for being one of the progenitors of a slightly shambolic, loping style of piano shuffle called "Rosco's Rhythm."

Lloyd Price

Not entirely content with being a 1950s R&B star on the strength of his immortal New Orleans classic "Lawdy Miss Clawdy," singer Lloyd Price yearned for massive pop acceptance.

back to top


Pop

The Cowsills

The real-life inspiration behind the hit television series The Partridge Family,the Cowsills -- teen siblings Bill, Bob, Barry, John, Susan, and Paul in tandem with mom Barbara -- were one of the biggest pop acts of the late '60s.

back to top


Other

Julius Wechter

With his Baja Marimba Band, Julius Wechter popularized, updated and Americanized the traditional marimba sound in the same way his friend and frequent collaborator Herb Alpert & the Tijuana Brass revitalized the Mexican mariachi band--as a member of Martin Denny's backing group, he was also a catalyst behind the exotica phenomenon.

back to top