History of Prince to King Jammy

Born Lloyd James 1947 in Montego Bay, Jamaica and from an early age was interested in little else but the sound system business. The former Prince Jammy began by building amplifiers and repairing electrical equipment from his mother's house in the Waterhouse area of downtown Kingston for many Waterhouse sounds including the legendary King Tubby's. In the early 70's Jammy left Jamaica for Canada and found regular employment with various recording studios and sound systems. He stayed for a few years but returned to Kingston to set up his first studio (with extremely limited facilities) at his in-laws' home in Waterhouse.

Jammy was continually expanding his own studio and sound system and in the late 70's he began to release his own productions, including the debut Black Uhuru album, and coming into contact with many rising dancehall artists such as Half Pint, Junior Reid and Echo Minott.

Jammy's first sound system venture was under the name of Tapetone later to be known as Jammys Hi-Fi. In 1978 Errol Scorcher joined Tapetone and with the combination of Scorcher alongside Nicodemus, Mama Liza and Kojak promoted the system to a position as the island's number one sound. During this time, Tubby's top engineer, Philip Smart, left for New York and Jammy joined Tubby's team. It was during this time with Tubby that Jammy met the most influential people in reggae; he acknowledges, in particular, the inspiration provided by Bunny Lee and Yabby You.

His contstant involvement with the grass roots side of the business gave Jammy a keen sense of what was currently happening in the music, and also allowed him to anticipate new trends. In 1985 he recorded a youth singer called Wayne Smith with a tune called 'Under Me Sleng Teng ', which was to alter irrevocably the nature, and revolutionize the sound, of reggae music.

The basis for 'Sleng Teng' was a Casio 'Music Box' and one of the 'rock' rhythms from the box was adapted and slowed down to become a 'reggae' rhythm. The shockwaves were scarcely believable and before long there were over 200 different versions of the rhythm available, as every producer and artist jumped on the bandwagon. More than anything else, it opened the music to young independent producers and artists, since expensive studio time and 'real' musicians were no longer a prerequisite for recording.

Digital reggae ruled, and Jammy, the originator, rode the crest of the wave. His records and sound system dominated and controlled reggae music for the remainder of decade and on into the 90's. Bobby Digital, now an established producer in his own right, was brought into Jammy's camp and he soon became right-hand man in the set-up, with Steely & Clevie providing the rhythms. Both were established musicians with a real feeling for the new sound, and a bewildering array of 7-inch and 12-inch singles and albums were released every month. Most were massive Jamaican hits and with the help of long-time associate Count Shelly. The records were released simultaneously in New York and London while Jammy administered the business in Jamaica. Countless artists made their debut on the Jammys label, but veteran singers and vocal groups were all keen to play their part in the new sound. There was no-one to rival him and in 1987, Jammy won the coveted Rockers Award for best producer. Jammy's 90's output is not as prolific (by his standards), but he still continues to lead while others follow. In 1995, he revived his most innovative tune on Sleng Teng Extravaganza '95, featuring the modish stars updating the rhythm with their own interpretations.

It is difficult to overstate his contribution to Jamaican music, because, as the top producer throughout the digital era, he has altered the sound of reggae music without ever losing touch with it's foundation - the sound system.