Baba Brooks & The Skatalites

b. Oswald Brooks, c.1935, Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies. When there was a shortage of R&B sounds coming from the USA in the late 50s, the sound system men enrolled the services of musicians who would record their own tunes. Many of these recordings were jazz-orientated and featured a horn section to complement the shuffling beat. Baba Brooks played trumpet and in the early 60s had his own band, whose recordings included the celebratory ‘Independence Ska', commemorating Jamaica's freedom from colonialism in 1962. Both ‘Bus Strike' and ‘Musical Workshop' were hits in 1964. His ...