Pat Kelly (musician)
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Pat Kelly (b. 1949, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae singer whose career began in the late 1960s.[1]
Contents |
[edit] Biography
[edit] The Techniques
Kelly was born in Kingston in 1949. After leaving school, he spent a year studying electronics in Springfield, Massachusetts, United States during 1966, before returning to Jamaica.[1] In 1967, when Slim Smith left The Techniques, Kelly was brought in to replace him, recording for Duke Reid in the rocksteady era when Reid's Treasure Isle studio/label was dominating Jamaican music.[1] Kelly's falsetto voice, in combination with Winston Riley and Bruce Ruffin, maintained the success that The Techniques had enjoyed with Smith.[1] The Techniques first record with Kelly, "You Don't Care", adapated from Curtis Mayfield's "You'll Want Me Back", spent six weeks at number one in the Jamaican singles chart, and was followed by further hits with "Queen Majesty", "My Girl", "Love Is Not a Gamble", "It's You I Love", and "Run Come Celebrate".[1][2]
[edit] Solo career
In 1968, Kelly went solo, moving from Reid to Bunny Lee, and debuting with another Mayfield cover, "Little Boy Blue".[1] Kelly's "How Long Will It Take" was the biggest-selling Jamaican single of 1969, and was the first Jamaican record to feature a string arrangement, which was overdubbed when it was released in the United Kingdom on the Palmer Brothers' Unity label.[1] An album, the Lee "Scratch" Perry-engineered Pat Kelley Sings (sic) followed, and Kelly was offered a £25,000 contract by Apple Records, which he was unable to accept due to existing contractual commitments.[1][2] Kelly continued to record, having a big hits for producer Phil Pratt in 1972 with "Soulful Love" and "Talk About Love", and returning to record with Duke Reid, having another hit with a cover of John Denver's "Sunshine".[1][3] He fell back on his earlier training, working as an engineer at Channel One Studios. He also moved into production, producing his own Youth and Youth album in 1978, and co-producing (with Holt) John Holt's The Impressable John Holt (Disco Mix) album in 1979.The late 1970s and early 1980s saw Kelly recording more regularly again, and he continued to record occasionally in the years that followed.
[edit] Albums
[edit] Studio albums
- Pat Kelley Sings (1969) Pama
- Talk About Love (1978) Terminal
- Give Love a Try (1978) Third World
- Youth and Youth (1978) Live & Love
- Lonely Man (1978) Burning Sounds
- Lovers Rock (1979) Third World (with Johnny Clarke and Hortense Ellis)
- One Man Stand (1979) Third World/Puff
- So Proud (1979) Burning Rockers/Chanan-Jah
- Cool Breezing (197?) Sunshot
- Wish It Would Rain (1980) Joe Gibbs
- From Both Sides (1980) Ital
- Sunshine (1980) KG Imperial
- Pat Kelly and Friends (1984) Chanan-Jah
- One In a Million (1984) Sky Note
- Ordinary Man (1987) Body Music
- Cry For You No More (1988) Blue Moon
- Srevol (19??) Ethnic
[edit] Compilations
- The Best of Pat Kelly (1983) Vista Sounds
- Butterflies Sonic Sounds
- Classic Hits of Pat Kelly (1995) Rhino
- Classics (199?) Super Power
- Soulful Love - The Best Of (1997) Trojan (Pat Kelly & Friends)
- The Vintage Series (2000) VP
- Sings Classical Hits Galore Striker Lee
[edit] References
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Larkin, Colin (1998). The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae. Virgin Books. ISBN 0-7535-0242-9.
- ^ a b Thompson, Dave (2002). Reggae & Caribbean Music. Backbeat Books. ISBN 0-87930-655-6.
- ^ Barrow, Steve; Dalton, Peter (1997). Reggae: The Rough Guide. Rough Guides. ISBN 1-85828-247-0.
