Lloyd Daley
Encyclopedia
Lloyd Daley also known as Matador (born 12 July 1939, Kingston
, Jamaica
) is a Jamaica
n electronic technician, sound system pioneer and reggae
producer
.
s, for himself and also for other sound systems including his competitors, Duke Reid
, Coxsone Downbeat
and Prince Buster
. He went on to build one of Jamaica most powerful vacuum tube amplifiers with forty KT88 output tubes in the late 1970s for the 'Jack Ruby High Power' sound system, owned by Lawrence Lindo (Jack Ruby
). He also built KT88 Amplifiers for Joe Chin ('Unitone' sound system) and Ken Hamilton ('Duke Hamilton' sound system).
Finding it difficult to get the records played by competing sound systems, he began recording his own at federal studios.
His first 45 rpm singles
came out in 1958, with some Jamaican R&B
and early ska
tunes made only for his own sound system. He had produced Roland Alphonso
("Bridgeview Shuffle"), Neville Esson, Owen Gray
and Rico Rodriguez
by the end of the decade, with reelases appearing on his own Matador and Mystic label
s. He released ska tunes in the early 1960s, with instrumental
bands
such as the 'Matadors All Stars', featuring most of the members of the later formed band The Skatalites
in 1959-1960; or with the trumpeter Raymond Harper ("Heart & Soul" in 1962). Later releases were with rocksteady
song
s by The Overtakers for instance, always employing excellent session musician
s.
By the beginning of the 1960s, he married Deanna Deans, daughter of Eric Deans, who later contributed to Daley's work as a songwriter
.
In 1966 the police dismantled a part of his sound system, because they said it was disturbing the neighborhood,with the heavy bass-resonance it was producing, so he sold it. He moved his repair service and record shop in 1968 to 43 Waltham Park Road, which he bought and built, using it as a rehearsal facility and Recording Studio, and had success in the early reggae period on his Matador label with artists
like Jackie Mittoo
("Dark of the Sun") or The Scorchers ("Ugly Man").
His biggest hit came out in 1969 with Little Roy
and his rasta
song "Bongo Nyah" which became a long-time Jamaican number one. He then produced other popular singles for artists like The Abyssinians
("Yim Mas Gan"), The Ethiopians
("Owe Me No Pay Me"), Dennis Brown
("Things In Life"), The Wailing Souls
("Gold Digger"), the first recordings of The Gladiators
("Freedom Train", "Rockaman Soul"), Alton Ellis
("Lord Deliver Us" another Jamaican hit), John Holt
or The Paragons
.
Avoiding the influence of American
soul music
(everpresent through the rocksteay and early reggae era), Daley mostly produced original compositions
, preferring religious (rasta) and socio-political lyrics
to love songs.
He also released many instrumental tunes with Johnnie Moore or Lloyd Charmers
("Zylon" was a 1969 hit) and dee-jay versions of his hits with artists like U-Roy
("Sound of the Wise" and "Scandal", both recorded
in October 1969). In 1971, Daley released Little Roy
's "Hard Fighter" version, recorded by The Hippy Boys
, and named "Voo-doo". It was one of the first instrumental dub
tunes where drum
and the bass
had a dominating role.
Most of Daley's productions have been released in the UK
by Pama Records
on its subsidiaries Crab
and Gas, except in 1972, when he made a license deal with Trojan
.
However in 1975, disillusioned by recurrent non-payment of royalties
, he left the music industry to focus only on his shop and Electronics.
Kingston, Jamaica
Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley International Airport to the rest of the island...
, Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
) is a Jamaica
Jamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
n electronic technician, sound system pioneer and reggae
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...
producer
Record producer
A record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
.
Career
Daley worked as a linotype apprentice for short time, while attending Kingston Technical High School, where he graduated in electronics. He built his first amplifier to boost the signal strength of his army surplus walkie-talkie, and he converted this amplifier into a sound system amplifier, and in 1956 started his 'Lloyd's the Matador' sound system at Victoria Avenue, one of the first sound systems in Jamaica, named after bullfighters. He also ran his own shop, 'Lloyds Radio & Television Service', in Kingston. By the end of the 1950s, he used to build up and repair sono devices, improving especially amplifierAmplifier
Generally, an amplifier or simply amp, is a device for increasing the power of a signal.In popular use, the term usually describes an electronic amplifier, in which the input "signal" is usually a voltage or a current. In audio applications, amplifiers drive the loudspeakers used in PA systems to...
s, for himself and also for other sound systems including his competitors, Duke Reid
Duke Reid
Treasure Isle re-directs here. For the game, see Treasure Isle .Arthur "Duke" Reid, CD was a Jamaican record producer, DJ and label owner....
, Coxsone Downbeat
Coxsone Dodd
Clement Seymour "Sir Coxsone" Dodd, CD was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of ska and reggae in the 1950s, 1960s and beyond...
and Prince Buster
Prince Buster
Cecil Bustamente Campbell, O.D. , better known as Prince Buster, and also known by his Muslim name Muhammed Yusef Ali, is a musician from Kingston, Jamaica. He is regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of ska and rocksteady music...
. He went on to build one of Jamaica most powerful vacuum tube amplifiers with forty KT88 output tubes in the late 1970s for the 'Jack Ruby High Power' sound system, owned by Lawrence Lindo (Jack Ruby
Jack Ruby (record producer)
Lawrence Lindo , better known as Jack Ruby, was a Jamaican record producer and sound system operator, best known for his 1970s productions of artists such as Burning Spear....
). He also built KT88 Amplifiers for Joe Chin ('Unitone' sound system) and Ken Hamilton ('Duke Hamilton' sound system).
Finding it difficult to get the records played by competing sound systems, he began recording his own at federal studios.
His first 45 rpm singles
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
came out in 1958, with some Jamaican R&B
Rhythm and blues
Rhythm and blues, often abbreviated to R&B, is a genre of popular African American music that originated in the 1940s. The term was originally used by record companies to describe recordings marketed predominantly to urban African Americans, at a time when "urbane, rocking, jazz based music with a...
and early ska
Ska
Ska |Jamaican]] ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s, and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. Ska combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues...
tunes made only for his own sound system. He had produced Roland Alphonso
Roland Alphonso
Roland Alphonso O.D. or Rolando Alphonso aka The Chief Musician was a Jamaican tenor saxophonist, and one of the founding members of The Skatalites....
("Bridgeview Shuffle"), Neville Esson, Owen Gray
Owen Gray
Owen Gray also known as Owen Grey is one of Jamaica's 'Foundation' singers whose work spans the R&B, ska, rocksteady, and reggae eras of Jamaican music, and he has been credited as Jamaica's first home-grown singing star....
and Rico Rodriguez
Rico Rodriguez
Rico Rodriguez MBE , also known as Reco or El Reco, is a ska and reggae trombonist. He has recorded with many producers, including Karl Pitterson, Prince Buster, and Lloyd 'Matador' Daley...
by the end of the decade, with reelases appearing on his own Matador and Mystic label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
s. He released ska tunes in the early 1960s, with instrumental
Instrumental
An instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
bands
Band (music)
In music, a musical ensemble or band is a group of musicians that works together to perform music. The following articles concern types of musical bands:* All-female band* Big band* Boy band* Christian band* Church band* Concert band* Cover band...
such as the 'Matadors All Stars', featuring most of the members of the later formed band The Skatalites
The Skatalites
The Skatalites are a ska band from Jamaica. They played initially between 1963 and 1965, and recorded many of their best known songs in the period, including "Guns of Navarone". They also played on records by Prince Buster and backed many other Jamaican artists who recorded during that period...
in 1959-1960; or with the trumpeter Raymond Harper ("Heart & Soul" in 1962). Later releases were with rocksteady
Rocksteady
Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor to ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was performed by Jamaican vocal harmony groups such as The Gaylads, The Maytals and The Paragons. The term rocksteady comes from a dance style that was mentioned in the Alton...
song
Song
In music, a song is a composition for voice or voices, performed by singing.A song may be accompanied by musical instruments, or it may be unaccompanied, as in the case of a cappella songs...
s by The Overtakers for instance, always employing excellent session musician
Session musician
Session musicians are instrumental and vocal performers, musicians, who are available to work with others at live performances or recording sessions. Usually such musicians are not permanent members of a musical ensemble and often do not achieve fame in their own right as soloists or bandleaders...
s.
By the beginning of the 1960s, he married Deanna Deans, daughter of Eric Deans, who later contributed to Daley's work as a songwriter
Songwriter
A songwriter is an individual who writes both the lyrics and music to a song. Someone who solely writes lyrics may be called a lyricist, and someone who only writes music may be called a composer...
.
In 1966 the police dismantled a part of his sound system, because they said it was disturbing the neighborhood,with the heavy bass-resonance it was producing, so he sold it. He moved his repair service and record shop in 1968 to 43 Waltham Park Road, which he bought and built, using it as a rehearsal facility and Recording Studio, and had success in the early reggae period on his Matador label with artists
Musician
A musician is an artist who plays a musical instrument. It may or may not be the person's profession. Musicians can be classified by their roles in performing music and writing music.Also....* A person who makes music a profession....
like Jackie Mittoo
Jackie Mittoo
Jackie Mittoo was a Jamaican keyboardist, songwriter and musical director. He was a founding member of The Skatalites and was a mentor to many younger performers, primarily through his work as musical director for the Studio One record label.-Biography:He was born Donat Roy Mittoo in Browns Town,...
("Dark of the Sun") or The Scorchers ("Ugly Man").
His biggest hit came out in 1969 with Little Roy
Little Roy
Little Roy is a Jamaican reggae artist.-Biography:Little Roy launched his career in the rocksteady age, recording a few singles for Coxsone Dodd and Prince Buster, none of which made much headway. As reggae itself unfolded, Roy switched to Lloyd Daley's recording studio...
and his rasta
Rastafari movement
The Rastafari movement or Rasta is a new religious movement that arose in the 1930s in Jamaica, which at the time was a country with a predominantly Christian culture where 98% of the people were the black descendants of slaves. Its adherents worship Haile Selassie I, Emperor of Ethiopia , as God...
song "Bongo Nyah" which became a long-time Jamaican number one. He then produced other popular singles for artists like The Abyssinians
The Abyssinians
The Abyssinians are a Jamaican roots reggae group, famous for their close harmonies and promotion of the Rastafari movement in their lyrics.-History:...
("Yim Mas Gan"), The Ethiopians
The Ethiopians
The Ethiopians were a ska, rocksteady, and reggae vocal group, founded by Leonard Dillon , Stephen Taylor and Aston Morris.-History:...
("Owe Me No Pay Me"), Dennis Brown
Dennis Brown
Dennis Emmanuel Brown was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, which began in the late 1960s when he was aged eleven, he recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the major stars of lovers rock, a sub-genre of reggae...
("Things In Life"), The Wailing Souls
The Wailing Souls
The Wailing Souls are a Jamaican reggae vocal group still recording and performing live, whose origins date back to the 1960s.-Career:They have recorded with many top Jamaican record producers including Coxsone Dodd of Studio One, Lloyd "King Jammy" James, Henry "Junjo" Lawes, Delroy Wilson and...
("Gold Digger"), the first recordings of The Gladiators
The Gladiators (band)
The Gladiators are a Jamaican roots reggae band, most popular during the 1970s. The core was Albert Griffiths , Clinton Fearon and Dallimore Sutherland bass guitar and singer. The two most famous albums are Trenchtown Mix Up and Proverbial Reggae with songs as "Hearsay", "Jah Works", "Dreadlocks...
("Freedom Train", "Rockaman Soul"), Alton Ellis
Alton Ellis
Alton Nehemiah Ellis, OD, was a Jamaican musician best known as one of the innovators of rocksteady music and was often referred to as the "Godfather of Rocksteady". In 2006, he was inducted into the International Reggae And World Music Awards Hall Of Fame.-Biography:Ellis was born in 1938 and...
("Lord Deliver Us" another Jamaican hit), John Holt
John Holt (singer)
John Holt is a reggae singer and songwriter.-Biography:Holt was born in Kingston in 1947. By the age of 12, he was a regular entrant in talent contests run at Jamaican theatres by Vere Johns...
or The Paragons
The Paragons
The Paragons were a rocksteady band from Kingston, Jamaica, active in the 1960s. Their most famous track was "The Tide Is High", written by band member, John Holt.-Career:...
.
Avoiding the influence of American
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
soul music
Soul music
Soul music is a music genre originating in the United States combining elements of gospel music and rhythm and blues. According to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, soul is "music that arose out of the black experience in America through the transmutation of gospel and rhythm & blues into a form of...
(everpresent through the rocksteay and early reggae era), Daley mostly produced original compositions
Musical composition
Musical composition can refer to an original piece of music, the structure of a musical piece, or the process of creating a new piece of music. People who practice composition are called composers.- Musical compositions :...
, preferring religious (rasta) and socio-political lyrics
Lyrics
Lyrics are a set of words that make up a song. The writer of lyrics is a lyricist or lyrist. The meaning of lyrics can either be explicit or implicit. Some lyrics are abstract, almost unintelligible, and, in such cases, their explication emphasizes form, articulation, meter, and symmetry of...
to love songs.
He also released many instrumental tunes with Johnnie Moore or Lloyd Charmers
Lloyd Charmers
Lloyd Charmers is a ska and reggae singer, keyboard player and record producer.-Career:...
("Zylon" was a 1969 hit) and dee-jay versions of his hits with artists like U-Roy
U-Roy
U-Roy , OD, is a Jamaican musician, also known as The Originator. He is best known as a pioneer of toasting.-Biography:...
("Sound of the Wise" and "Scandal", both recorded
Sound recording and reproduction
Sound recording and reproduction is an electrical or mechanical inscription and re-creation of sound waves, such as spoken voice, singing, instrumental music, or sound effects. The two main classes of sound recording technology are analog recording and digital recording...
in October 1969). In 1971, Daley released Little Roy
Little Roy
Little Roy is a Jamaican reggae artist.-Biography:Little Roy launched his career in the rocksteady age, recording a few singles for Coxsone Dodd and Prince Buster, none of which made much headway. As reggae itself unfolded, Roy switched to Lloyd Daley's recording studio...
's "Hard Fighter" version, recorded by The Hippy Boys
The Hippy Boys
The Hippy Boys was formed in 1968 by Lloyd Charmers. The band included guitarist Alva "Reggie" Lewis, organist Glen Adams and brothers Aston 'Family Man' Barrett on bass guitar and Carlton Barrett drums respectively....
, and named "Voo-doo". It was one of the first instrumental dub
Dub music
Dub is a genre of music which grew out of reggae music in the 1960s, and is commonly considered a subgenre, though it has developed to extend beyond the scope of reggae...
tunes where drum
Drum
The drum is a member of the percussion group of musical instruments, which is technically classified as the membranophones. Drums consist of at least one membrane, called a drumhead or drum skin, that is stretched over a shell and struck, either directly with the player's hands, or with a...
and the bass
Bass guitar
The bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
had a dominating role.
Most of Daley's productions have been released in the UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
by Pama Records
Pama Records
Pama records was a United Kingdom record label active during the 1960s and 1970s. Initially focused on soul music, it became one of the major outlets for reggae in the UK.-History:...
on its subsidiaries Crab
Crab Records
Crab Records was a reggae label that issued releases from 1968 to 1971. Crab was a subsidiary of Pama Records, who along with Trojan Records, was one the major labels for reggae music in the UK...
and Gas, except in 1972, when he made a license deal with Trojan
Trojan Records
Trojan Records is a British record label founded in 1968. It specialises in ska, rocksteady, reggae and dub music. The label currently operates under the Sanctuary Records Group. The name Trojan comes from the Croydon-built Trojan truck that was used as Duke Reid's sound system in Jamaica...
.
However in 1975, disillusioned by recurrent non-payment of royalties
Royalties
Royalties are usage-based payments made by one party to another for the right to ongoing use of an asset, sometimes an intellectual property...
, he left the music industry to focus only on his shop and Electronics.
Compilation albums
- Various Artists - Scandal - Matador - LP
- Various Artists - Way Back When - Matador (1979) - LP
- Various Artists - Lloyd Daley's Matador Productions 1968-1972: Reggae Classics from the Originator - 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...
(1992) - Various Artists - From Matador's Arena Vol 01: 1968-1969 - Jamaican GoldJamaican GoldJamaican Gold is an independent record label from Netherlands specialized in Jamaican music reissues.Aad Van Der Hoek founded the label in 1992 and has since been working closely with Jamaican producers and sound engineers, transferring usually the music directly from the original mastertape in...
(1994) - Various Artists - From Matador's Arena Vol 02: 1969-1970 - Jamaican Gold (1994)
- Various Artists - From Matador's Arena Vol 03: 1971-1979 - Jamaican Gold (1994)
- Various Artists - Shuffle 'n Ska Time With Lloyd 1960-1966 - Jamaican Gold (1995)
See also
- List of reggae sound systems
- List of Jamaican backing bands
- List of Jamaican record producers
External links
- [ Lloyd Daley biography] at Allmusic websiteWebsiteA website, also written as Web site, web site, or simply site, is a collection of related web pages containing images, videos or other digital assets. A website is hosted on at least one web server, accessible via a network such as the Internet or a private local area network through an Internet...