Jamaican Toots and the Maytals was until 1971 a vocal group called simply T… Read Full Bio ↴Jamaican Toots and the Maytals was until 1971 a vocal group called simply The Maytals. They are one of the best known and highest professionally rated (Rolling Stone, AllMusic, etc) ska, rocksteady and reggae groups. They were icons for the early skinhead movement of white working-class youth in UK. Their sound was unique, highly influenced by gospel, soul, and funk. Maytals (Hebrew = "dewdrops") was formed in Kingston, Jamaica 1961 by Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, Henry "Raleigh" Gordon & Nathaniel "Jerry" Mathias. Well known songs are '54-46 Was My Number', 'Funky Kingston', 'Pressure Drop', 'Monkey Man', 'Never You Change' 'Bam Bam'. The group had 2 songs in Jimmy Cliff's 1972 film The Harder They Come, and started to enjoy international hits 1973 on Island Records.
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Frederick "Toots" Hibbert, the leader of the group, was born in May Pen, Clarendon, Jamaica. He was the youngest of seven children. He grew up singing gospel music in a church choir, but moved to Kingston in 1958 at the age of thirteen. In Kingston, Hibbert met Henry "Raleigh" Gordon and Nathaniel "Jerry" McCarthy, forming in 1962 a group whose early recordings were incorrectly attributed to "The Flames" and "The Vikings" by Island records in the UK.

The Maytals first had chart success recording for producer Clement "Coxsone" Dodd at Studio One. With musical backing from Dodd's house band, the legendary Skatalites, the Maytals' close-harmony gospel singing ensured success, overshadowing Dodd's other up-and-coming vocal group, The Wailers. After staying at Studio One for about two years, the group moved on to do sessions for Prince Buster before recording with Byron Lee in 1965. With Lee, the Maytals won their first Festival Popular Song Competition with "Bam Bam". However, the group's musical career was interrupted in late 1966 when Hibbert was arrested and imprisoned. Toots states that he was not arrested for ganja but while bailing a friend. He also states that he made up the number 54-46 when writing 54-46 That's My Number about his time in jail.

Following Hibbert's release from jail towards the end of 1967, the Maytals began working with Chinese-Jamaican producer Leslie Kong, a collaboration a string of hits throughout the late sixties and early seventies - "Do the Reggay", a 1968 single widely credited with coining the word reggae, "Pressure Drop", "54-46" the 1969 Jamaica festival's popular song winner, "Sweet & Dandy" and "Monkey Man", the group's first international hit in 1970 . In 1972 they won their third Jamaica festival popular song with "Pomps & Pride". The group was also featured in one of reggae's greatest breakthrough events - The Harder They Come, the 1972 film and soundtrack starring Jimmy Cliff, named as one of Vanity Fair's Top 10 Best Soundtracks of all time.

Following Kong's death in 1971, the group continued to record with Kong's former sound engineer, Warwick Lyn; the group released three best-selling albums produced by Lyn and Chris Blackwell of Island Records, and enjoyed international hits with Funky Kingston in 1973 and Reggae Got Soul in 1975. Following the release of "Reggae Got Soul", Toots & The Maytals were invited to tour as the warm-up act for The Who during their North American Tour. The tour went poorly and Toots & The Maytals never went on the success of Bob Marley or Peter Tosh in the US.

Toots and the Maytals' compositions would be given a second airing in 1978-80 during the reggae-punk and ska revival period in the UK, when The Specials included "Monkey Man" on their 1979 debut album and The Clash produced their version of "Pressure Drop". They were also included in the Bob Marley and the Wailers song, *Punky Reggae Party". "The Wailers will be there, The Damned, The Jam, The Clash, The Maytals will be there, Dr. Feelgood too".

Having toured throughout the world for many years, Toots and the Maytals disbanded in the early 1980s, but reformed in the early 90s to continue touring and recording successfully. Sublime recorded cover versions of some Maytals songs in the 1990s as well.

The group recently won the 2005 Grammy award for best reggae album True Love, an album consisting of re-recorded versions of their classics alongside popular and legendary musicians such as Bonnie Raitt, Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, and Keith Richards, as well as popular artists today such as No Doubt, Ben Harper, The Roots, and Shaggy.

In 2006, they recorded a reggae/ska version of Radiohead's Let Down for the tribute album, Radiodread, by the Easy Star All-Stars. The album is a complete song for song makeover of the English rock band's album OK Computer into reggae, dub and ska. Let Down has been frequently cited by reviewers as one of the successes of the album.

A follow up to 2004's Love was being recorded in 2005 and released in 2007, and featured re-workings of classics such as "Johnny Cool Man" as well as new material. Light Your Light was nominated for the Grammy in the category Best Reggae Album.

Frederick Nathaniel 'Toots' Hibbert passed away September 11, 2020 at age 77.

Sweet Sweet Jenny
The Maytals Lyrics

Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴

Etty in the room a cry
Mama say she must wipe her eye
Papa say she no fi foolish
Like she never been to school at all
It is no wonder
It's a perfect pander
While they were dancing in that bar room last night

Johnson in the room afret
Uncle say he must hold up him head
Aunty say she no fi foolish
Like a no time fi him wedding day
It is no wonder
It's a perfect pander
While they were dancing in that bar room last night
One pound ten for the wedding cake
Plenty bottle of cola wine
All the people them dress up in a white
Fi go eat out Johnson wedding cake
It is no wonder
It's a perfect pander
While they were dancing in that bar room last night, yeah, yeah

Etty in the room a cry
Mama say she must wipe her eye
Papa say she no fi foolish
Like she never been to school at all
It is no wonder
It's a perfect pander
While they were dancing in that bar room last night

Johnson in the room afret
Uncle say he must hold up him head
Aunty say she no fi foolish
Like a no time fi him wedding day
It is no wonder
It's a perfect pander
While they were dancing in that bar room last night
One pound ten for the wedding cake
Plenty bottle of cola wine
All the people them dress up in a white
Fi go eat out Johnson wedding cake
It is no wonder
It's a perfect pander
While they were dancing in that bar room last night, yeah, yeah

Yeah there was sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy
Oh, sweet and dandy
There was sweet and dandy
There was sweet and dandy
There was sweet and dandy
There was sweet and dandy

There was sweet and dandy, sweet and dandy
Sweet and dandy, sweet and dandy

Overall Meaning

The Maytals' Sweet And Dandy tells the story of two characters, Etty and Johnson, who's families are urging them to remain composed and not let their emotions get the best of them while celebrating at a wedding reception. Etty is crying, but her mother tells her to wipe her eye and her father says she shouldn't act foolish, implying that she's too emotional. Similarly, Johnson is "afret" or afraid, and his uncle and aunt tell him to hold up his head and not act foolishly like it's not his wedding day. The chorus repeats the phrase "sweet and dandy," possibly implying that everything is going well, or that everyone is putting up a good show despite any inner turmoil.

This song touches on the themes of societal pressure, the expectations placed on individuals, and the importance placed on maintaining a good public image. Both Etty and Johnson's families are more concerned about appearances than the actual emotions of the individuals, and this pressure to conform can be stifling. The constant refrain of "sweet and dandy" reinforces this idea, suggesting that even if things aren't truly okay, people should act as if they are.

Line by Line Meaning

Etty in the room a cry
Etty is crying in the room.

Mama say she must wipe her eye
Her mother tells her to wipe her eyes.

Papa say she no fi foolish
Her father warns her not to be foolish.

Like she never been to school at all
As if she never went to school.

It is no wonder
It is not surprising.

It's a perfect pander
It is a perfect situation for deception.

While they were dancing in that bar room last night
While they were dancing in the bar room last night.

Johnson in the room afret
Johnson is anxious in the room.

Uncle say he must hold up him head
Uncle tells him to hold his head up.

Aunty say she no fi foolish
Aunt tells him not to be foolish.

Like a no time fi him wedding day
As if it is not his wedding day.