The founding members of the group were Tommy McCook, Roland Alphonso, Lloyd Brevett, Lloyd Knibb, Lester Sterling, Don Drummond, Jerome “Jah Jerry” Haynes, Jackie Mittoo, Johnny Moore and Jackie Opel.
Trombonist Drummond's composition, Man In The Street, entered the Top 10 in the United Kingdom. He was not only the Skatalites' busiest composer, but was the most prolific in all of Ska, with at least 200 tunes to his name by 1965.
On January 1, 1965, Drummond was jailed for the murder of his girlfriend, Anita 'Marguerita' Mahfood, and in August that year, the Skatalites played their last show. The break-up resulted in the formation of two supergroups, Jackie Mitto and the Soul Brothers (later the Soul Vendors and finally Sound Dimension) and Tommy McCook and the Supersonics. Drummond died in the Bellevue Asylum on May 6, 1969 at age 37.
In June 1983, the Skatalites reformed for a reunion performance at the Sunsplash festival in Montego Bay in July. Between 1985 and 1988, the core members of the Skatalites emigrated, and eventually coalesced in the northeast of the United States. They played their first U.S. concert at "The Village Gate", and did their first U.S. tour in January, 1990. The Skatalites continued touring the U.S., and did their first tour of Europe in 1992.
In January 1996, the Skatalites was nominated for a Grammy Award in the category of "Best Reggae Album" for their 1995 Shanachie release, Hi Bop Ska. They were again nominated for a Grammy Award in the same category for their 1996 Shanachie release, Greetings From Skamania, in January 1997.
The Skatalites began their first World Tour in February 2002, covering the United States, Europe, Mexico, Venezuela, Puerto Rico, Russia, and Japan, which lasted nine months.
On 8 February 2012 the band announced a new single and album due out in 2012 as well as a new US tour starting in Texas and heading to New Mexico, Colorado, Arizona, Oregan, California, Washington and then Canada. These dates follow 4 dates they announced in January for the North East. The new album will be titled "All Roads" and will feature the last recordings of founding member Lloyd Knibb.
Original 1960s lineup
Tommy McCook - tenor saxophone, flute
Roland Alphonso - tenor saxophone
Lester Sterling - alto saxophone
Don Drummond - trombone
Johnny "Dizzy" Moore - trumpet
Lloyd Brevett - upright bass
Lloyd Knibbs - drums
Jerome "Jah Jerry" Haynes - guitar
Jackie Mittoo - piano
Jackie Opel - vocals
Associated musicians
Though not official band members, these musicians worked with the Skatalites extensively during the 1964-1965 period in the recording studio, or in the case of the vocalists, at live shows. Doreen Shaeffer later joined the group full-time when they reunited.
Tony Gregory - vocals
Doreen Shaeffer - vocals
Lord Tanamo - vocals
Dennis "Ska" Campbell - tenor saxophone
Oswald "Baba" Brooks - trumpet
Frank Anderson - trumpet
Ernest Ranglin - lead guitar
Lyn Taitt - rhythm guitar
Current lineup
Lester Sterling - alto saxophone
Doreen Shaffer - vocals
Azemobo "Zem" Audu - tenor saxophone
Andrae Murchison - trombone
Kevin Batchelor - trumpet
Val Douglas - bass guitar
Natty Frenchy - guitar
Cameron Greenlee - keyboards
Trevor "Sparrow" Thompson - drums
Other former band members
These musicians played in various lineups of the Skatalites during their reunion period (1983–present), generally replacing original members who were absent or deceased.
Mark Berney - trumpet
Nathan Breedlove - trumpet (1993–1998)
Cedric "Im" Brooks - tenor saxophone (2000–2002,2007-2010)
Karl "Cannonball" Bryan - saxophone (2003–2009)
Calvin "Bubbles" Cameron - trombone (1983–1984)
Welford "Will" Clark - trombone (1994–2003)
Vin "Don D. Junior" Gordon - trombone (2003–2008)
Devon James - guitar (1987–2009)
Bill Smith - keyboards (1993–1999)
Ken Stewart - keyboards (1988-1990,1998-2009) (also serves as the band's manager)
Clark Gayton - Trombone (1989–1994)
Cary Brown - keyboards (1990-1995)
Louis Bonilla - trombone
www.skatalites.com
Freedom Sound
The Skatalites Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Here we stand freedom sound a echo for so long
Forget your troubles forget your worries
Come and jump and dance and make merriment
Irie vibrations groovy so groovy
Come and jump and dance and make merriment
Let's be like one big happy family
Sharing the joy that togetherness will bring
Come and jump and dance and make merriment
Feel the Spirit
Feel the Spirit
The Skatalites's song Freedom Sounds is a call for unity, joy, and letting go of worries. The lyrics speak of coming together as one big happy family, forgetting troubles and problems, and just enjoying the moment. The repeated phrase "Come and jump and dance and make merriment" emphasizes the need to let go of inhibitions and immerse oneself in the irie vibrations of the music.
The line "Here we stand freedom sound a echo for so long" suggests that the music, and the ideas of freedom and unity that it represents, have been resonating for a long time. The call to "Feel the Spirit" at the end of the song could be interpreted as a call to connect with something larger than oneself, whether that be a higher power, the collective spirit of the group, or the undeniable energy of the music itself.
Line by Line Meaning
Here we are face to face and greeting on and all
We are here, gathered together, to meet and welcome everyone.
Here we stand freedom sound a echo for so long
We stand for the sound of freedom, echoing for many years.
Forget your troubles forget your worries
Let go of your problems and concerns.
Come and jump and dance and make merriment
Join the celebration by dancing and having fun.
Irie vibrations groovy so groovy
The positive energy and music are enjoyable and cool.
Come and jump and dance and make merriment
Join the celebration by dancing and having fun.
Let's be like one big happy family
We should act like a large, united, and joyful family.
Sharing the joy that togetherness will bring
We connect and experience happiness together.
Forget your problems forget for a moment
Let go of your worries, even if just for a little while.
Come and jump and dance and make merriment
Join the celebration by dancing and having fun.
Feel the Spirit
Embrace the uplifting energy within.
Feel the Spirit
Embrace the uplifting energy within.
Lyrics © O/B/O APRA AMCOS
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind
Keith Medler
Soz you don't understand,
The Skatalites for English ears , they assimilated the versions of popular tunes
and I love this band
63 year old still playing them forever.
At my funeral I want some
SKATALITES!!!
I thank them so much
Soz,I'm t
rabbitin' on
Genaro Alejo
No entiendo mucho de musica, pero este tipo de piezas siempre es un deleite escucharlas, la manera en que cada instrumento aporta algo, no se, le da bastante personalidad
Huguiten ZEN
Son los padres del ska!!🏁
Lucas Melo
Perfeito 🇧🇷🖤
Erika Neri
Maravillosa los amo!!!! La mejor etapa de mi vida 😍😍
Maria Victoria Fernandez
Bellisimo! Gracias por esta obra maestra! Grossos ! Vamos Skatalites!!
Hector Mora Murillo
El himno del ska.😍😍
Adam Gonzalez
This song, so incredible.
Jesus Arias Salazar
!Esto es "SKA" para siempre!
A k E S a R
Maestros del Ska!
Ska masters! 🇯🇲💚💛🖤
Fran Rodriguez
Es fantástico!!!