Barrington Levy

One of the great success stories of the '80s, Barrington Levy, arrived on the dancehall scene and swiftly remodeled it in his own image. Although numerous DJs and vocalists would rise and fall during this decade, Levy was one of the few with staying power, and he continued releasing massive hits well into the '90s. Born in 1964 in Clarendon, Jamaica, as a youngster, Barrington Levy formed the Mighty Multitude with his cousin Everton Dacres. They started off playing the sound systems and cut their first single, "My Black Girl," in 1977. All of 14, Levy broke out on his own the next year and recorded his debut solo single, "A Long Time Since We Don't Have No Love." It didn't have much of an impact, however the teen's appearances in the dancehalls were eagerly awaited events. It was at one of these that Levy met former singer turned producer Junjo Lawes and New York-based producer Hyman "Jah Life" Wright. The pair took the youth into Channel One studio, accompanied by the Roots Radics, and recorded a clutch of cuts. The first fruits of this union were "Ah Yah We Deh," quickly followed by "Looking My Love," "Englishman," and "Wedding Ring Aside." Success was immediate, but it was the mighty "Collie Weed" that really cemented the teen's hold of dancehall. "Shine Eye Girl" was a smash follow-up, and the young Levy was now in great demand. A stream of singles followed, "Wicked Intention," "Jumpy Girl," a lovely version of Horace Andy's "Skylarking," the humorous "Disco Music," "Reggae Music," and "Wicked Intention" included. Levy joined forces with producer Alvin Ranglin for another sting of hits -- "Never Tear My Love Apart," "Jah," "You Made Me So Happy," and "When You're Young and in Love."

Levy's rich vocals were made for duets, both with other vocalists and DJs, and it wasn't long before the young star was also recording collaborative singles. Toyan was a great foil on "Call You on the Phone," he paired with Jah Thomas on "Moonlight Lover" and "Sister Debby," and joined forces with Trinity for "Lose Respect" and a follow-up, "I Need a Girl," in 1980. That same year, Levy made a sensational appearance at Reggae Sunsplash, then returned in 1981. During these early years, the singer seemingly spent all of his time between the recording studios and the dancehalls. Amidst the deluge of singles, four albums arrived as well between 1979 and 1980. First up was Bounty Hunter, which boasted three smash singles -- "Reggae Music," "Shine Eye Girl," and "Looking My Love" -- and a clutch of other tracks that were just about as good. In Britain, the Burning Sounds label released Shine Eye Gal, also a hits-heavy package which included the title-track, "Collie Weed," and "Ah Yah We Deh." It was swiftly followed by the mighty Englishman, an absolutely fabulous record which was overseen by the unbeatable studio grouping of Junjo Lawes and two of King Tubby's protégés -- Scientist and Prince Jammy. Jammy was the veteran of this trio, but Lawes, barely into his twenties, was swift to establish his reputation as one of the island's top producers. Scientist, meanwhile, was still only in his late teens, but already a noted engineer and famed remixer, and Lawes would utilize his talents at every opportunity. The Roots Radics' rhythms would form the basis of Lawes production sound, which was heavily roots-based, but had a toughness that swept across the dancehalls like a machine gun. Roots music itself, though, was losing its grip on the contemporary Jamaican music scene, and the time was ripe -- musically, politically, and culturally -- for a change. People had tired of the more militant rasta-fired visions and were searching for something lighter, but with the immediacy of the dancehalls. Levy provided the perfect answer. A veteran of the clubs, he brought the spontaneity of the DJ to his records, while returning vocals back to the sound system scene which had been purely the realm of the DJs.

Utilizing old roots rhythms revitalized by the Radics, and giving the songs a hard, but danceable edge, Lawes and Levy together helped establish a whole new dancehall sound. 1980's Robin Hood merely affirmed what everyone in Jamaica already knew: That Levy was now the biggest star on the island, with a talent that was unbeatable. Or more accurately, he was king of the singers, because ruling beside him was DJ Yellowman, another Lawes' discovery. Robin Hood was as big as its predecessor and was beginning to have an impact in Britain as well, where both it and Englishman had been released by the Greensleeves label. Not surprisingly, both albums heavy rhythms would provide the building blocks for the Scientist V Prince Jammy dub clash album. Unfortunately, Levy's very popularity was now beginning to have some serious drawbacks. Even before stardom arrived, the singer had noticed with delight fans taping his sets at the dancehalls, and these tapes were coming back to haunt him. Suddenly, the shelves were buckling under the weight of bootlegg