Lloyd Knibb OD (8 March 1931 – 12 May 2011) was a

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of Hispanio ...

n drummer who is considered Jamaica's most important and influential modern drummer. A master percussionist, he contributed to every style of this nation's popular and not so popular musical forms, including jazz, mento, burru, nyabinghi, rock steady and, by extension, reggae. He is most well known for his contribution to the development of the rhythm of the

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a w ...

.Miller, Herbie (2011)
The Rhythmic Innovation of Lloyd Knibb
, ''

Jamaica Gleaner ''The Gleaner'' is an English-language, morning daily newspaper founded by two brothers, Jacob and Joshua de Cordova on 13 September 1834 in Kingston, Jamaica. Originally called the ''Daily Gleaner'', the name was changed on 7 December 1992 to ' ...

'', 16 May 2011, retrieved 16 May 2011 He played for

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 oth ...

(in the 1960s up to his death), and for Tommy McCook & The Supersonics. Knibb recorded for the producers Lloyd "Matador" Daley and

Duke Reid Arthur "Duke" Reid CD (21 July 1915 – 1 January 1975) was a Jamaican record producer, DJ and label owner. He ran one of the most popular sound systems of the 1950s called Reid's Sound System, whilst Duke himself was known as The Troj ...

Biography

Born in

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 Inter ...

in 1931, Knibb, grew up on Bond Street, close to where a local band rehearsed, and he made his own drum kit from a wooden box and paint cans to practice the sounds that he had heard. Like a lot of musicians in the 1940s, he honed his craft in jazz bands. His first professional engagement was with the Val Bennett band, with whom he played for six years. He also played with Count Ossie's group, adding burru and nyabinghi to his repertoire, and he regularly accompanied Rastafarian leader Sam Brown at meetings. It was with Eric Dean's band where he gained the technical skills to play many styles. Dean's set list included the

big band A big band or jazz orchestra is a type of musical ensemble of jazz music that usually consists of ten or more musicians with four sections: saxophones, trumpets, trombones, and a rhythm section. Big bands originated during the early 1910s and ...

music of

Glenn Miller Alton Glen Miller (March 1, 1904 – December 15, 1944) was an American big band founder, owner, conductor, composer, arranger, trombone player and recording artist before and during World War II, when he was an officer in the United States Arm ...

as well as the popular dances of the day:

rhumba Rhumba, also known as ballroom rumba, is a genre of ballroom music and dance that appeared in the East Coast of the United States during the 1930s. It combined American big band music with Afro-Cuban rhythms, primarily the son cubano, but also co ...

, cha-cha-cha and

bolero Bolero is a genre of song which originated in eastern Cuba in the late 19th century as part of the trova tradition. Unrelated to the older Spanish dance of the same name, bolero is characterized by sophisticated lyrics dealing with love. It has ...

, and his tenure in the band coincided with future major figures in ska such as

Tommy McCook Tommy McCook (3 March 1927 – 5 May 1998) was a Jamaican saxophonist. A founding member of The Skatalites, he also directed The Supersonics for Duke Reid, and backed many sessions for Bunny Lee or with The Revolutionaries at Channel One ...

, Baba Brooks, and

Lloyd Brevett Lloyd Brevett OD (1 August 1931 – 3 May 2012) was a Jamaican double bassist, songwriter, and a founding member of The Skatalites. He was a Rastafarian, and the uncle of The Melodians member, Tony Brevett.

. Knibb's technical proficiency and wide knowledge of styles soon led to him being featured on the recordings of

Coxsone Dodd Clement Seymour "Coxsone" Dodd (26 January 1932 – 4 May 2004) was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of ska and reggae in the 1950s, 1960s and beyond. He was nicknamed "Coxsone" at school due to his talent a ...

Prince Buster Cecil Bustamente Campbell (24 May 1938 – 8 September 2016), known professionally as Prince Buster, was a Jamaican singer-songwriter and producer. The records he released in the 1960s influenced and shaped the course of Jamaican contemporary ...

Sonia Pottinger Sonia Eloise Pottinger OD ( Durrant; 21 June 1931 – 3 November 2010)Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 316 Duke Reid Arthur "Duke" Reid CD (21 July 1915 – 1 January 1975) was a Jamaican record producer, DJ and label owner. He ran one of the most popular sound systems of the 1950s called Reid's Sound System, whilst Duke himself was known as The Troj ...

, playing an instrumental part in the development of ska. Knibb gained his widest audience, however, as the drummer for The Skatalites. They recorded for the Treasure Isle (Duke Reid), Studio One (Clement Dodd) and

Top Hat A top hat (also called a high hat, a cylinder hat, or, informally, a topper) is a tall, flat-crowned hat for men traditionally associated with formal wear in Western dress codes, meaning white tie, morning dress, or frock coat. Traditionally ...

(Phillip Yap) labels, releasing ska music in the 1960s to an audience that responded to a rhythm that was uniquely Jamaican. Knibb, along with the other original Skatalites members, reformed to play the

Reggae Sunsplash Reggae Sunsplash is a reggae music festival first staged in 1978 in the northern part of Jamaica. In 1985 it expanded with the addition of an international touring festival. The festival ran annually until 1996, with a final event in 1998, befo ...

concert in

Montego Bay Montego Bay is the capital of the parish of St. James in Jamaica. The city is the fourth-largest urban area in the country by population, after Kingston, Spanish Town, and Portmore, all of which form the Greater Kingston Metropolitan Area, ...

, Jamaica in July 1983. The success of the reunion led to the reformation of The Skatalites as a full-time touring band, of which Knibb remained a member until his death in 2011. He played his last show in

Peru , image_flag = Flag of Peru.svg , image_coat = Escudo nacional del Perú.svg , other_symbol = Great Seal of the State , other_symbol_type = National seal , national_motto = "Firm and Happy f ...

on 23 April 2011 with local band Vieja Skina as the opening act. In his later years, Knibb resided in

Hull, Massachusetts Hull is a town in Plymouth County, Massachusetts, United States, located on a peninsula at the southern edge of Boston Harbor. Its population was 10,072 at the 2020 census. Hull is the smallest town by land area in Plymouth County and the fo ...

with his longtime friend and fellow musician, John, and his wife, Adele. His son Dion plays in the

Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- m ...

-based ska band Dion Knibb & The Agitators. Knibb's contribution to Jamaican music was recognized by the Prime Minister's Award, the

Order of Distinction The Order of Distinction is a national order in the Jamaican honours system. It is the sixth in order of precedence of the Orders of Societies of Honour, which were instituted by an Act of Parliament (''The National Honours and Awards Act'') i ...

(Officer Class), the Silver

Musgrave Medal The Musgrave Medal is an annual award by the Institute of Jamaica in recognition of achievement in art, science, and literature.Webster, Valerie J. (2000), ''Awards, Honors & Prizes, Volume 2'', Gale Group, , p. 447. Originally conceived in 1889 ...

, and induction into the Jamaican Music Hall of Fame.Patterson, P.J. (2011)
Lloyd Knibb revolutionised Jamaican drumming, says PJ
", ''

Jamaica Observer ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in 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 lon ...

'', 27 May 2011, retrieved 2011-05-28 Knibb was taken ill while on tour in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

. On 12 May 2011, after being ill for some time with

liver cancer Liver cancer (also known as hepatic cancer, primary hepatic cancer, or primary hepatic malignancy) is cancer that starts in the liver. Liver cancer can be primary (starts in liver) or secondary (meaning cancer which has spread from elsewhere to th ...

and receiving treatment in the US, he was told by doctors that he only had days to live. Knibb traveled back to his home in St. Andrew, Jamaica, to be among his family and friends. Later that day, Knibb died aged 80.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Knibb, Lloyd 1931 births 2011 deaths Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica People from Hull, Massachusetts Deaths from liver cancer Jamaican reggae musicians Jamaican ska musicians The Skatalites members Deaths from cancer in Jamaica Jamaican musicians Jamaican drummers Male drummers Recipients of the Musgrave Medal Officers of the Order of Distinction