Aubrey Wellington Adams (17 June 1920 – 6 August 1990) was a

Jamaica Jamaica is an island country in the Caribbean Sea and the West Indies. At , it is the third-largest island—after Cuba and Hispaniola—of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean. Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, west of Hispaniola (the is ...

n pianist and keyboard player who was one of the top bandleaders in Jamaica in the 1950s, and led the Dewdroppers as well as playing with Clue J & His Blues Blasters.

Biography

Adams was active in the pre-

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 ...

era of Jamaican music when he led a band that had a residency at the Courtleigh Manor Hotel, that included tenor saxophonist

Tommy McCook Tommy McCook (4 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 ...

among others.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 4-5 He also played in

Sonny Bradshaw Cecil "Sonny" Bradshaw CD (28 March 1926 – 10 October 2009), known as the "dean of Jamaican music", and the "musician's musician", was a Jamaican bandleader, trumpeter, broadcaster, and promoter who was a major figure in Jamaican music for mo ...

's jazz band.Gambrill, Tony (2007)
Sonny Bradshaw is 81 years young
, ''

Jamaica Observer The ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the Capital (political), capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by ...

'', 27 May 2007, retrieved 12 September 2009 He continued to perform in the ska era of the early 1670s, when he played piano for Clue J and His Blues Blasters, and also recorded with

Roland Alphonso Roland Alphonso OD or Rolando Alphonso "The Chief Musician" (12 January 1931 – 20 November 1998)Thompson, p. 262 was a Jamaican tenor saxophonist, and one of the founding members of the Skatalites. Biography Born in Havana, Cuba, Alphonso c ...

Clancy Eccles Clancy Eccles (9 December 1940 in Dean Pen, St. Mary, Jamaica – 30 June 2005 in Spanish Town, Jamaica)Katz was a Jamaican ska and reggae singer, songwriter, arranger, promoter, record producer and talent scout. Known mostly for his early re ...

, Pat Kelly, and the Soul Defenders. His keyboard playing was influential on other ska and jazz players, including

Monty Alexander Montgomery Bernard "Monty" Alexander OJ CD (born 6 June 1944) is a Jamaican American jazz pianist. His playing has a Caribbean influence and bright swinging feeling, with a strong vocabulary of bebop jazz and blues rooted melodies. He was in ...

Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) ''The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd edn.'', Rough Guides, , p. 24, 49, 81, 83 and he had a hit in Jamaica with "Marjie", recorded with his band The Dewdroppers, and released on Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's Worldisc label. Adams became a regular session musician for Dodd in the 1960s, and also played on sessions for

Sonia Pottinger Sonia Eloise Pottinger OD ( Durrant; 21 June 1931 – 3 November 2010)Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 316 Lynn Taitt Nerlynn Taitt (22 June 1934 – 20 January 2010) was a guitarist born in San Fernando, Trinidad and Tobago, who later moved to Jamaica and became a pioneer of rocksteady music. Biography Born Nerlynn Taitt, in San Fernando, Trinidad, he got h ...

's band the Jets.

Discography

Singles

*"Little Willie" (1961), All Stars/Coxsone - Aubrey Adams with Clue J & His Blues Blasters *"West Kingston Express" (1961), All Stars - Aubrey Adams & the Dewdroppers *"Mellow Grove" (1961), All Stars - Aubrey Adams & the Dewdroppers *"Panic in Bond Street" (1961), Coxsone - Aubrey Adams & the Dewdroppers *"Lady in Red" (1961), Coxsone - Aubrey Adams & the Dewdroppers *"Stew Peas and Cornflakes" (1961), All Stars - Aubrey Adams & Rico Rodriguez *"Cherry Island" (1973), Jogibs

References

Jamaican ska musicians Jamaican jazz musicians 1920 births 1990 deaths Footballers from Kingston, Jamaica {{Reggae-stub