Lennie Hibbert OD (born Leonard Aloysius Hibbert, 12 November 1928 - 8 September 1984)tropicmusic.com was a Jamaican musician who was bandmaster at the Alpha Cottage School, and also a

vibraphone The vibraphone (also called the vibraharp) is a percussion instrument in the metallophone family. It consists of tuned metal bars and is typically played by using Percussion mallet, mallets to strike the bars. A person who plays the vibraphone ...

virtuoso, recording two albums for Studio One.

Biography

Hibbert was born in Mavis Bank, Jamaica in 1928. At the age of eight he began attending the Alpha School, where he joined the school band as a drummer. He left the school in 1944 and played in several small orchestras before joining the Military Band in 1946. While with the Military Band he taught himself to play the vibraphone. In 1955, he returned to Alpha as bandmaster,Hyatt his students including Floyd Lloyd and

Vin Gordon Vin Gordon (a.k.a. Trommie, Don D. Junior or Don Drummond Jr) (born 4 August 1949) is a Jamaican trombone player. Biography Gordon grew up in Jones Town, Kingston, Jamaica as one of eight children. He went to Kingston's Catholic Alpha Boys Sc ...

. He worked as a live musician in jazz groups in the 1960s, and frequently worked with the

Sound Dimension Sound Dimension (previously named The Soul Vendors) was a Jamaican reggae band formed in 1967 in Kingston, Jamaica. They were the house band at Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's Studio One. They were named after a piece of studio equipment called the S ...

band, recording some of the best-known

riddim In Jamaican dancehall music, a riddim is the instrumental accompaniment to a song and is synonymous with the rhythm section. Jamaican music genres that use the term consist of the ''riddim'' plus the ''voicing'' (vocal part) sung by the deeja ...

s for Clement "Coxsone" Dodd.Thompson, p. 378Barrow & Dalton, p.90 He recorded his debut solo album, ''Creation'', for Dodd in 1969, comprising instrumentals featuring Hibbert's vibraphone playing.Barrow & Dalton, p. 93 A single from the album, "Village Soul", has been described as "simply one of the most beautiful instrumentals ever to emerge from Brentford Road". A second album, ''More Creation'', was issued in 1971.Chapman Hibbert went on to work with Harry Mudie, with the "Margaret's Dream" single issued in 1974. In 1976, he was awarded the Order of Distinction (O.D.) for his contribution to music on the island and for his youth work. Hibbert died on 8 September 1984 (aged 55). He is commemorated at Alpha by the Lennie Hibbert Hall.Blowtorch He received a posthumous "unsung hero" award from the Jamaican Reggae Industry Association (JARIA) in 2009.Walters Hibbert was the uncle of reggae singer

Junior Delgado Oscar Hibbert (25 August 1958 – 11 April 2005),Greene, Jo-AnnJunior Delgado Biography, AllMusic. Retrieved 25 April 2016 better known as Junior Delgado, was a reggae singer, famed for his roots style. Biography Born in 1958 in Kingston, Jamaic ...

.Katz, p. 210 He also taught music at Ocho Rios Secondary school prior to his death while living in Content Gardens Ocho Rios

Discography

Albums

*''Moon-light Party at the Myrtle Bank Hotel'' (1961), Beach - The Lennie Hibbert Combo *''Creation'' (1969), Studio One *''More Creation'' (1971), Studio One

Singles

*"Pure Sole" (1967), Dr. Bird - Lennie Hibbert & Count Ossie Band *"Village Soul" (1969), Coxsone *"Montego Rock" (1971), Studio One *"Margaret's Dream" (1974), MHA *"Stick It Up" (1974), Moodisc *"Ital Vibes" (1974), Moodisc *"Far Beyond" (2001), Soul Jazz

Notes

References

*Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) ''The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd edn.'',

Rough Guides Rough Guides is a travel company that offers tailor-made trips planned and arranged by local travel experts based in destinations around the world. Originally established as a guidebook publisher in 1982, Rough Guides expanded into customized t ...

, *Blowtorch, Eric (2007)
Reports from Kingston, Jamaica
, OnMilwaukee.com, 20 June 2007 *Chapman, Rob (1996) ''Downbeat Special'', private press *Hyatt, Cottrell

, Alpha Old Boys Association *Katz, David (2000) ''People Funny Boy: the Genius of Lee "Scratch" Perry'', Payback Press, *Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, *Walters, Basil (2009)
JARIA honours unsung heroes of Jamaican music
, ''

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 ...

'', 6 March 2009

External links

Lennie Hibbert
at Roots Archives
Lennie Hibbert
at Bandcamp {{DEFAULTSORT:Hibbert, Lennie 1928 births People from Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica Jamaican reggae musicians Officers of the Order of Distinction 1984 deaths