Lloyd Parks (born 26 May 1949) is a Jamaican

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

vocalist and

bass player A bassist (also known as a bass player or bass guitarist) is a musician who plays a bass instrument such as a double bass (upright bass, contrabass, wood bass), bass guitar (electric bass, acoustic bass), keyboard bass (synth bass) or a low bra ...

who has recorded and performed as a solo artist as well as part of Skin, Flesh & Bones, The Revolutionaries, The Professionals, and We the People Band.Larkin, Colin: ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', 1998, Virgin Books,

Biography

Born in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

, Jamaica, Parks' interest in music was fuelled by his uncle Dourie Bryan, who played in a calypso band, and Parks became the band's singer.Shakespeare, Keisha (2006)
Like father, like son
", ''

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. It is the oldest continuously published newspaper in the Western Hemisphere. Original ...

'', 27 February 2006. Retrieved 29 April 2011 In the late 1960s, he performed with the Invincibles band (whose members also included Ansell Collins,

Sly Dunbar Lowell Fillmore "Sly" Dunbar (born 10 May 1952, Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican drummer, best known as one half of the prolific Jamaican rhythm section and reggae production duo Sly and Robbie. Biography Dunbar began playing at 15 in a ba ...

and Ranchie McLean) before teaming up with Wentworth Vernal in The Termites.Campbell, Howard (2015)
40 years with Lloyd Parks and we the people
, ''

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 ...

'', 26 July 2015. Retrieved 26 July 2015 In 1967, they recorded their first single, "Have Mercy Mr. Percy", and then an album ''Do the

Rocksteady Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish ...

'' for

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 ...

's Studio One label. After recording "Rub Up Push Up" for the Dampa label, Parks and Vernal split up. Parks then briefly joined

The Techniques The Techniques were a Jamaican rocksteady band (music), vocal group mainly active in the 1960s. History The group was formed by Winston Riley in 1962 while still at school, with the initial line-up also featuring Slim Smith, Franklyn White, and ...

as a replacement for Pat Kelly, recording tracks such as "Say You Love Me", before embarking on a solo career and later starting his own label, Parks. His second single was the classic "Slaving", a moving song about the struggles of a working man. As a solo artist, Parks recorded a number of songs for Prince Tony Robinson, owner of ''Groovemaster'' record label, including "Trenchtown Girl" and "You Don't Care". Some of his best-known solo

hits Hits or H.I.T.S. may refer to: Arts, entertainment, and media Music * '' H.I.T.S.'', 1991 album by New Kids on the Block * ''...Hits'' (Phil Collins album), 1998 * ''Hits'' (compilation series), 1984–2006; 2014, a British compilation album s ...

include "Officially", "Mafia" (both 1974), "Girl in the Morning" and "Baby Hang Up The Phone" (both 1975). Parks was a studio bass player, backing many reggae artists, including

Justin Hinds Justin Hinds (7 May 1942 – 16 March 2005) was a Jamaican ska and conscious roots reggae vocalist with his backing singers the Dominoes. He is best known for his work with Duke Reid's Treasure Isle Records, where his most notable song, "Car ...

Duke Reid Arthur "Duke" Reid CD (21 July 1915 – 1 January 1975) was a Jamaican record producer, DJ and record 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 Tr ...

's Treasure Isle label. He was a member of Skin, Flesh, and Bones along with Ansell Collins on keyboards, Tarzan on keyboards, and Ranchie McLean on guitar. This group backed Al Brown on his hit "Here I am Baby", and many other artists. When Skin Flesh and Bones started playing for Channel One Studios, Parks renamed the band The Revolutionaries. Parks was also a member of

Joe Gibbs Joseph Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former American football, football coach. He served as the head coach of the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 Washingto ...

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

, The Professionals, performing hits such as

Althea & Donna Althea & Donna were a Jamaican reggae vocal duo, consisting of Althea Rose Forrest and Donna Marie Reid. They are best known for their 1977 single "Uptown Top Ranking", which was a number-one hit in the United Kingdom in 1978. Career The Jama ...

's "Up Town Top Ranking", and in the 1970s he backed artists including

Dennis Brown Dennis Emmanuel Brown CD (1 February 1957 – 1 July 1999) was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, which began in the late 1960s when he was aged eleven, he recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the major stars of l ...

The Abyssinians The Abyssinians are a Jamaican roots reggae group, famous for their close harmonies and promotion of the Rastafari movement in their lyrics. History The vocal trio was originally formed in 1968 by Bernard Collins and Donald Manning. Their fi ...

, The Itals, The Gladiators,

Culture Culture ( ) is a concept that encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and Social norm, norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, Social norm, customs, capabilities, Attitude (psychology), attitudes ...

, Bim Sherman and

Prince Far I Prince Far I (23 March 1945 – 15 September 1983) was a Jamaican reggae deejay and producer, and a Rastafarian. He was known for his gruff voice and critical assessment of the Jamaican government. His track "Heavy Manners" used lyrics abou ...

. In 1974, he founded the We the People Band, who backed

on tour for over 20 years and have been regulars at the

Reggae Sunsplash Reggae Sunsplash was a reggae music festival held annually in Jamaica from 1978 to 1996, with additional events in 1998 and 2006. The festival expanded to include international tours in 1985 and was revived as a virtual event in 2020 by Tryone ...

and

Reggae Sumfest Reggae Sumfest is the largest music festival in Jamaica and the Caribbean, taking place each year in mid-July in Montego Bay.Johnson, Richard (2014)All Set for Sumfest, '' Jamaica Observer'', 8 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014 Sumfest started in 1 ...

festivals.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 316-7 The band also included singer

Ruddy Thomas Ruddy Thomas (12 July 1951 – 10 June 2006) was a Jamaican reggae singer, musician, and recording engineer, who had his greatest successes as a singer in the late 1970s and early 1980s with lovers rock songs. Biography Thomas worked for prod ...

and a horn section of Tony Greene (saxophone), Everol Wray (trumpet), and Everald Gayle (trombone), and with the band continuing for over forty years, the line-up has included Parks' daughter Tamika on keyboards and his son Craig "Leftside" Parks on drums. Parks' band also backed John Holt along with the

Royal Philharmonic Orchestra The Royal Philharmonic Orchestra (RPO) is a British symphony orchestra based in London, England. The RPO was established by Thomas Beecham in 1946. In its early days, the orchestra secured profitable recording contracts and important engagemen ...

in London in 2000. In 2015 Parks recorded an album of songs originally recorded by the Techniques; ''Lloyd Parks Sings The Techniques'' is set for release in early 2016.Campbell, Howard (2015)
Lloyd Parks’s new technique
, ''

'', 5 October 2015. Retrieved 5 October 2015

Solo discography

* ''Officially'' (1974, Attack) * ''Girl in the Morning'' (1975, Trojan) * ''Loving You'' (1976, Trojan) * ''Meet the people'' (1978, Parks) * ''Jeans, Jeans'' (1985, Tad's) * ''What More Can I Do'' (1983)

Compilations

* ''Still Officially Yours, The Collection 1970–2004'' (2005, Parks Records) * ''Time A Go Dread'' (2016, Pressure Sounds)

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Parks, Lloyd 1948 births Living people Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica Jamaican reggae singers Jamaican guitarists Male bass guitarists Jamaican male singers Jamaican bass guitarists