Pluto Shervington, also known as Pluto (born Leighton Shervington; 13 August 1950 in

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

, Jamaica), is a

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

musician, singer,

engineer Engineers, as practitioners of engineering, are professionals who invent, design, analyze, build and test machines, complex systems, structures, gadgets and materials to fulfill functional objectives and requirements while considering the l ...

and producer.

Career

Shervington began his career in the early 1970s as a member of the showband Tomorrow's Children.Larkin, Colin (1998), ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, Inspired by the success of Ernie Smith's "Duppy or a Gunman" and

Tinga Stewart Tinga Stewart (born Neville Stewart, c.July 3 1950, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae singer. Stewart won the Festival Song Contest three times, twice as a singer and once as a songwriter. Biography Stewart's career began in the late 1960s, his ...

's "Play de Music", both delivered in heavy

patois ''Patois'' (, pl. same or ) is speech or language that is considered nonstandard, although the term is not formally defined in linguistics. As such, ''patois'' can refer to pidgins, creoles, dialects or vernaculars, but not commonly to jargon or ...

, he recorded in a similar style "Ram Goat Liver", inspiring

Lee "Scratch" Perry Lee "Scratch" Perry (born Rainford Hugh Perry; 20 March 1936 – 29 August 2021) was a Jamaican record producer, composer and singer noted for his innovative studio techniques and production style. Perry was a pioneer in the 1970s development o ...

to produce a popular version with Jimmy Riley. The follow-up single, "Dat" – about a

Rastafarian Rastafari, sometimes called Rastafarianism, is a religion that developed in Jamaica during the 1930s. It is classified as both a new religious movement and a social movement by scholars of religion. There is no central authority in control ...

trying to buy pork (without naming it aloud), contrary to his

faith Faith, derived from Latin ''fides'' and Old French ''feid'', is confidence or trust in a person, thing, or In the context of religion, one can define faith as "belief in God or in the doctrines or teachings of religion". Religious people often ...

, so that he can afford

marijuana Cannabis, also known as marijuana among other names, is a psychoactive drug from the cannabis plant. Native to Central or South Asia, the cannabis plant has been used as a drug for both recreational and entheogenic purposes and in variou ...

– achieved considerable chart success internationally in 1976, reaching the number 6 spot in the

UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart (currently titled Official Singles Chart, with the upper section more commonly known as the Official UK Top 40) is compiled by the Official Charts Company (OCC), on behalf of the British record industry, listing the top-s ...

Trojan Records Trojan Records is a British record label founded in 1968. It specialises in ska, rocksteady, reggae and dub music. The label currently operates under the Sanctuary Records Group. The name ''Trojan'' comes from the Croydon-built Trojan truck ...

capitalized on this success by reissuing his first single, which peaked just outside the top 40 in the UK. Shervington also scored as a producer, overseeing the creation of the 1975 song "Hooray Festival" performed by

Roman Stewart Roman Stewart, also known as Romeo Stewart and 'Mr. Special' (born 11 May 1957, Kingston, Jamaica, died 25 January 2004, New York City) was a reggae singer.Gopie, Donovan (2004) "Popular reggae singer Roman Stewart dies", Caribbean Net News Ste ...

, and "Midnight Rider" by Paul Davidson, which peaked at number 10 in the

in December 1975. Shervington moved to Miami, Florida, in the early 1980s. He continued to record, and reached the UK top 20 again when "Your Honour", originally recorded in 1975 but never previously released, was re-issued in early 1982 together with a new recording "No Honour Among Tiefs". In 1997, as a guest of honour on Ernie Smith’s celebration of 30 years in the business, Shervington performed alongside Ken Lazarus and the surviving members of the Now Generation band at the Pegasus Hotel in Jamaica. Again, in 2001, alongside Ernie Smith, Shervington performed together with the late musical veteran

Lloyd Charmers Lloyd Charmers (born Lloyd Tyrell, 1938 – 27 December 2012, also known as Lloyd Chalmers, Lloyd Terell, or Lloyd Terrell)Ruddock, George (2012), ''Jamaica Gleaner'', 29 December 2012. Retrieved 29 December 2012 was a Jamaican ska and reggae ...

at the Heineken Startime events for an Independence Showcase, which also included performances from

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 fir ...

and

Eric Donaldson Eric Donaldson (born 11 June 1947 in Bog Walk, Jamaica) is a Jamaican reggae singer-songwriter. He originated in Saint Catherine, Jamaica. Biography Born in Kent Village, about 2 miles from Bog Walk, Donaldson first recorded for Studio One i ...

. Shervington often performs live in Miami, and periodically returns to his homeland for performances. he plays solo at Bahama Breeze in

Kendall, Florida Kendall is a census-designated place in Miami-Dade County, Florida. At the 2020 census, the area had a population of 80,241. While the US Census Bureau has set definite boundaries for Kendall as a CDP, the community has a highly ambiguous local ...

, and every other Sunday at Black Point Marina in

Cutler Bay Cutler Bay is an incorporated town in Miami-Dade County, Florida established in 2005, with a population of approximately 45,425 as of 2020. With 45,425 people, Cutler Bay is in 9th place of the top 10 most populous municipalities of the 34 ...

with a five piece band. Pluto appeared at the

St. Kitts Music Festival The St. Kitts Music Festival is a festival of popular music held annually in June on the Caribbean islands of St. Kitts. The festival was originally called the Shak Shak Festival, and was first held in 1996. The first Festival featured Arrow, ...

on Friday 22 June 2007, sharing the bill with

Steel Pulse Steel Pulse are a roots reggae band from the Handsworth area of Birmingham, England. They originally formed at Handsworth Wood Boys School, and were composed of David Hinds (lead vocals, guitar), Basil Gabbidon (lead guitar, vocals), and Ro ...

and

Sean Paul Sean Paul Ryan Francis Henriques OD (born 9 January 1973) is a Jamaican rapper and singer who is regarded as one of dancehall's most prolific artists. Paul's singles " Get Busy" and "Temperature" topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart in the ...

, among others. In addition to his work as a singer, Shervington gained a reputation as a talented bass guitarist, and as a

recording engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproducti ...

, notably engineering

Little Roy Little Roy (born Earl Lowe in Witfield Town, Kingston, Jamaica) is a Jamaican reggae artist.Bush, NathanLittle Roy Biography, AllMusic, retrieved 2011-02-14 Biography Little Roy began his career at the age of 12 years in 1965 recording a few ...

's 1974 album, ''Tafari Earth Uprising''. As of 2018, Shervington was performing solo multiple times a week at the Bahama Breeze when not on tour.

Discography

Albums

* ''Ramgoat'' (1974) * ''Greatest Reggae Hits'' (1974) * ''Pluto'' (1975) * ''Pluto'' (1976) * ''Play Mas (1976) * ''Ire Mas Rockers Carnival'' (1981) * ''Again'' (1982) * ''Reggae Fever'' (1982) * ''Rhythm Of The City'' (1990) *''Second Wind'' (2008)

Singles

*"Dat" (1976) – UK Number 6 *"Ram Goat Liver" (1976) – UK Number 43 *"Your Honour" (1982) – UK Number 19

References

External links