Angus Gaye (24 September 1959 – 2 September 2022), better known as Drummie Zeb, was a British musician. He was the drummer and vocalist for the reggae band

Aswad Aswad are a British reggae group, noted for adding strong R&B and soul influences to the reggae sound. They have been performing since the mid-1970s, having released a total of 21 albums. Their UK hit singles include the number one "Don't Tur ...

, as well as a

record producer A record producer is a recording project's creative and technical leader, commanding studio time and coaching artists, and in popular genres typically creates the song's very sound and structure.Virgil Moorefield"Introduction" ''The Producer as ...

for other artists.

Early life

Gaye was born in

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

on 24 September 1959. His parents immigrated to the United Kingdom from

Carriacou Carriacou is an island of the Grenadine Islands. It is a dependency of Grenada, and is located in the south-eastern Caribbean Sea, northeast of the island Grenada and the north coast of South America. The name is derived from the Carib lang ...

Grenada Grenada ( ; Grenadian Creole French: ) is an island country in the West Indies in the Caribbean Sea at the southern end of the Grenadines island chain. Grenada consists of the island of Grenada itself, two smaller islands, Carriacou and Pe ...

, as part of the

Windrush generation British African-Caribbean people are an ethnic group in the United Kingdom. They are British citizens whose ancestry originates from the Caribbean or they are nationals of the Caribbean who reside in the UK. There are some self-identified Afro-C ...

. He grew up in the

Ladbroke Grove Ladbroke Grove () is an area and a road in West London in the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea, passing through Kensal Green and Notting Hill, running north–south between Harrow Road and Holland Park Avenue. It is also a name given to ...

area of

West London West London is the western part of London, England, north of the River Thames, west of the City of London, and extending to the Greater London boundary. The term is used to differentiate the area from the other parts of London: North London ...

and studied at the

Holland Park School Holland Park School is a coeducational secondary school and sixth form in Holland Park, London, England. In 2013, it has attained academy status. Opened in 1958, the school became the flagship for comprehensive education, and at one time had ove ...

in his hometown where he met his future bandmates Tony Robinson and

Brinsley Forde Brinsley Forde MBE (born 16 October 1953) is a British singer and actor of Guyanese parentage who is best known as the founder member of the reggae band Aswad and as a child actor in the children's television series '' Here Come the Double D ...

. Gaye took an interest in drumming after a cousin, who was a drummer, started living at his family home as a tenant. He would use anything he had at hand to use as a drum. His father bought him his first drum at the age of eight so he would stop damaging family property and Gaye eventually became a kit drummer in the local

steelpan The steelpan (also known as a pan, steel drum, and sometimes, collectively with other musicians, as a steelband or steel orchestra) is a musical instrument originating in Trinidad and Tobago. Steelpan musicians are called pannists. Descriptio ...

band called the "Metronomes".

Career

In 1975, Gaye saw an advertisement for the band

and turned up for the audition, where he was successful in getting the part of the drummer. They became the first British reggae group to sign with an international label, signing up with

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

in 1975. Gaye was the only member who remained a part of the band throughout its existence. As the songs of the band became more commercial-oriented in nature in the 1980s, he started assuming most of the lead vocalist duties and eventually replaced Forde. Aswad gained popularity after the release of their debut single "Back to Africa" in 1976. They followed this up with ''Love Fire'' (1981), '' Rise and Shine'' (1994), which earned a

Grammy The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pre ...

nomination for

Best Reggae Album The Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album is an award presented at the Grammy Awards, a ceremony that was established in 1985 and originally called the Gramophone Awards, to recording artists for quality works in the reggae music genre. Honors in sev ...

, ''Dub: The Next Frontier'' (1995), and '' Cool Summer Reggae'' (2002). Aswad ultimately released 21 albums and received two more Grammy nominations. By 2006, he and Robinson were the only founding members still playing with the group. Aswad released their last album, ''City Lock'', in 2009. Outside of Aswad, Gaye served as a

for Ace of Base whose 1994 rendition of the single "

Don't Turn Around "Don't Turn Around" is a popular song written by Albert Hammond and Diane Warren. It was originally recorded by Tina Turner as the B-side to the single " Typical Male" in 1986. It has since been included on the rarities disc of the 1994 compi ...

" became a global hit, and played what was described by David Katz as a "distinctive drum pattern" in

Janet Kay Janet Kay Bogle (born 17 January 1958) is an English actor and vocalist, best known for her 1979 lovers rock hit "Silly Games". Biography Janet Kay Bogle was born in Willesden, North West London. She was discovered singing impromptu at a rehea ...

's 1979 single "

Silly Games Silly may refer to: Places * Silly, Belgium, a town * Silly Department, a department or commune of Sissili Province in southern Burkina Faso Music * Silly (band), an East German rock group from the 1970s * The Sillies, an American punk rock b ...

" which peaked at number 2 on 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 ...

. He also worked with

Sweetie Irie Dean Bent (born January 1971), better known as Sweetie Irie, is an English reggae singer and deejay. Early life Sweetie Irie began working on local sound systems as a teenager. Career He gained the attention of Angus Gaye of Aswad ...

Joe Joe or JOE may refer to: Arts Film and television * ''Joe'' (1970 film), starring Peter Boyle * ''Joe'' (2013 film), starring Nicolas Cage * ''Joe'' (TV series), a British TV series airing from 1966 to 1971 * ''Joe'', a 2002 Canadian animated ...

Vanessa-Mae Vanessa-Mae (陈美 Chén Měi; born 27 October 1978) also called Vanessa-Mae Vanakorn Nicholson, is a Singaporean-born British violinist with album sales reaching several million, having made her the wealthiest entertainer under 30 in the Uni ...

Carroll Thompson Carroll Thompson is a British lovers rock singer, best known as the "Queen of Lovers Rock" Biography Thompson was born in England and is of Jamaican descent. Thompson undertook classical piano training on the piano and sang in school and chur ...

and others.

Personal life

Gaye had six children, including Soloman. He died on 2 September 2022, some weeks before his 63rd birthday. The cause of death has not been given.

References

Specific

Bibliography

External links

* * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Zeb, Drummie 1959 births 2022 deaths Musicians from London English reggae musicians Black British musicians English record producers People educated at Holland Park School English people of Grenadian descent English drummers British male drummers 20th-century drummers 20th-century English male singers 20th-century English singers 21st-century drummers 21st-century English singers 21st-century English male singers British reggae singers