Clarence Linberg Miller (30 March 1934 – 16 August 2018), better known as Count Prince Miller, was a Jamaican-born British actor and musician.

Biography

Miller began as a musician, recording a number of

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 ...

songs. His best known song is "

Mule Train "Mule Train" is a popular song written by Johnny Lange, Hy Heath, Ramblin' Tommy Scott and Fred Glickman. It is a cowboy song, with the singer filling the role of an Old West wagon driver, spurring on his team of mules pulling a delivery wagon. ...

Parts One & Two", which was a hit on

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 t ...

in 1971, before being re-recorded with

Sly and Robbie Sly and Robbie were a prolific Jamaican rhythm section and production duo, associated primarily with the reggae and dub genres. Drummer Sly Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare teamed up in the mid-1970s after establishing themselves separa ...

in the early 1980s. Adding elements of

music hall Music hall is a type of British theatrical entertainment that was popular from the early Victorian era, beginning around 1850. It faded away after 1918 as the halls rebranded their entertainment as variety. Perceptions of a distinction in Bri ...

performance to his reggae style, Miller drew comparison with

Judge Dread Alexander Minto Hughes (2 May 1945 – 13 March 1998), better known as Judge Dread, was an English reggae and ska musician. He was the first white recording artist to have a reggae hit in Jamaica, and the BBC has banned more of his songs than ...

for his somewhat bawdy music. He also regularly appeared with Jimmy James. Known as something of a showman Miller was picked to compere the 1969

Wembley Wembley () is a large suburbIn British English, "suburb" often refers to the secondary urban centres of a city. Wembley is not a suburb in the American sense, i.e. a single-family residential area outside of the city itself. in north-west Londo ...

Reggae Festival, the first major reggae music event in Britain.

Music

Miller recorded a single, "Blue Blue World" bw "Somethin' to Make You Feel Good" which was released on Pye 7N 17786 in 1969. In 1978, he recorded "

Red Red Wine "Red Red Wine" is a song originally written, performed and recorded by American singer Neil Diamond in 1967 that appears on his second studio album, '' Just for You''. The lyrics are written from the perspective of a person who finds that drinki ...

" bw "Dub Red Red Wine" which was released on Raymond Morrison's Hawk label. It was credited to Count Prince Miller with Tamashante.

Acting

As an actor Miller's credits include the role of Vince in the

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned enterprise, state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a four ...

sitcom ''

Desmond's ''Desmond's'' is a British television situation comedy broadcast by Channel 4 from 1989 to 1994. Conceived and co-written by Trix Worrell, and produced by Charlie Hanson and Humphrey Barclay, ''Desmond's'' stars Norman Beaton as barber Desmond ...

'', initially an occasional role until the last series, when he became a regular. The character was a member of the fictional group the Georgetown Dreamers, in which Miller was joined by fellow musicians

Ram John Holder John Wesley Holder (born 1934), known professionally as Ram John Holder, is a Guyanese-British actor and musician, who began his professional career as a singer in New York City, before moving to England in 1962. He has performed on stage, i ...

and

Sol Raye Neville Marshall-Corbin (1936 – 31 March 2006) was a Guyanese cabaret singer, composer and recording artist who moved to England in the 1960s and originally studied acting, performing with the English Stage Company. He was born in Christianbur ...

, as well as the show's star

Norman Beaton Norman Lugard Beaton (31 October 1934 – 13 December 1994) was a Guyanese actor long resident in the United Kingdom. He became best known for his role as Desmond Ambrose in the Channel Four television comedy series ''Desmond's''. The writer S ...

. Miller's role continued in the spin-off series, '' Porkpie''. Earlier, in 1962, Miller appeared as a nightclub dancer in the 1962 James Bond film, '' Dr. No''. Miller went on to make an appearance in the 2003 film '' What a Girl Wants'', while he secured Best Male Actor Award at the 2006 Black Film Makers' International Awards Ceremony for his role in '' Winnie and the Duppy Bat''. Additionally, Miller played a small role in the 2017 film, '' Kingsman: The Golden Circle'', as 'Elderly Patient 2'. Miller also appeared in plays, two of which were written by J. D. Douglas (''Black Heroes'' and ''JA Story''). He was praised for his portrayal of

Marcus Garvey Marcus Mosiah Garvey Sr. (17 August 188710 June 1940) was a Jamaican political activist, publisher, journalist, entrepreneur, and orator. He was the founder and first President-General of the Universal Negro Improvement Association and African ...

in the former.

Honours

In 2007, Miller was made a Commander of the

Order of Distinction The Order of Distinction is a national order in the Jamaican honours system. It is the sixth in order of precedence of the Orders of Societies of Honour, which were instituted by an Act of Parliament (''The National Honours and Awards Act'') i ...

for his contributions to the music industry in Jamaica.

References

External links

*
Programme for 1969 Wembley Reggae Festival including profile of Miller
1934 births 2018 deaths Jamaican male television actors Jamaican expatriates in the United Kingdom Jamaican reggae musicians Commanders of the Order of Distinction People from Saint Mary Parish, Jamaica 20th-century Jamaican male actors 21st-century Jamaican male actors {{Jamaica-musician-stub