Winston Lara (28 May 1943 – 12 June 1994), better known by his stage name Gene Rondo, was a

Jamaica Jamaica (; ) is an island country situated in the Caribbean Sea. Spanning in area, it is the third-largest island of the Greater Antilles and the Caribbean (after Cuba and Hispaniola). Jamaica lies about south of Cuba, and west of His ...

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 ...

singer. After first recording as part of the duo Gene & Roy in Jamaica, he relocated to London where he continued to record until the 1980s, including several album releases in the 1970s, both solo and as a member of The Undivided. He was sometimes credited as Gene Laro or Winston Laro.

Biography

Born in Greenwich Farm,

Kingston, Jamaica Kingston is the capital and largest city of Jamaica, located on the southeastern coast of the island. It faces a natural harbour protected by the Palisadoes, a long sand spit which connects the town of Port Royal and the Norman Manley Inter ...

in 1943, Rondo entered the music business in the late 1950s, successfully competing in the ''

Vere Johns Joseph Vere Everette Johns (28 November 1893–10 September 1966

Opportunity Hour'' talent content with his partner Satch.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p. 256 He recorded a single in Jamaica as part of the duo Gene & Roy ("

Little Queenie "Little Queenie" is a song written and recorded by Chuck Berry. Released in March 1959 as a double A-side single with " Almost Grown", it was included on '' Chuck Berry Is on Top'' (1959), Berry's first compilation album. He performed the song in ...

"/"Squeeze Me"), before relocating to

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 ...

in 1962, where he studied as a classical singer in

Hammersmith Hammersmith is a district of West London, England, southwest of Charing Cross. It is the administrative centre of the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham, and identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London. ...

.Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 57Reel, Penny (1994) "RIP Gene Rondo", ''Echoes'', July 1994 In 1965 he formed the band Abashack, with whom he toured the UK, and went on to record singles on the Giant and Jolly labels of

Stamford Hill Stamford Hill is an area in Inner London, England, about 5.5 miles north-east of Charing Cross. The neighbourhood is a sub-district of Hackney, the major component of the London Borough of Hackney, and is known for its Hasidic community, the l ...

-based R&B Records in 1968. He then recorded for

Dandy Livingstone Dandy Livingstone (born Robert Livingstone Thompson, 14 December 1943, Kingston, Jamaica) is a British-Jamaican ska, rocksteady, and reggae musician and producer, best known for his 1972 hit, "Suzanne Beware of the Devil", and for his song, " ...

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 ...

sub-label Downtown, releasing several singles in 1969 and 1970. In 1970 he recorded his debut album, ''On My Way'', for Trojan. He went on to record for

Magnet Records Magnet Records was a British record label, started in 1973 by Michael Levy and Peter Shelley. It was acquired by Warner Bros. Records in 1988 for an estimated £10m. Artists on the label included Alvin Stardust, Stevenson's Rocket, Matchbox, ...

, including contributing four tracks to the ''Reggae Desire'' album in 1974. In 1972 he formed the pop-reggae band The Undivided (which later evolved into

Undivided Roots "Undivided" is a song recorded by American country music singers Tim McGraw and Tyler Hubbard, the latter of whom is one-half of Florida Georgia Line. The song, which Hubbard wrote with Chris Loocke, was released on January 13, 2021, and is on th ...

), who released an album (''Listen to the World'') for

Decca Decca may refer to: Music * Decca Records or Decca Music Group, a record label * Decca Gold, a classical music record label owned by Universal Music Group * Decca Broadway, a musical theater record label * Decca Studios, a recording facility in W ...

. He also recorded as a solo reggae vocalist for several UK-based producers including

Clement Bushay Clement "Clem" Bushay (born 1955) is a British reggae producer who also ran the ''Bushays'' record label. Biography Hailed the creator of the 'Lovers Rock' genre in the UK, Bushay's productions in the early 1970s were issued by Trojan Records, ...

, Dennis Harris (for whom he recorded duets with

T.T. Ross T.T. Ross was a British lovers rock singer best known for her 1970s singles "Last Date" and "Imagine". After beginning to record in the mid-1970s, including singles recorded as duets with Gene Rondo, Ross first found success on the British regg ...

), and

Count Shelly Count (feminine: countess) is a historical title of nobility in certain European countries, varying in relative status, generally of middling rank in the hierarchy of nobility. Pine, L. G. ''Titles: How the King Became His Majesty''. New York: ...

. Rondo accompanied

Susan Cadogan Susan Cadogan (born Alison Anne Cadogan; 2 November 1951) is a Jamaican reggae singer best known for her hit records in the 1970s. Biography Cadogan is the daughter of singer Lola Cadogan, who released several 78rpm singles of devotional music ...

for her performance of "Hurt So Good" on ''

Top of the Pops ''Top of the Pops'' (''TOTP'') is a British Record chart, music chart television programme, made by the BBC and originally broadcast weekly between 1January 1964 and 30 July 2006. The programme was the world's longest-running weekly music show ...

''. In the mid-1970s, Rondo adopted the

Rastafari 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 of ...

faith, and recorded more roots-oriented tracks such as "A Land Far Away" and "Give All the Parise to Jah".Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter (2004) ''The Rough Guide to Reggae, 3rd edn.'', Rough Guides, , p. 393 Rondo co-produced (with

Bunny Lee Edward O'Sullivan Lee OD (23 August 1941 – 6 October 2020), better known as Bunny "Striker" Lee, was a Jamaican record producer. He was known as a pioneer of the United Kingdom reggae market, licensing his productions to Trojan Records i ...

)

Delroy Wilson Delroy George Wilson CD (5 October 1948 – 6 March 1995) Greene, Jo-Ann, " Delroy Wilson Biography, allmusic.com, Macrovision Corporation was a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae singer. Wilson is often regarded as Jamaica's first child s ...

's ''Nice Times'' album in 1983 and contributed backing vocals to

Alton Ellis Alton Nehemiah Ellis (1 September 1938 – 10 October 2008)Godfather ...

's ''25th Silver Jubilee'' album in 1984. He continued to record into the 1980s, and also set up the Roots Pool community centre and studio in North London. He was a major contributor to the British Reggae Artists Famine Appeal (BRAFA) and the charity single "Let's Make Africa Green Again", which raised funds for the

Save the Children The Save the Children Fund, commonly known as Save the Children, is an international non-governmental organization established in the United Kingdom in 1919 to improve the lives of children through better education, health care, and economic ...

Fund. He continued to concentrate on community work in the latter half of the 1980s and early 1990s. Rondo died from

cancer Cancer is a group of diseases involving abnormal cell growth with the potential to invade or spread to other parts of the body. These contrast with benign tumors, which do not spread. Possible signs and symptoms include a lump, abnormal b ...

in St Josephs Hospice, Hackney in June 1994. A memorial concert was held featuring artists such as

Alton Ellis Alton Nehemiah Ellis (1 September 1938 – 10 October 2008)Godfather ...

Prince Lincoln Prince Lincoln Thompson, known as Sax (10 July 1949
''

...

Justin Hinds Justin Hinds (7 May 1942 – 16 March 2005) was a Jamaican ska 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, "Carry Go Bring Come" recorde ...

Dennis Alcapone Dennis Alcapone (born Dennis Smith, 6 August 1947, in Clarendon, Jamaica) is a reggae DJ and producer. Career Smith initially trained as a welder and worked for the Jamaica Public Services.Interview with Aad van der Hoek in London, England, ...

Owen Gray Owen Gray, also known as Owen Grey (born 5 July 1939),Larkin, Colin (1998) "The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae", Virgin Books, is a Jamaican musician. His work spans the R&B, ska, rocksteady, and reggae eras of Jamaican music, and he has been ...

, and

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 ...

Discography

Albums

*''On My Way'' (1970),

Trojan Trojan or Trojans may refer to: * Of or from the ancient city of Troy * Trojan language, the language of the historical Trojans Arts and entertainment Music * ''Les Troyens'' ('The Trojans'), an opera by Berlioz, premiered part 1863, part 189 ...

*''Memories'' (1977), Venture

Singles

*"Little Queenie"/"Squeeze Me" (1961), Magico – Gene & Roy *"Grey Lies" (1968), Giant – with Herbie Gray and the Cool-Tans *"Mary Mary"/"Baby Baby" (1968), Jolly *"Lover's Question" (1969), Downtown *"Sentimental Reason" (1969), Downtown *"Spreading Peace" (1970), Downtown *"Goodnight My Love" (1970), Downtown – credited to Winston Laro *"I Need Your Love" (1970), Bread – credited to Gene Laro, B-side of "Susanne" by Del Davis *"Happy Birthday Sweet Sixteen" (1972), Count Shelly *"Wanna Be Like Daddy" (1972), Downtown *"Each Moment" (1973), Magnet *"Prisoner of Love" (1973), Magnet *"This is Love" (1973), Magnet *"Rebel Woman" (1974), Queen Bee *"A Different World" (1974), RG *"Valley of Tears" (1974), Magnet *"Oh Sweet Africa" (197?), Magnet *"Reggae Desire" (197?), Magnet *"Jim Dandy" (1975), Jamatel *"Impossible Dream" (1975), Faith *"Declaration of Rights" (1975), Third World – B-side of "Buggis Mood" by Buggis *"Little Things Mean A Lot" (1975), Dip – Gene Rondo &

*"Miss Grace" (1975), Wild Flower – Gene Rondo & T.T. Ross *"My Dream is Yours" (1975), Comedy International *"If I Could Say What's on My Mind" (1975), Comedy International *"Try Me" (197?), Dip *"Ramblin' Man" (1976), Trojan *"Domestic Affair" (1977), Third World *"Time" (1978), Trans Universal – with the Star-Keys, B-side of

's "Truth & Rights" *"Jah Jah Worker" (1978), Burning Sounds – with

Militant Barry The English word ''militant'' is both an adjective and a noun, and it is generally used to mean vigorously active, combative and/or aggressive, especially in support of a cause, as in "militant reformers". It comes from the 15th century Latin " ...

*"Golden Love" (1977), Paradise *"If I Would Say" (1979), Pentagon *"In My Life" (1979), Jamaica Sound/RCA Victor *"Since I Fell For You"/"If You Take My Love" (1979), Jamaica Sound *"Something on My Mind" (197?), Jamaica Sound – Gene Laro &

Dillinger John Herbert Dillinger (June 22, 1903 – July 22, 1934) was an American gangster during the Great Depression in the United States, Great Depression. He led the Dillinger Gang, which was accused of robbing 24 banks and four police stations. Dill ...

*"No One But You" (1985), Roots Pool *"Miss Grace", Music Scene *"Yah Mo Be There (Jah Will Be There)" (1987), BMDI

Compilation appearances

*''Reggae Desire'' (1974),

Magnet A magnet is a material or object that produces a magnetic field. This magnetic field is invisible but is responsible for the most notable property of a magnet: a force that pulls on other ferromagnetic materials, such as iron, steel, nickel, ...

: "Pretty Blue Eyes", "This Is Love", "Mary Mary", "Oh Sweet Africa"

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Rondo, Gene 1943 births 1994 deaths Jamaican reggae singers 20th-century Jamaican male singers Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica