Wilfred Gerald Edwards (1938 – 15 August 1992), known as Jackie Edwards, was a Jamaican musician,

songwriter A songwriter is a musician who professionally composes musical compositions or writes lyrics for songs, or both. The writer of the music for a song can be called a composer, although this term tends to be used mainly in the classical music ...

and

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 ...

, whose career took in

ska Ska (; ) is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1950s and was the precursor to rocksteady and reggae. It combined elements of Caribbean mento and calypso with American jazz and rhythm and blues. Ska is characterized by a walki ...

, R&B,

soul In many religious and philosophical traditions, there is a belief that a soul is "the immaterial aspect or essence of a human being". Etymology The Modern English noun '' soul'' is derived from Old English ''sāwol, sāwel''. The earliest atte ...

, rocksteady,

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 ...

, and ballads.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books,

Career

Edwards was born in

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 ...

in 1938 where he was raised with fourteen siblings. Strongly influenced by

Nat King Cole Nathaniel Adams Coles (March 17, 1919 – February 15, 1965), known professionally as Nat King Cole, was an American singer, jazz pianist, and actor. Cole's music career began after he dropped out of school at the age of 15, and continued f ...

, he began performing at the age of 14.Wilfred ‘Jackie’ Edwards, An Unsung Hero Of The 60s
, '' Jamaica Gleaner'', 24 May 2015. Retrieved 25 May 2015 He came to the attention of Chris Blackwell in 1959. Edwards had four number one singles in Jamaica between 1960 and 1961, all self-written ballads with Latin-influenced music. When Blackwell set up Island Records in London in 1962, Edwards travelled with him. Edwards worked as a singer and songwriter for Island, recording as a solo artist and also duets with

Millie Small Millicent Dolly May Small CD (6 October 1947 – 5 May 2020) was a Jamaican singer and songwriter who is best known for her 1964 hit " My Boy Lollipop". The song reached number two in both the UK and US charts and sold over seven million ...

, as well as performing duties such as delivering records. He wrote both "

Keep On Running "Keep On Running" is a song written and first recorded by Jackie Edwards. It became a hit in the UK for The Spencer Davis Group; their version reached number one in the charts. Recordings "Keep On Running" was written by Jamaican singer-songwrit ...

" and "

Somebody Help Me "Somebody Help Me" is a single by The Spencer Davis Group, which was released in 1966. As with "Keep on Running", it was composed by Jackie Edwards. Chart performance "Somebody Help Me" became the band's second consecutive and last number-on ...

", that became number one singles in the

United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland, commonly known as the United Kingdom (UK) or Britain, is a country in Europe, off the north-western coast of the European mainland, continental mainland. It comprises England, Scotlan ...

for

The Spencer Davis Group The Spencer Davis Group were a British band formed in Birmingham in 1963 by Spencer Davis (guitar), brothers Steve Winwood (keyboards, guitar) and Muff Winwood (bass guitar), and Pete York (drums). Their best known songs include the UK numb ...

. He continued to work as a recording artist himself, with regular album releases through to the mid-1980s. Much of his later work was produced by

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 ...

, and he also worked with

The Aggrovators The Aggrovators were a dub/reggae backing band in the 1970s and 1980s, and one of the main session bands of producer Bunny Lee. The line-up varied, with Lee using the name for whichever set of musicians he was using at any time.Larkin, Colin ...

. Dionne Bromfield covered his song "Oh Henry" on her album ''

Introducing Dionne Bromfield ''Introducing Dionne Bromfield'' is the debut album by British singer Dionne Bromfield. She recorded it when she was thirteen for Lioness Records, the label of her godmother, Amy Winehouse. The album was released on 12 October 2009 and reached ...

'' in 2009. Edwards worked as a producer, co-producing the 1977 album ''Move Up Starsky'' by

The Mexicano Rudolph Grant, also known as Little Brother Grant, Rudy Grant and The Mexicano, is a reggae deejay and singer. Biography Born in Plaisance, Guyana, Grant settled in the United Kingdom with his family in 1960.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin En ...

. The majority of Edwards' catalogue is published through Fairwood Music (UK) Ltd. He died in August 1992 from a

heart attack A myocardial infarction (MI), commonly known as a heart attack, occurs when blood flow decreases or stops to the coronary artery of the heart, causing damage to the heart muscle. The most common symptom is chest pain or discomfort which ma ...

Discography

Albums

*''The Most of Jackie Edwards'' (1963) –

Island An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

*''Stand Up for Jesus'' (1964) – Island *''Come on Home'' (1965) – Island *''By Demand'' (1966) – Island *''Pledging My Love'' (1966) – Island (with Millie Small) *''Premature Golden Sands'' (1967) – Island *''Put Your Tears Away'' (1969) – Island *''I Do Love You'' (1972) –

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 ...

*''Do You Believe in Love'' (1976) – Klik *''African Language'' (1977) – Harry J Records *''Let It Be Me'' (1978) – Jamaica Sound (with

Hortense Ellis Hortense Ellis (18 April 1941 – 19 October 2000) was a reggae musician, and the younger sister of fellow artist Alton Ellis.List of reggae musicians This is a list of reggae musicians. This includes artists who have either been very important to the genre or have had a considerable amount of exposure (such as in the case of one that has been on a major label). Bands are listed by the first lett ...

References

External links

*
Fairwood Music (UK) Ltd. WebsiteJackie Edwards at Roots Archives
{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Jackie 1938 births 1992 deaths Jamaican songwriters 20th-century Jamaican male singers Jamaican reggae singers Jamaican reggae musicians Trojan Records artists Island Records artists