John McMorris (born 1970), better known as Little John, is a Jamaican dancehall musician best known for his 1980s recordings.

History

Born 1970 in Kingston, Jamaica,Little John
,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

. Retrieved 8 April 2011 Little John was so called as he began performing and recording at the age of nine.Larkin, Colin (1998) ''The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae'', Virgin Books, , p. 171 He first recorded for

Captain Sinbad Captain Sinbad was the deejay alter ego of Jamaican record producer Carl Dwyer (born c.1955). Biography Dwyer was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and entered the music industry as a deejay under the name Captain Sinbad on the ''Sound of Silence'' s ...

's Youth in Progress label (including debut single "51 Storm"), and is regarded by some as the first dancehall singer, known for his ability to create lyrics over any backing track. After getting his break with

Sugar Minott Lincoln Barrington "Sugar" Minott (25 May 1956 – 10 July 2010)Campbell, Howard (2010)Reggae singer Sugar Minott dies at 54, Associated Press, 11 July 2010. Retrieved 12 July 2010Peru, Yasmine (2010)Godfather of Dancehall, Sugar Minott, dead at ...

's Youth Promotion organisation, he performed with

sound systems In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

such as Romantic Hi Fi, Kilimanjaro, Gemini, and

Henry "Junjo" Lawes Henry "Junjo" Lawes (1960 in Kingston, Jamaica – 13 June 1999 in London, England) was a highly influential Jamaican record producer and a sound engineer. Biography Born in the Waterhouse district of Kingston, Jamaica, Lawes began working ...

' Volcano Hi Power.Lesser, Beth (2008) ''Dancehall: The Rise of Jamaican Dancehall Culture'', Soul Jazz, , p. 134 He recorded for many producers in the 1980s, notably for Lawes,

Joseph Hoo Kim Joseph "Jo Jo" Hoo Kim (10 December 1942 – 20 September 2018) was a Jamaican reggae record producer best known for his productions in the 1970s at his Channel One Studios. Career Born to parents of Chinese heritage, Joseph Hoo Kim grew up in ...

George Phang George Phang (born 29 March 1956 in Saint Andrew, Kingston) is a Jamaican reggae record producer, famously known for owning the ''Powerhouse'' label. Phang started his reggae label Powerhouse in the early 1980s. His first hits were Little John's ...

Jah Thomas Nkrumah "Jah" Thomas (b. 1955, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae deejay and record producer who first came to prominence in the 1970s, later setting up his own ''Midnight Rock'' and ''Nura'' labels. Biography Named Nkrumah after Ghanaian national ...

, and

King Jammy Lloyd James (born 26 October 1947),Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter: "Reggae: The Rough Guide", 1997, Rough Guides, better known as Prince Jammy or King Jammy, is a Jamaican dub mixer and record producer. He began his musical career as a dub ma ...

. He continued to record in the 1990s including the

Winston Holness Winston Holness, better known as Niney the Observer (born George Boswell, 1951, Montego Bay, Jamaica),Thompson, Dave (2002), ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, . is a Jamaican record producer and singer who was a key figure in the cre ...

-produced ''Boombastic'' (1990),Dougan, John
''Boombastic'' Review
,

. Retrieved 8 April 2011 and in the 21st century released the album ''Build Back Yard'' (2006). He also continued to perform live, including paying tribute to the late Sugar Minott at

Reggae Sumfest Reggae Sumfest is the largest music festival in Jamaica and the Caribbean, taking place each year in mid-July in Montego Bay.Johnson, Richard (2014)All Set for Sumfest, ''Jamaica Observer'', 8 July 2014. Retrieved 8 July 2014 Sumfest started in 19 ...

in 2010.Peru, Yasmine (2010)
Reggae Sumfest: The good, the bad and the muddy
", ''

Jamaica Observer ''Jamaica Observer'' is a daily newspaper published in Kingston, Jamaica. The publication is owned by Butch Stewart, who chartered the paper in January 1993 as a competitor to Jamaica's oldest daily paper, ''The Gleaner''. Its founding editor i ...

'', 30 July 2010. Retrieved 9 April 2011

Discography

*''Janet Sinclair'' (single, 1982), Greensleeves – with

Billy Boyo Billy Boyo (born Billy Theophilus Rowe, 21 September 1969 – 29 October 2000) was a Jamaican reggae artist born in Kingston, Jamaica, who was arguably the most prolific of the early-1980s child DJs. He is most well known for his songs "One Sp ...

*''Reggae Dance'' (1982), Midnight Rock *''Showdown vol. 1'' (1984), Empire/Hitbound – with Barry Brown *''English Woman'' (1983), Gorgon *''Ghetto Youth'' (1983), Jah Guidance – reissued (1990),

RAS Ras or RAS may refer to: Arts and media * RAS Records Real Authentic Sound, a reggae record label * Rundfunk Anstalt Südtirol, a south Tyrolese public broadcasting service * Rás 1, an Icelandic radio station * Rás 2, an Icelandic radio stati ...

*''Give the Youth a Try'' (1983), Live & Learn *''Show Case 83'' (1983), EAD *''Showdown vol. 6'' (1984), Hitbound – with

Frankie Paul Paul Blake (19 October 1965 – 18 May 2017), better known as Frankie Paul, was a Jamaican dancehall reggae artist. Born blind, he has been dubbed by some 'The Jamaican Stevie Wonder'. Biography Born in Jamaica in 1965, Blake was born blind bu ...

*''True Confession'' (1984), Power House *''Unite'' (1984), Vista Sounds *''Clarks Booty'' (1985), Live & Love *''River to the Bank'' (1985), Power House *''The Best of Little John'' (1985), RM *''Worries and Trouble'' (1985),

Black Scorpio Black Scorpio is a Jamaican sound system and record label run by Maurice "Jack Scorpio" Johnson. History Johnson had started to operate a single turntable and speaker sound system in 1968 and started the Special I sound system in 1972, changing ...

*''Rubber Dub One'' (1986), C&E *''Youth of Today'' (1986), Skengdon *''Dance Hall Clash'' (1986), Sunset – with Uglyman *''Warriors & Trouble'' (1986), World Enterprise *''Showcase Volume 1'' (198?), Sir Tommy's – with Trevor Junior *''Boombastic'' (1990), Heartbeat *''Build Back Yard'' (2006), Johnhouse ;Compilations: *''Early Days'' (1984), Jah Bible

References

Jamaican reggae singers 1970 births Living people Musicians from Kingston, Jamaica Heartbeat Records artists {{Reggae-stub