Bertram McLean (c.1948 – 14 November 2012), also known by his nickname "Ranchie", was a Jamaican musician active between the 1970s and the 1990s, who recorded with many of Jamaica's biggest stars.

Biography

McLean began working as a

session musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

in the 1970s, as guitarist in the groups the RHT Invincibles (along with

Ansell Collins Ansel Collins is a Jamaican musician, composer, singer, songwriter and producer, best known for his work with Dave Barker as Dave and Ansel Collins. Biography Born 1949 in Kingston, Jamaica,Lloyd Parks Lloyd Parks (born 26 May 1949) is a Jamaican reggae vocalist and bass player who has recorded and performed as a solo artist as well as part of Skin, Flesh & Bones, The Revolutionaries, The Professionals, and We the People Band.Larkin, Colin: ...

, and

Sly Dunbar Lowell Fillmore "Sly" Dunbar (born 10 May 1952, Kingston, Jamaica) is a drummer, best known as one half of the prolific Jamaican rhythm section and reggae production duo Sly and Robbie. Biography Dunbar began playing at 15 in a band called ...

), The Randy's

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

The Impact All Stars,

The Revolutionaries The Revolutionaries (sometimes known as "Revolutionaires") was a Jamaican reggae band. Career Set up in 1975 as the house band of the Channel One Studios owned by Joseph Hoo Kim, The Revolutionaries with Sly Dunbar on drums and Bertram "Ranchi ...

, and Skin, Flesh & Bones, and playing on albums by artists including Earth & Stone,

Culture Culture () is an umbrella term which encompasses the social behavior, institutions, and norms found in human societies, as well as the knowledge, beliefs, arts, laws, customs, capabilities, and habits of the individuals in these groups.Tyl ...

, and

Jimmy Cliff James Chambers OM (born 30 July 1944), known professionally as Jimmy Cliff, is a Jamaican ska, rocksteady, reggae and soul musician, multi-instrumentalist, singer, and actor. He is the only living reggae musician to hold the Order of Merit, t ...

.Moskowitz, p.203Farewell to 'Ranchie'
, ''

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 ...

'', 8 December 2012. Retrieved 8 December 2012 He also released solo material including the "Toy" single. Primarily a guitarist and bass guitarist, he also plays keyboards. Throughout the 1980s he was in demand as a

studio musician Session musicians, studio musicians, or backing musicians are musicians hired to perform in recording sessions or live performances. The term sideman is also used in the case of live performances, such as accompanying a recording artist on a ...

, joining Cliff's backing band Oneness and writing songs for Cliff such as "Rub-A-Dub Partner" and "Roots Woman",Thompson, p.78Greene recording with

The Clarendonians The Clarendonians are a ska and rocksteady vocal group from Jamaica, active initially from the mid- to late 1960s. They reformed in the 1990s and continue to perform live. History The Clarendonians were originally Fitzroy "Ernest" Wilson and Pe ...

and Sadao Watanabe, and playing on the soundtrack to films ''

Club Paradise ''Club Paradise'' is a 1986 American comedy film directed by Harold Ramis and starring Robin Williams, Twiggy, Peter O'Toole, and Jimmy Cliff. Set in a fictional Caribbean banana republic, it follows a group of vacationers' attempts to create a ...

'' and '' Rockers'' , in which he also had small roles. In the 1990s his output increased, working with

Burning Spear Winston Rodney OD (born 1 March 1945), better known by the stage name Burning Spear, is a Jamaican roots reggae singer-songwriter, vocalist and musician. Burning Spear is a Rastafarian and one of the most influential and long-standing roots ar ...

I-Roy Roy Samuel Reid (28 June 1942 – 27 November 1999), better known as I-Roy, was a Jamaican deejay who had a very prolific career during the 1970s. Biography Born in 1944 in Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica, Reid graduated from Dinthill Technical C ...

The Meditations The Meditations are a reggae vocal harmony group from Jamaica formed in late 1974. They have released several studio albums and are still performing in the 2000s and today. History The Meditations were formed in late 1974, when Danny Clarke le ...

, and

Sly & 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 separat ...

. McLean's career as a musician came to an end after he suffered a stroke in 1998. In 2010 he underwent surgery after being diagnosed with

prostate cancer Prostate cancer is cancer of the prostate. Prostate cancer is the second most common cancerous tumor worldwide and is the fifth leading cause of cancer-related mortality among men. The prostate is a gland in the male reproductive system that sur ...

.Campbell He died on 14 November 2012 at the University Hospital of the West Indies after a long illness.

Notes

References

*Campbell, Howard (2012)
'Ranchie' McLean is dead
, ''

'', 20 November 2012. Retrieved 25 November 2012 *Greene, Jo-Ann " Jimmy Cliff ''The Collection'' Review, ''

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 databas ...

'', Macrovision Corporation *Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, *Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books,

External links

Ranchie Mclean
at Roots Archives Jamaican reggae musicians 1940s births 2012 deaths {{Reggae-stub