Sidney Mills (born 1959) is a

British Jamaican British Jamaicans (or Jamaican British people) are British people who were born in Jamaica or who are of Jamaican descent. The community is well into its third generation and consists of around 300,000 individuals, the second-largest Jamaican ...

musician, performing mostly within the

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 ...

genre and best known as a member of the

roots reggae Roots reggae is a subgenre of reggae that deals with the everyday lives and aspirations of Africans and those in the African Diaspora, including the spiritual side of Rastafari, black liberation, revolution and the honoring of God, called Jah ...

band

Steel Pulse Steel Pulse are a roots reggae band from the Handsworth area of Birmingham, England. They originally formed at Handsworth Wood Boys School, and were composed of David Hinds (lead vocals, guitar), Basil Gabbidon (lead guitar, vocals), and Ro ...

. Mills was born 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 ...

and moved to

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 ...

as a child. He was raised in the

Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica Saint Thomas, once known as ''Saint Thomas in the East'', is a suburban parish situated at the south eastern end of Jamaica, within the county of Surrey. It is the birthplace of the Right Honourable Paul Bogle, designated in 1969 as one of Jama ...

and became a musician from an early age, moving to Kingston in the late 1960s to pursue a musical career. Sidney attended Kings College Kingston where he matured as a musician under the tutelage of the likes of Sonny Bradshaw. In 1981, he moved to

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the most densely populated major city in the Un ...

, performing alongside reggae and Jamaican musical artists such as

Shabba Ranks Shabba Ranks (born Rexton Rawlston Fernando Gordon; 17 January 1966) is a Jamaican dancehall musician. In the late 1980s and early 1990s, he was one of the most popular Jamaican musicians in the world. Throughout his prominence in his home cou ...

and lovers rock icon

Judy Mowatt Judith Veronica Mowatt, (born 1952) is a Jamaican reggae artist. As well as being a solo artist, from 1974 she was also a member of the I Threes, the trio of backing vocalists for Bob Marley & The Wailers. Early life Mowatt was born in Gord ...

. Sidney has been the keyboard player for the

Grammy award The Grammy Awards (stylized as GRAMMY), or simply known as the Grammys, are awards presented by the Recording Academy of the United States to recognize "outstanding" achievements in the music industry. They are regarded by many as the most pr ...

-winning band

since 1988. He has collaborated with a wide array of artists, including

Boogie Down Productions Boogie Down Productions (BDP) was an American hip hop group originally composed of KRS-One, D-Nice, and DJ Scott La Rock. DJ Scott La Rock was murdered on August 27, 1987, five months after the release of BDP's debut album, '' Criminal Minde ...

, Aswad and

Smashing Pumpkins Smash may refer to: People * Smash (wrestler) (born 1959), professional wrestler * Moondog Rex, another professional wrestler who briefly wrestled as the original Smash, before being replaced by the above. * DJ Smash, DJ and music producer Ar ...

. He is the founder of New York-based record company Living Room Records, which notably released albums featuring

Dennis Brown Dennis Emmanuel Brown CD (1 February 1957 – 1 July 1999) was a Jamaican reggae singer. During his prolific career, which began in the late 1960s when he was aged eleven, he recorded more than 75 albums and was one of the major stars of lo ...

and

Sylvia Tella Sylvia Tella (born Silifatu Mornii Wehabie Tella in 1961) is a British lovers rock singer, who after working as a backing band vocalist for Boney M embarked on a successful solo career, releasing her first album in 1981. She had a top 40 hit in ...

Collaborations

Mills and

David Hinds David Hinds (born 15 June 1956) is a British musician and the founding member, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist for the reggae band Steel Pulse. Life and career Hinds was born in Handsworth, West Midlands, Handsworth, Birmingham, England, to ...

collaborated to produce Franklin’s Tower for the album ''Fire On The Mountain: Reggae Celebrates

The Grateful Dead The Grateful Dead was an American rock band formed in 1965 in Palo Alto, California. The band is known for its eclectic style, which fused elements of rock, folk, country, jazz, bluegrass, blues, rock and roll, gospel, reggae, world music, ...

''. Sidney also scored the soundtrack for the film '. He has collaborated on albums released by

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 ...

Ziggy Marley David Nesta "Ziggy" Marley (born 17 October 1968) is a Jamaican singer, songwriter, musician, actor and philanthropist. He is the son of reggae icon Bob Marley and Rita Marley. He led the family band Ziggy Marley and the Melody Makers until 20 ...

Mikey Dread Michael George Campbell (4 June 1954 – 15 March 2008), better known as Mikey Dread, was a Jamaican singer, producer, and broadcaster. He was one of the most influential performers and innovators in reggae music. Biography Born in Port Anton ...

Shinehead Shinehead (born Edmund Carl Aiken; 10 April 1962 in Kent, England) is a British Jamaican reggae singer/toaster/rapper. Career He began his music career by performing for different New York City reggae dancehall sound systems in the 1980s, mo ...

The Neville Brothers The Neville Brothers were an American R&B/soul/funk group, formed in 1976 in New Orleans, Louisiana. History The group notion started in 1976, when the four brothers of the Neville family, Art (1937–2019), Charles (1938–2018), Aaron (b. 1 ...

, Gwen Guthrie, Lionize,

Toots Hibbert Frederick Nathaniel Hibbert, (8 December 1942 – 11 September 2020), better known as Toots Hibbert, was a Jamaican singer and songwriter who was the lead vocalist for the reggae and ska band Toots and the Maytals. A reggae pioneer, he perfor ...

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 separ ...

. Mills also collaborated with spoken word artist and producer

Malik Al Nasir Malik Al Nasir, born Mark Trevor Watson (1966, Liverpool, England) is a British author and performance poet, born to a Welsh mother and a Guyanese father. Malik is the band leader of Malik & the O.G's. Spurred by discovering his striking resem ...

on Malik & the O.G's album ''Rhythms of the Diaspora Vol. 1''. Sidney played keyboard vibes on the track entitled "Immigrants - Free at last". He was the producer of the historic album by Larry McDonald featuring

Mutabaruka Allan Hope (born 1952), better known as Mutabaruka, is a Jamaican Rastafari dub poet, musician, actor, educator, and talk-show host, who developed two of Jamaica's most popular radio programmes, ''The Cutting Edge'' and ''Steppin' Razor''. His ...

, Sly Dunbar, Bob Andy, Stranger Cole,

Uziah Thompson Uzziah "Sticky" Thompson (1 August 1936 – 25 August 2014) was a Jamaican percussionist, vocalist and deejay active from the late 1950s. He worked with some of the best known performers of Jamaican music and played on hundreds of albums. Biog ...

Dollarman Dollarman is a Caribbean singer, songwriter, producer and musician born in Grenada. Since moving to Brooklyn, New York, he continues to present hits with a Caribbean influence and reggae. Career In the early 1990s, he recorded his first two tr ...

Bongo Herman Herman Davis (born 16 September 1944), better known as Bongo Herman, is a Jamaican hand-drummer, percussionist and singer who has had a successful career stretching back to the early 1960s. Biography Herman Davis was born on 16 September 1944, ...

for executive producer

for MCPR Music.

As a producer

Mills produced the single "Here's to Love" by reggae artist Cha’Maine and the accompanying album. He has also produced the album ''Drumquestra'' for the Jamaican percussionist Larry McDonald.

Filmography

Larry McDonald, featuring

"Head over Heels" - Music Video; Executive Producer:

; Co Producer: Omar Hendricks; Producer: Andy Chapman; Director: Mehhaj Huda; shot on location in Jamaica for MCPR Music.

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Mills, Sidney Jamaican record producers Jamaican reggae musicians Living people People from Saint Thomas Parish, Jamaica British emigrants to Jamaica Black British musicians 1959 births