The Heptones are a Jamaican

rocksteady Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor of ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was the dominant style of music in Jamaica for nearly two years, performed by many of the artists who helped establish ...

and

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 ...

vocal trio most active in the 1960s and early 1970s. They were one of the more significant trios of that era, and played a major role in the gradual transition between

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 ...

and

into reggae with their three-part

harmonies In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. However ...

. The Heptones were contemporaries of the Wailers and the Maytals, and every bit their equal in the mid-1960s.

History

Leroy Sibbles Leroy Sibbles (born Leroy Sibblies, 29 January 1949) is a Jamaican reggae musician and producer. He was the lead singer for The Heptones in the 1960s and 1970s. In addition to his work with The Heptones, Sibbles was a session bassist and arra ...

, Earl Morgan and

Barry Llewellyn The Heptones are a Jamaican rocksteady and reggae vocal Trio (music), trio most active in the 1960s and early 1970s. They were one of the more significant trios of that era, and played a major role in the gradual transition between ska and roc ...

first came together as "The Hep Ones" in 1965 in Kingston, but they soon changed their name to "The Heptones". The name was chosen by Morgan after seeing a Heptones Tonic bottle lying in a pile of refuse.Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 114 The Heptones recorded for major Jamaican record producers at the time. They began their career, after one unsuccessful single for Ken Lack's "K Calnek" label, under the watchful eye of

Coxsone Dodd Clement Seymour "Coxsone" Dodd (26 January 1932 – 4 May 2004) was a Jamaican record producer who was influential in the development of ska and reggae in the 1950s, 1960s and beyond. He was nicknamed "Coxsone" at school due to his talent a ...

of Studio One. The Heptones had a number of Jamaican hits for Studio One, beginning with "Fattie Fattie", their first Studio One single in 1966.Moskowitz, David V. (2006) ''Caribbean Popular Music: an Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall'', Greenwood Press, , p. 133 This began a long run of success for Coxsone, including "Pretty Looks Isn't All", "Get In The Groove", "Be a Man", "Sea of Love" (a cover of the Phil Phillips and the Twilights doo-wop classic), "Ting a Ling", "Party Time", and "I Hold the Handle." They were the chief rivals to

The Techniques The Techniques were a Jamaican rocksteady vocal group mainly active in the 1960s. History The group was formed by Winston Riley in 1962 while still at school, with the initial line-up also featuring Slim Smith, Franklyn White, and Frederick Wa ...

, who recorded for

Arthur "Duke" Reid Arthur "Duke" Reid CD (21 July 1915 – 1 January 1975) was a Jamaican record producer, DJ and label owner. He ran one of the most popular sound systems of the 1950s called Reid's Sound System, whilst Duke himself was known as The Troj ...

, as the top vocal act of the

era. During their five years at Brentford Road, the home of Studio One, Leroy Sibbles played bass on numerous sessions, auditioned acts, and, along with Jackie Mittoo, was the chief studio arranger. Some of their instrumental session work was released as the Soul Vendors and Sound Dimension. Amongst the rhythms featuring Sibbles' bass playing are Alton Ellis' "I'm Still in Love", "Full Up" (used on

Musical Youth Musical Youth are a British-Jamaican reggae band formed in 1979 in Birmingham, England. They are best remembered for their 1982 single " Pass the Dutchie", which was a number 1 in multiple charts around the world. Their other hits include "Yout ...

's "Pass The Dutchie"), and

The Abyssinians The Abyssinians are a Jamaican roots reggae group, famous for their close harmonies and promotion of the Rastafari movement in their lyrics. History The vocal trio was originally formed in 1968 by Bernard Collins and Donald Manning. Their fir ...

Satta Massagana ''Satta Massagana'' is a roots reggae album released by The Abyssinians officially in 1976. It is widely considered The Abyssinians' crowning achievement and a classic roots reggae album. The title track "Satta Massagana" was a huge hit and h ...

". The Heptones remained at Studio One well into the reggae era, where they cut tunes such as "Message from a Black Man", "Love Won't Come Easy", "I Hold (Got) The Handle", "I Love You", and a successful

cover version In popular music, a cover version, cover song, remake, revival, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording by a musician other than the original performer or composer of the song. Originally, it referred to a version of a song release ...

of "

Suspicious Minds "Suspicious Minds" is a 1968 song written and first recorded by American songwriter Mark James. After this recording failed commercially, it was cut by Elvis Presley with producer Chips Moman, becoming a No. 1 song in 1969, and one of the most ...

", then went on to record with

Joe Gibbs Joe Jackson Gibbs (born November 25, 1940) is an American auto racing team owner and former professional football coach. In football, he was head coach for the Washington Redskins of the National Football League (NFL) from 1981 to 1992, and a ...

and

Harry J Harry Zephaniah Johnson (6 July 1945 – 3 April 2013), known by the stage name Harry J, was a Jamaican reggae record producer. Biography Born in Westmoreland Parish, Jamaica, Johnson started to play music with the Virtues as a bass player bef ...

in the early 1970s. They had a big hit with "Book of Rules" (based on an American poem called "A Bag of Tools" by R.L. Sharpe) in 1973. It was one of the group's few songs not sung by Sibbles. Barry Llewelyn sang lead and co-wrote "Book of Rules". Musically, the song was heavily influenced by

Glen Campbell Glen Travis Campbell (April 22, 1936 – August 8, 2017) was an American guitarist, singer, songwriter, actor and television host. He was best known for a series of hit songs in the 1960s and 1970s, and for hosting ''The Glen Campbell Goodt ...

's "Try A Little Kindness." The song was featured on the soundtrack for the 1978 Jamaican film '' Rockers'', and the 1998 American comedy-thriller film '' Homegrown''. Sibbles emigrated to Canada in 1973 and the group suspended recording activities, returning in 1975 to once again record at Harry J's Kingston studio. In 1975, The Heptones signed an album deal with

Island Records Island Records is a multinational record label owned by Universal Music Group. It was founded in 1959 by Chris Blackwell, Graeme Goodall, and Leslie Kong in Jamaica, and was eventually sold to PolyGram in 1989. Island and A&M Records, anoth ...

. Two albums resulted: ''Night Food'' in 1976 and ''Party Time'' in 1977. ''Night Food'' was produced by

Danny Holloway Danny is a masculine given name. It is related to the male name Daniel. It may refer to: People * Danny Altmann, British immunologist *Danny Antonucci, Canadian animator, director, producer, and writer *Danny Baker (born 1957), English journal ...

, and featured several re-recorded Studio One classics, as well as originals such as "Country Boy" and "Mama Say". The group toured England with

Toots & The Maytals The Maytals, known from 1972 to 2020 as Toots and the Maytals, are a Jamaican musical group, one of the best known ska and rocksteady vocal groups. The Maytals were formed in the early 1960s and were key figures in popularizing reggae music. ...

to support ''Night Foods release. In 1977, The Heptones recorded ''Party Time'' with

Lee "Scratch" Perry Lee "Scratch" Perry (born Rainford Hugh Perry; 20 March 1936 – 29 August 2021) was a Jamaican record producer, composer and singer noted for his innovative studio techniques and production style. Perry was a pioneer in the 1970s development o ...

. They had issued a number of singles (including a cover of

Billy Stewart William Larry Stewart II (March 24, 1937 – January 17, 1970) was an American rhythm and blues singer and pianist who was popular during the 1960s. Biography Stewart was 12 years old when he began singing with his younger brothers Johnny, James ...

's " I Do Love You") on his Justice League imprint five years previously. ''Party Time'' was recorded during Black Ark's peak period. ''Party Time'' also included remakes of Studio One tunes, as well as

Bob Dylan Bob Dylan (legally Robert Dylan, born Robert Allen Zimmerman, May 24, 1941) is an American singer-songwriter. Often regarded as one of the greatest songwriters of all time, Dylan has been a major figure in popular culture during a career sp ...

's "

I Shall Be Released "I Shall Be Released" is a 1967 song written by Bob Dylan. Dylan recorded two primary versions. The first recording was made in collaboration with the Band during the Basement Tapes sessions in 1967, and released on '' The Bootleg Series Volu ...

", along with newer compositions such as "Sufferers' Time". In the same era, they released a number of 12" singles with Lee Perry, such as "Mystery Babylon", "Mr. President" (featuring DJ Jah Lloyd), and "Babylon's Falling". Sibbles left the group once more in 1978 to start a successful solo career, having already cut a solo version of "Love Won't Come Easy" for

Augustus Pablo Horace Swaby (21 June 1953 – 18 May 1999),Thompson, Dave (2002) ''Reggae & Caribbean Music'', Backbeat Books, , p. 200-202 known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican roots reggae and dub record producer and a multi-instrumentalist, active f ...

, and having cut his own solo singles for Lee Perry ("Rasta Fari" and "Garden of Life") and

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 ...

's DEB Music ("New Song" and "Ain't No Love"). He was replaced by Dolphin "Naggo" Morris, who had recorded "Su Su Pon Rasta" for Joe Gibbs and "You Should Love Your Brother" for King Jammys, but the group's popularity waned. By the late 1970s, their slick stage suits and covers of pop tunes found little favour with audiences more used to more "militant" dreadlocked performers singing of Rastafari, and they began to be perceived as relics of an older era. Despite being produced by

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 ...

at Channel One, ''Good Life'' (1979) saw the group treading water, and the years that followed brought little success. The original trio reunited in 1995, and released ''Pressure!'', produced by

Tapper Zukie Tapper Zukie (or Tappa Zukie) (born David Sinclair, 1955, Kingston, Jamaica) is a reggae deejay and producer.Greene, Jo-AnnTapper Zukie Biography, Allmusic, retrieved 2011-02-15 Biography Tapper was the nickname given to him by his grandmoth ...

. Barry Llewellyn died on 23 November 2011, in

Kingston Public Hospital Kingston Public Hospital (KPH) is a public general hospital in Kingston, Jamaica. It is the oldest public hospital in Jamaica and is the main hospital in south eastern Jamaica. The hospital is operated by the South East Regional Health Authority ...

, at the age of 64. As of 2016, the line-up featured Morgan with Robert Dacres and Carlton Scarlett. This line-up recorded the album ''Rebel Love'', released in May 2016.

Discography

Albums

*''The Heptones'' (1967) *''On Top'' (1968) *''Black is Black'' (1970) *''Freedom Line'' (1971) *'' Book of Rules'' (1973) *''Cool Rasta'' (1976) *''Night Food'' (1976) *'' Party Time'' (1977) *''Better Days'' (1978) *''Good Life'' (1979) *''King Of My Town'' (1979) *''Mr. Skabeana'' (with Alton Ellis) (1980) *''One Step Ahead'' (1981) *''On The Run'' (1982) *''Back on Top'' (1983) *''In A Dancehall Style'' (1983) *''Swing Low'' (1985) *''Changing Times'' (1986) *''A Place Called Love'' (1987) *''Sing Good Vibes'' (1988) *''Mr. "T"'' (1991) *''Observer's Style'' (1994) *''Pressure!'' (1995) *''Rebel Love'' (2016) *''Back On Top'' - Vinyl re-issue (2020) Burning Sounds Records *''Back On Top'' + ''In Dancehall Style'' (Split CD) - 2CD Digipack (2020) Burning Sounds Records

References

External links

Homenaje Barry Llewellyn
Pablo Huguet Monfort, Mone Monkey. 24 November 2011. ''Rip Barry Llewellyn (Homenaje).''
The Heptones biography at VH1.comDiscography at DiscogsLeroy Sibbles
{{DEFAULTSORT:Heptones, The Jamaican reggae musical groups Rocksteady musical groups Trojan Records artists Island Records artists Heartbeat Records artists