Desmond Dekker (born Desmond Adolphus Dacres; 16 July 1941 – 25 May 2006) was a Jamaican

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 w ...

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 during the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its Jamaican diaspora, diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, "Do the Reggay", was the first ...

singer-songwriter and musician. Together with his backing group the Aces (consisting of Wilson James and Easton Barrington Howard), he had one of the earliest international reggae hits with "

Israelites Israelites were a Hebrew language, Hebrew-speaking ethnoreligious group, consisting of tribes that lived in Canaan during the Iron Age. Modern scholarship describes the Israelites as emerging from indigenous Canaanites, Canaanite populations ...

" (1968). Other hits include "

007 (Shanty Town) "007 (Shanty Town)" is a 1967 rocksteady song by Jamaican band Desmond Dekker and the Aces, released as a single from their debut album of the same name. It was also a hit for Musical Youth in 1983. "007 (Shanty Town)" has been called "the mo ...

" (1967), "

It Mek It Mek (sometimes appearing as "A It Mek" or German "It Miek") was a 1969 hit song by the Jamaican musicians Desmond Dekker & the Aces. After being re-released in June 1969, the single reached number 7 in the UK Singles Chart. The track was wri ...

" (1969) and "

You Can Get It If You Really Want "You Can Get It If You Really Want" is a reggae song written and originally recorded by Jamaican singer songwriter Jimmy Cliff and released as a single in July 1970. Another version, recorded by Jamaican singer Desmond Dekker and released within a ...

" (1970).

Early life

Desmond Adolphus Dacres was born in Saint Andrew Parish (Greater Kingston), Jamaica, on 16 July 1941. Dekker spent his formative years in

Kingston Kingston may refer to: Places * List of places called Kingston, including the six most populated: ** Kingston, Jamaica ** Kingston upon Hull, England ** City of Kingston, Victoria, Australia ** Kingston, Ontario, Canada ** Kingston upon Thames, ...

. From a young age he regularly attended the local church with his grandmother and aunt. This early religious upbringing, as well as Dekker's enjoyment of singing hymns, led to a lifelong religious commitment. Following his mother's death, he moved to the parish of

St. Mary Mary was a first-century Jewish woman of Nazareth, the wife of Saint Joseph, Joseph and the mother of Jesus. She is an important figure of Christianity, venerated under titles of Mary, mother of Jesus, various titles such as Perpetual virginity ...

and later to St. Thomas. While at St. Thomas, Dekker embarked on an apprenticeship as a tailor before returning to Kingston, where he became a

welder A welder is a person or equipment that fuses materials together. The term welder refers to the operator, the machine is referred to as the welding power supply. The materials to be joined can be metals (such as steel, aluminum, brass, stainles ...

. His workplace singing had drawn the attention of his co-workers, who encouraged him to pursue a career in music. In 1961 he auditioned for

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 ...

( Studio One) and

Duke Reid Arthur "Duke" Reid CD (21 July 1915 – 1 January 1975) was a Jamaican record producer, DJ and record 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 Tr ...

(Treasure Isle), though neither audition was successful. The unsigned vocalist then auditioned for

Leslie Kong Leslie Kong (20 December 1933 – 9 August 1971) was a Jamaican reggae producer. Early life Kong was born into a Chinese-Jamaican family. He had a "relatively comfortable upbringing" and attended St. George's College in Kingston. Career ...

Beverley's Beverley's was a Jamaican record label active between 1961 and 1971, owned by the record producer Leslie Kong. Beverley's was essential to the development of ska and rocksteady into reggae. The label launched the careers of Jimmy Cliff and Bob ...

record label and was awarded his first recording contract.

Career

Despite achieving a record deal, it was two years before Dekker saw his first record released. Meanwhile, Dekker spotted the talent of

Bob Marley Robert Nesta Marley (6 February 1945 – 11 May 1981) was a Jamaican singer, songwriter, and guitarist. Considered one of the pioneers of reggae, he fused elements of reggae, ska and rocksteady and was renowned for his distinctive voca ...

, a fellow welder, and brought the youth to Kong's attention. In 1962 " Judge Not" and "One Cup Of Coffee" became the first recorded efforts of Marley, who retained gratitude, respect and admiration for Dekker for the rest of his life. Eventually in 1963 Kong chose "Honour Your Mother and Father" (written by Dekker and the song that Dekker had sung in his Kong audition two years earlier), which became a Jamaican hit and established Dekker's musical career. This was followed by the release of the tracks "Sinners, Prepare" and "Labour for Learning". It was during this period that Desmond Dacres adopted the stage-name of Desmond Dekker. His fourth hit, "King of Ska" (backing vocals by The Cherrypies, also known as

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. F ...

), made him into one of the island's biggest stars. Dekker then recruited four brothers, Carl, Patrick, Clive and Barry Howard, as his permanent backing vocalists to perform with him under the name Desmond Dekker and the Aces. The new group recorded a number of Jamaican hits, including "Parents", "Get Up Edina", "This Woman" and "Mount Zion". The themes of Dekker's songs during the first four years of his career dealt with the moral, cultural and social issues of mainstream Jamaican culture: respect for one's parents ("Honour Your Mother and Father"), religious morality ("Sinners, Prepare") and education ("Labour for Learning"). In 1967 he appeared on

Derrick Morgan Derrick Morgan OD (born 27 March 1940)Walters, Basil (2012)A New Day – Songs heralding JA’s Independence", ''Jamaica Observer'', 3 June 2012, retrieved 3 June 2012 is a Jamaican musical artist who was popular in the 1960s and 1970s. He w ...

's "Tougher Than Tough", which helped begin a trend of popular songs commenting on the

rude boy Rude boy is a subculture that originated from 1960s Jamaican street culture. In the late 1970s, there was a revival in England of the terms ''rude boy'' and ''rude girl'', among other variations like ''rudeboy'' and ''rudebwoy'', being used t ...

subculture which was rooted in Jamaican ghetto life where opportunities for advancement were limited and life was economically difficult. Dekker's own songs did not go to the extremes of many other popular rude boy songs, which reflected the violence and social problems associated with ghetto life, though he did introduce lyrics that resonated with the rude boys, starting with one of his best-known songs, "

". The song established Dekker as a rude boy icon in Jamaica and also became a favourite dance track for the young working-class men and women of the United Kingdom's

mod Mod, MOD or mods may refer to: Places * Modesto City–County Airport, Stanislaus County, California, US Arts, entertainment, and media Music * Mods (band), a Norwegian rock band * M.O.D. (Method of Destruction), a band from New York City, US * ...

scene. "007 (Shanty Town)" was a top 15 hit in the UK and his UK concerts were attended by a large following of mods wherever he played. Dekker continued to release rude boy songs such as "Rude Boy Train" and "Rudie Got Soul", as well as mainstream cultural songs like "It's a Shame", "Wise Man", "Hey Grandma", "Unity", "If It Pays", "Mother's Young Girl", "Sabotage" and "Pretty Africa". Many of the hits from this era came from his debut album, ''007 (Shanty Town)''. In 1968 Dekker's "

" was released, eventually topping the UK Singles Chart in April 1969 and peaking in the top ten of the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 in June 1969. Dekker was the first Jamaican artist to have a hit record in the US with Jamaican-style music. Ironically although he went to worldwide fame his former welding colleague Marley never had a UK number one. That same year saw the release of "Beautiful and Dangerous", "Writing on the Wall", "Music Like Dirt (Intensified '68)" (which won the 1968 Jamaica Independence Festival Song Contest), "Bongo Girl" and "Shing a Ling". 1969 saw the release of "

", which became a hit both in Jamaica and the UK. Dekker also released "Problems" and "Pickney Gal", both of which were popular in Jamaica, although only "Pickney Gal" managed to chart in the UK top 50.

1970s

In 1970 Dekker released "You Can Get It If You Really Want", written by

Jimmy Cliff James Chambers, Jamaican Order of Merit, 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 hol ...

, which reached No. 2 in the UK charts. Dekker was initially reluctant to record the track but was eventually persuaded to do so by

. Dekker's version uses the same backing track as Cliff's original. Kong, whose music production skills had been a crucial part of both Dekker's and Cliff's careers, died in 1971, affecting the careers of both artists for a short period of time. In 1972 the rude boy film ''

The Harder They Come ''The Harder They Come'' is a 1972 Jamaican crime film directed by Perry Henzell and co-written by Trevor D. Rhone, and starring Jimmy Cliff. The film is most famous for its reggae soundtrack that is said to have "brought reggae to the world ...

'' was released and Dekker's "007 (Shanty Town)" was featured on

the soundtrack A soundtrack is a recorded audio signal accompanying and synchronised to the images of a book, drama, motion picture, radio program, television program, or video game; colloquially, a commercially released soundtrack album of music as featured ...

along with Cliff's version of "You Can Get It If You Really Want", as well as other Jamaican artists' hits, giving reggae more international exposure and preparing the way for

. In 1975 "Israelites" was re-released and became a UK top 10 hit for a second time. Dekker had also begun working on new material with the production duo Bruce Anthony in 1974. In 1975 this collaboration resulted in the release of " Sing a Little Song", which charted in the UK top twenty; this was to be his last UK hit.

1980s and later

The 1980s found Dekker signed to a new label,

Stiff Records Stiff Records is a British independent record label formed in London by Dave Robinson (music executive), Dave Robinson and Jake Riviera. Originally active from 1976 to 1986, the label was reactivated in 2007. Established at the outset of the p ...

, an independent label that specialized in

punk Punk or punks may refer to: Genres, subculture, and related aspects * Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres * Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...

and new wave acts as well as releases associated with the

2 Tone Two-tone, two tone, or 2 tone, etc., may refer to: Audio and sound * Second-order intercept point#Two-tone analysis, Two-tone analysis, in nonlinear system measurement * Two-tone attention signal * Two-tone Warning chime, chime, such as the "ding ...

label, whose acts instigated a short-lived but influential ska revival. He recorded an album called ''Black & Dekker'' (1980), which featured his previous hits backed by

The Rumour The Rumour were an English prog rock new wave rock band active in the late 1970s and early 1980s. They are best known as the backup band for Graham Parker, whose early records (from 1976 to 1980) were credited to Graham Parker & the Rumour. ...

Graham Parker Graham Thomas Parker (born 18 November 1950) is an English singer-songwriter, who is best known as the lead singer of the British band Graham Parker & the Rumour. Life and career Early career (1960s–1976) Parker was born in Hackney, East L ...

's backing band and

Akrylykz Akrylykz (originally Akrylyk(z) Vyktymz) were a British ska band, formed by members of Hull School of Art in Kingston upon Hull, East Riding of Yorkshire, England, that featured Roland Gift (later of Fine Young Cannibals) originally as a ten ...

(featuring

Roland Gift Roland Lee Gift (born 28 May 1961) is a British singer, songwriter, and actor. He is the former lead vocalist of the pop rock band Fine Young Cannibals. Early life Gift was born on 28 May 1961 in the Sparkhill district of Birmingham, to an En ...

, later of

Fine Young Cannibals Fine Young Cannibals (FYC) are an English pop rock band formed in Birmingham, West Midlands, in 1984 by former The Beat band bassist David Steele and guitarist Andy Cox with singer Roland Gift (formerly of the Akrylykz). Their self-titled ...

). A re-recorded version of "Israelites" was released in 1980 on the Stiff label, followed by other new recordings: Jimmy Cliff's "

Many Rivers to Cross "Many Rivers to Cross" is a song written and recorded in 1969 by Jimmy Cliff. It has since been recorded by many musicians, most successfully by UB40, Cher and Annie Lennox and it was sung in the Caribbean by Alison Hinds and Tessanne Chin. ...

" and "Book of Rules". Dekker's next album, ''Compass Point'' (1981), was produced by

Robert Palmer Robert Allen Palmer (19 January 1949 – 26 September 2003) was an English singer and songwriter. He was known for his powerful and soulful voice, sartorial elegance and stylistic explorations, combining soul, funk, jazz, rock, pop, regga ...

. Despite declining sales, Dekker remained a popular live performer and continued to tour with The Rumour. Only a single live album was released in the late '80s. In 1990 "Israelites" was used in a

Maxell , commonly known as Maxell, is a Japanese company (law), company that manufactures consumer electronics. The company's name is a contraction of "Maximum capacity dry cell". Its main products are Battery (electricity), batteries, wireless chargi ...

TV advert that became popular and brought the song and artist back to the attention of the general public. He collaborated with

the Specials The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...

on the 1993 album, ''King of Kings'', which was released under Desmond Dekker and the Specials. ''King of Kings'' consists of songs by Dekker's musical heroes including

Byron Lee Byron Lee ,
, ''Jamaica Gleaner'', 27 October 2008. born Byron Aloysius St. Elmo Lee ...

;

Theophilus Beckford Theophilus Beckford (26 June 1935 – 19 February 2001) was a Jamaican pianist and one of the pioneers of Jamaican popular music during the transition from rhythm 'n' blues to Jamaican ska. Biography Beckford was born in 1935 in Trench Town, Ki ...

, and his friend and fellow Kong label artist, Derrick Morgan. He also collaborated on a

remix A remix, also sometimes called reorchestration or rework, is a piece of media which has been altered or contorted from its original state by adding, removing, or changing pieces of the item. A song, piece of artwork, book, poem, or photograph ca ...

of "Israelites" with reggae artist

Apache Indian The Apache ( ) are several Southern Athabaskan language-speaking peoples of the Southwest, the Southern Plains and Northern Mexico. They are linguistically related to the Navajo. They migrated from the Athabascan homelands in the north int ...

. In 2003 a reissue of ''

'' soundtrack featured "Israelites" and "007 (Shanty Town)". Desmond headlined

Jools Holland Julian Miles Holland (born 24 January 1958) is an English pianist, bandleader, singer, composer and television presenter. He was an original member of the band Squeeze and has worked with many artists including Marc Almond, Jayne County, To ...

's 2003 Annual Hootenanny.

Personal life and death

In 1969, Dekker took permanent residency in the UK. In 1984, he was declared bankrupt. Dekker died of a heart attack on 25 May 2006, at his home in

Thornton Heath Thornton Heath is a district of South London, England, within the London Borough of Croydon. It is around north of the town of Croydon, and south of Charing Cross. Prior to the creation of Greater London in 1965, Thornton Heath was in the Coun ...

in the

London Borough of Croydon The London Borough of Croydon () is a London borough, borough in South London, part of Outer London. It covers an area of and had a population of 397,741 as of mid-2023, making it the most populous London borough. It is London's southernmost ...

, England, aged 64 and was buried at

Streatham Park Cemetery South London Crematorium and Streatham Park Cemetery is a cemetery and crematorium on Rowan Road in Streatham Vale. It has always been privately owned and managed and is now part of the Dignity plc group . The South London Crematorium is situ ...

. He was preparing to headline The World Music Festival in

Prague Prague ( ; ) is the capital and List of cities and towns in the Czech Republic, largest city of the Czech Republic and the historical capital of Bohemia. Prague, located on the Vltava River, has a population of about 1.4 million, while its P ...

. Dekker was divorced and was survived by his son Desmond Dekker Jnr and daughter Desrene Dekker.

Tribute band

The 2006 to 2015 line-up for Dekker's backing band, The Aces, who are still performing tribute concerts, includes: *Delroy Williams – backing vocals/M.C. * Gordon Mulrain – bass guitarist and session musician (Mulrain, also known as "Innerheart", is co-founder of the British record label Ambiel Music) *Aubrey Mulrain – keyboard player and session musician *Steve Roberts – guitarist and session musician (also a member of the British band Dubzone) *Learoy Green – drums and session musician *Stan Samuel – guitarist and session musician *Charles Nelson – keyboard player and session musician This particular line-up also recorded with Dekker on some of his later studio sessions in the 1990s. The 2016 to present line-up of musicians for Desmond Dekker's band the Aces featuring Delroy Williams & Guests: *Delroy Williams – vocals (also featuring guests Winston 'Mr Fix It' Francis and Glenroy Oakley from Greyhound 'Black & White') *Gordon Mulrain – bass guitarist and session musician *Aubrey Mulrain – keyboard player and session musician *Learoy Green – drums, backing vocals and session musician *Bryan Campbell – keyboard player and session musician *Steve Baker – guitarist, backing vocals, peripatetic guitar teacher and session guitarist. Also founder and MD of reggae and ska tribute/backing band Zeb Rootz *Paul Abraham – guitarist and backing vocals

Discography

Albums

Studio albums

*''007 Shanty Town'' (1967) – Doctor Bird (Desmond Dekker & the Aces) *'' Action!'' (1968) (Desmond Dekker & the Aces) *''The Israelites'' (1969) – Pyramid *''

Intensified ''Intensified'' is an album by Desmond Dekker & the Aces released in 1970. Track listing All tracks composed by Desmond Dekker; except where indicated #"It Mek" (Dekker, Leslie Kong Leslie Kong (20 December 1933 – 9 August 1971) was a Jam ...

'' (1970) – Lagoon *''You Can Get It If You Really Want'' (1970) – Trojan *''The Israelites'' (1975), Cactus – completely different album from the 1969 release *''Black and Dekker'' (1980) – Stiff *''Compass Point'' (1981) – Stiff *''King of Kings'' with

The Specials The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...

(1993) – Trojan Records *''Halfway to Paradise'' (1999) – Trojan *'' In Memoriam 1941'' – CD Album – (2007)

Secret Records Secret Records is a British independent record label founded in 1980 and based in London. The label specializes in a number of genres including blues, reggae, rock 'n' roll, psychedelic, soul and punk. The label's roster includes releases by ...

*''King of Ska'' – Red Vinyl (2019) Burning Sounds

Compilation albums

*''

This Is Desmond Dekkar ''This Is Desmond Dekkar'' is an album by Desmond Dekker released in 1969. For unknown reasons Dekker is credited as "Dekkar" on the album's cover. Track listing All songs written by Desmond Dekker. #"007 (Shanty Town)" #"Sabotage" #"Shing a Ling ...

'' (1969) –

Trojan Records Trojan Records is a British record label founded by Jamaican Duke Reid, Lee Gopthal and Chris Blackwell in 1968. It specialises in ska, rocksteady, reggae and dub music. The label currently operates under the Sanctuary Records Group. Th ...

(UK #27), reissued on CD in 2006 with 19 bonus tracks *''Double Dekker'' (1973) – Trojan. Reissued on Music on Vinyl February 16th 2022 *''Dekker's Sweet 16 Hits'' (1979) – Trojan *''The Original Reggae Hitsound'' (1985) – Trojan *''20 Golden Pieces of Desmond Dekker'' (1987) – Bulldog *''The Official Live and Rare'' (1987) – Trojan *''Greatest Hits'' (1988) – Streetlife *''The Best of & the Rest Of'' (1990) – Action Replay *''Music Like Dirt'' (1992) – Trojan *''Rockin' Steady – The Best of Desmond Dekker'' (1992) – Rhino *''Crucial Cuts'' (1993) – Music Club *''Israelites'' (1994) – Laserlight *''Action'' (1995) – Lagoon *''Voice of Ska'' (1995) – Emporio *''Moving On'' (1996) – Trojan *''The Israelites'' (1996) – Marble Arch *''First Time for a Long Time'' (1997) – Trojan *''Desmond Dekker Archive'' (1997) – Rialto *''The Writing on the Wall'' (1998) – Trojan *''Israelites'' (1999) – Castle Pie *''Israelites: The Best of Desmond Dekker (1963–1971)'' – Trojan (1999) *''The Very Best Of'' (2000) – Jet Set *''Israelites – Anthology 1963 to 1999'' (2001) – Trojan *''007 – The Best of Desmond Dekker'' (2011) – Trojan *''Live – Live at Dingwalls '' (2021) – Secret

Singles

References

External links

*
Official website
*
"Desmond Dekker Came First"
– tribute and Q&A with Delroy Williams, Complicated Fun, 2 June 2006 {{DEFAULTSORT:Dekker, Desmond 1941 births 2006 deaths First-wave ska groups Jamaican emigrants to the United Kingdom Rocksteady musicians Jamaican reggae musicians Jamaican male songwriters 20th-century Jamaican male singers Island Records artists Trojan Records artists Uni Records artists Stiff Records artists People from Saint Andrew Parish, Jamaica Burials at Streatham Park Cemetery Musicians from Thornton Heath