Errol Dunkley

Born February 6, 1951 in Kingston Jamaica, Errol Dunkley would become one of the early reggae stars, and one of the artists to ride the initial wave of interest that music enjoyed in the United Kingdom in the 1970s. He began his recording career while still a boy, recording singles throughout the 1960s with some of the most influential producers in Jamaica including Prince Buster (“My Queen”), Joe Gibbs (“Please Stop Your Lying”), and Coxsone Dodd. He attempted to take greater control over his career by forming his own label with Gregory Isaacs, in the 1970s, but he left the partnership after less than two years. He enjoyed a pair of hit singles, “Black Cinderella” and ”Keep the Pressure Down”, that led to the release of his debut album, 1972’s Presenting Earl Dunkley. As reggae took off in England, Dunkley scored the biggest hit of his career there in 1979 with “OK Fred”, and in 1981 his debut album would be rereleased as Darling Ooh, named for one of the songs on the album which would scrape the bottom of the UK chart almost forty years later. He recorded regularly through the first decade of the 21st century, and reworked his signature hit, “OK Fred” with Queen Sister N in 1996.

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