The Cool Cats Trivia Quiz

Answer: Winston Rodney/Burning Spear

When Winston Rodney sang, you not only heard the melody and the lyrics of the song, you also heard his heart, his soul and the absolute conviction he had about the message he was delivering.

Winston Rodney is Burning Spear. Initially, this was a duo of Rodney and Rupert Willington, that formed in 1969. Delroy Hinds and Jack Ruby soon joined, and the group enjoyed some success. However, it was their third album, "Marcus Garvey" (1975) that made the rest of the world sit up and take notice. Coming out of Jamaica with the power of a force ten gale, the album solidified the potential that the group had shown in its two previous recordings.

Powered by his fervid Rastafarianism, Rodney used the album as a means to draw a spotlight on both the cultural concerns he felt about his homeland and his deep devotion toward his religion. Tracks like "Slavery Days" and "The Invasion" propelled the album to becoming one of the cornerstones of the roots movement.

A year after the release, the band dissolved. Rodney retained the name and toured the world, recording numerous (and celebrated) live albums, culminating in his first Grammy Award in 2000.

Answer: Delroy Wilson

Delroy began his recording career in 1963 at the tender age of 13 years. This played against him early on, as his immature voice meant that songs such as "I'll Change My Style" (1963) and "Oppression" (1965), both of which would be held up as being strong representatives of their genre, were, initially, being ignored.

Significantly, as Delroy's voice developed, he began to live up to the title of his 1969 single "His Good All Over" and he would move forward to produce a string of classic singles... songs such as his "Cool Operator" (1971) and his silky smooth cover of Bob Marley's "I'm Still Waiting" (1976). Wilson's output floundered in the 1980s and he passed away at 46 as a result of complications from cirrhosis of the liver. UK punk rock band The Clash would celebrate the work of Delroy in their 1977 song "(White Man) In Hammersmith Palais" with the line "Delroy Wilson, you're a cool operator."

Answer: Bob Marley

When you mention the name Bob Marley, the things that tend to come readily to my mind are the posters that were billed around student halls and the countless tee-shirts that bore his image... such was his cultural impact. Bob Marley was the man (mainly) responsible for bringing reggae into the mainstream, he was the Rastafarian, the prophet, the political activist, the romantic and the man who spoke of love, redemption and struggle. And, while we know the image, the messages and the songs, we often overlook the power of the voice he was gifted with.

Marley started his career in 1963 alongside Peter Tosh and "Bunny" Wailer in an outfit called The Teenagers, a group of likeminded souls that would eventually change their name to Bob Marley & the Wailers. They did not limit themselves to a single genre. Whilst they became the kings of Jamaican ska, they also explored folk songs, gospel music and, in the early 1970s, experimented with patches of funk. Inspired by bands such as the Moonglows and the Impressions, Marley sang soul with silky tonsils and pounded out the glorious sounds of rocksteady with lyrics that were, at times, cheekily salacious and as romantic as they were political.

Marley, and his band's, crowning achievement was the album "Exodus", which was released in 1977. Recorded in London, where he was influenced by that city's rock, soul and blues, the album contained the hits "One Love" and "Three Little Birds", proving in a single glowing exemplar, that singers from a "third world" nation had something to say and could do so with panache and success.

Answer: Janet Kay

For those that are not aware of lover's rock, it is a style of reggae that bears a romantic bent and tends to steer away from the political stylings of Rastafarian reggae. Born at the end of the rocksteady era in the early 1970s in London, it added a touch of Chicago soul to reggae, and grew to have its own voice. The initial press about the genre came at two extremes - scathing articles or absolutely nothing - as many saw it as the pining of incurable romantics or the swooning of young schoolgirls.

From out of these mists of negativity emerged the London based vocals of Janet Kay, a voice that could register as high as that of Minnie Riperton, yet still be able to capture the lushness of the likes of Deniece Williams. It would be Kay's 1978 cover of Riperton's "Loving You" that first got her noticed and she followed that up with a stunning reworking of Billy Stewart's "I Do Love You", also in 1978. The following year she would release "Silly Games", a song that would peak at number two on the UK Singles' charts and be identified as the exemplification of the lover's rock genre.

Answer: "Toots" Hibberd

When Frederick "Toots" Hibberd sings you'd almost swear that you can hear the plaintive cries of the wronged in his voice, That, or, the celebrations of a children's birthday party, the whisper that represents a green field or the aura that is Jamaica, such is his intensity. He is a man who bears many labels... "the man of soul", "the icon of funk" and the "praise of gospel", but, at the end of the day he represents the heart of a reggae singer.

He found fame as the voice of the ska band, the Maytals. A band that never achieved the commercial or cultural impact of the Wailers but one that was equally as important to the identification of Jamaican music. Their early career was built upon ska, which then gave way to rocksteady before becoming the beast that is reggae. "Pressure Drop" (1972), a song that Toots describes as one about karmic justice, finally broke the band in the UK market and it demonstrates the band's ability to link Jamaican music with the richness of American R&B.

Answer: "Bunny Rugs" Clarke

The band Third World became one of the biggest reggae crossover acts of the late 1970s and the early 1980s and a large part of the band's success could be placed at the feet (or should that be on the tonsils) of Bunny Rugs.

Blessed with one of the smoothest voices in reggae, he mixed roots music with dub and a healthy dose of funk to add great flavour to songs such as "Cool Meditations" and a wonderful cover of the O'Jays' hit "Now That We've Found Love", both released in 1978. Bunny took over lead vocals from Milton "Prilly" Hamilton in 1976 after having spent three years at the front of Inner Circle. Whilst he remained a part of the core of Third World until his death in 2014, he branched out in the mid-1980s to carve out a generous solo career with six solo albums and a raft of singles.

Answer: Frankie Paul

Frankie Paul was born blind but, influenced by the likes Stevie Wonder and Ray Charles, managed to turn his voice into a powerful instrument. He became one of the best exponents of dancehall, a sparse form of reggae that emerged in the late 1970s. He was also prolific. Cutting his first disc in 1980, at the tender age of 15, he churned out a plethora of hits during that decade. Among these were the anthemic "Worries in the Dance" (1983), "Pass the Tu-Sheng-Peng" (1985) and "Shub In" (1986). In 1987 (alone) he released no less than 30 singles.

That prolificacy would become his undoing. In the 1990s he would fall out of favour, not because the quality of his work had flagged, simply that there was so much of it that he became too familiar. This did not deter him, and he continued to work at such a pace that even poor health could not diminish his output. He died at the age of 46... a short life but a large legacy.

Answer: Dawn Penn

There is some irony in the fact that one of the strongest themes in reggae during the 1960s and the 1970s was the struggle or the call for equality for all people. Yet, within the genre itself, when it came to female artists, very little existed.

When she cut the exquisite "Long Day, Short Night" in 1966, the teenaged Dawn Penn exposed her sweet voice to the world. The following year she recorded a rocksteady version of Willie Cobb's blues number "You Don't Love Me (No, No, No)" and then gave similar treatment to Lulu's "To Sir with Love" in 1968 (under the pseudonym "Suzette"). Whilst the former would become a reggae classic, by the end of the 1960s, Dawn had nothing to show for it, left the music industry and moved to the Virgin Islands.

It would be almost 20 years before she returned to Jamaica with hopes of reviving her music career. In 1992 she was invited to perform "You Don't Love Me..." at an anniversary celebration for Studio One. Her performance was met with great acclaim such that a revised version of the song was recorded and released in 1994. It became a world wide hit and was the catalyst toward the opening of many well deserved doors for Dawn.

Answer: Bunny Wailer

Bunny Wailer and Bob Marley were friends well before they became two of the founding members of the vocal group the Wailers. Childhood pals, they became step-brothers when Bunny's father entered into a relationship with Marley's mother and they had a daughter named Pearl.

Apart from his skill as a percussionist, Bunny made a strong contribution to the Wailers' early catalogue, in particular with songs such as "Dancing Shoes" and "Let Him Go", both from 1966. He was the soul on the band's first two albums to chart in the United States - "Catch a Fire" and "Burnin'", both of which were released in 1973. These were to be his last with the band before embarking on a solo career.

On his own he became more progressive, unveiling the masterful "Blackheart Man" in 1976, which some critics would argue represented the Rasta record of the 1970s. He experimented with a disco sound on his "Hook, Line and Sinker" album (1982) before embracing electronica, rap and dancehall in the 1980s, and producing the rather eclectic singles "Back to School" and "Electric Boogie" in 1990.

When Bob Marley passed away in 1981, the question was raised as to who should be named the new "King of Reggae". The focus fell squarely on Bunny, but it was a title he shunned. He did not need it, and he was right to distance himself from that title... he was his own legend.

Answer: John Holt

John Holt fronted the Paragons, probably Jamaica's smoothest vocal outfit of the 1960s, producing a string of hits that included "Memories by the Score" (1964) and "Happy Go Lucky Girl" (1967). However, perhaps their best known song was 1967's "The Tide is High". Penned by Holt, this was a number that became a world wide hit for Blondie (1980) and Atomic Kitten (2002).

Ever prolific, Holt decided to go it alone in 1970 and, initially, released the singles "OK Fred" (1971) and "Ali Baba" (1973). The latter was lifted from the album "Time is the Master", a disc on which Holt moved toward a heavier reggae rhythm, which he mixed with a symphony orchestra. This was extended the following year when he re-interpreted Kris Kristofferson's "Help Me Make It Through the Night", to the point that it was heralded as the sound of Jamaica's "uptown" and it stormed into the UK's Top Ten of their Singles' charts.

Ever versatile Holt branched out into dancehall during the 1980s, producing the now classic hit "Police in Helicopters" (1983) and, by 2000 he was receiving standing ovations at London's Royal Albert Hall.

Answer: Shaggy

Nicknamed after a character from the "Scooby-Doo" universe, Shaggy is Jamaican born but raised in the United States. He would go on to become the biggest dancehall crossover artist of the 1990s.

Being raised in the States proved to be an advantage for Shaggy, not so much because he resided at the foot of a large market, but that it took him away from the rigid hardcore elements of the dancehall genre, allowing him the freedom to experiment and work within the confines that suited him best. Using a good time and (often) risqué persona, he crafted a swathe of frolic infested party anthems that made him one of the few reggae artists to top both the singles and album charts in the USA. More than that, he became a potent force in many countries across the globe.

Albums such as "Boombastic" (1995) and "Hot Shot" (2000) showcased an artist with eclectic tastes and one that was not afraid to employ hooks from past pop hits. In the new millennium he continued his appetite for hard work and a spirit of collaboration. He worked with the likes of Rayvon and the legendary Sly and Robbie. He explored new frontiers with his 2018 LP "44/876", a crossover collaboration with Sting, an artist not known for his party tunes.

Answer: Jimmy Cliff

In 1972 Jimmy starred in a movie called "The Harder They Come". It was a film that told the tale of a young Jamaican lad trying to make his mark in the music business. It proved to be a landmark film in the world of reggae. Not only had it awakened the genre to a larger audience, it made a name for Jimmy and provided a soundtrack that sold extraordinarily well.

For Cliff this was payback. He'd commenced writing songs while he was still at school and had been plying his trade for a number of years with limited success. Despite this, he'd crafted the amazing "Wonderful World, Beautiful People" and "Many Rivers to Cross", both in 1969. The latter, ironically, is also the tale of a young lad and the pitfalls he needs to overcome to make his mark in the music industry. Further success would follow with a cover of the Cat Stevens' song "Wild World" in 1970 and the song "Reggae Nights" (1983). He recorded a version of "Hakuna Matata" for the soundtrack to "Rhythm of the Pride Lands" (1995), the sequel to 1994's "The Lion King" and his remarkable cover of Johnny Nash's "I Can See Clearly Now" found its way onto the soundtrack to the film "Cool Runnings" (1993).

Answer: Peter Tosh

The original, or classic, Wailers line-up was a trio of musicians made up, in part, by the smooth but playful voice of Bob Marley and the mellow but soulful tones of Bunny Wailer. Their hard edge though, came from the rough and throaty reverberations of Peter Tosh. Without him there would have been little substance or belief in the uncompromising numbers that the group produced during their "rude boy" phase in the mid 1960s. Songs such "Maga Dog" (1964) or their live cover of Joe Higgs' "Steppin' Razor" (1967) would never have sounded real without Tosh at their helm. As the band approached the 1970s the militant within Tosh began to surface with greater intensity. This was never more evident than on tracks such "Downpresser" (1971) and the song that he co-wrote with Marley "Get Up, Stand Up" in 1973.

Tosh grew disgruntled that the public's focus on the band was gravitating toward Marley. This led to his departure in 1973 and the release of his celebrated solo debut "Legalize It" three years later. His follow up was the fierce and exciting "Equal Rights" in 1977, which included a reworked "Steppin' Razor". He signed to Rolling Stones Records, with whom he released the commercially successful "Bush Doctor" in 1978, an album that contained a stunning reworking of the Temptations hit "(You Gotta Walk and) Don't Look Back". This would be the first of four memorable albums with that label and his star was well and truly on the rise when he was shot dead in a bungled burglary at his house in 1987.

Answer: Desmond Dekker

Before Bob Marley broke out across the globe Desmond Dekker was reggae's first international hitmaker. The remarkable feature, apart from his mastery of his own voice, was his determination to remain uncompromising in his beliefs, even it these came at the expense of further success.

His lyrics did not bend toward lightness. He highlighted Jamaica's poor, he shone a spotlight on the chaos and the senseless violence that plagued his nation's streets, he presented visions of Jamaica's culture and life that were foreign to outsiders and, often, he sang in dialects that were alien to outside listeners. Despite this, he enjoyed chart success in the UK and the USA with songs such as "007 Shanty Town" (1967), "Israelites" (1968), "It Mek" (1969) and a remarkable version of Johnny Nash's "You Can Get It If You Really Want" in 1970.

Part of Dekker's success can also be attributed to producer Leslie Kong. It was a relationship that was cultivated in 1963 and, in some ways, was almost symbiotic. It comes as no surprise then that when Kong passed away in 1973 that Dekker was unable to achieve that same level of understanding with another producer and his hits dried up.

Answer: Dennis Brown

In 1972 the USA had a 14 year old making waves on the pop charts with a song called "Ben". Whilst that sounds astonishing, spare a thought for this... three years earlier Jamaica had a 12 year old lad called Dennis Brown setting the charts alight with the song "No Man is an Island".

Brown would grow to be the man dubbed the "Crown Prince of Reggae", the icon that would be cited by the great Bob Marley as his favourite singer and the workhorse that would release a staggering 75 albums over the next three decades.

Strongly influenced by the likes of Nat King Cole and Frank Sinatra, Brown gravitated toward lover's rock, a romantic sub-genre of reggae, and became the man that gave it prominence on the world stage with such songs as "Westbound Train" (1975) and "Cassandra" (1975). He'd previously thrilled the world with a re-working of Fleetwood Mac's "Black Magic Woman" and, finally, finding success on the UK charts with "Money in My Pocket" in 1978.

Despite failing health, he defied his doctors and continued to work tirelessly until he collapsed and passed away as a result of coronary failure in 1999. He was only 42 years old and he'd, literally, sung his heart out.