Delroy Wilson was one of Jamaica's most soulful vocalists, and over a 40-year career the singer unleashed a flood of hits and a multitude of masterpieces. Born on October 5, 1948, in the Kingston neighborhood of Trenchtown,
Wilson's phenomenal talent would be his ticket out of the ghetto, and his discovery by producer
Coxsone Dodd in 1962 would change the path of Jamaican music. His first recording for
Dodd, "If I Had a Beautiful Baby" did little, but the producer stuck by his prodigy, and his follow-up "Spit in the Sky," was a sound system smash. That number was
Dodd's personally composed smack at rival
Prince Buster, while
Lee Perry penned
Wilson's "Joe Liges" as a sharp rebuke aimed at
Buster's "Bad Minded People." "Joe Liges" garnered
Wilson his first chart hit, and sparked Jamaican's continuing love affair with pint-sized singing stars.
The vinyl battle continued across a clutch of notable singles, including "Prince Pharaoh" and "I Shall Not Remove," the latter titling
Wilson's 1966 debut album, while he also cut the proto-Rasta "Lion of Judah." Across the ska era, the teen sensation recorded a steady stream of popular numbers for
Dodd, and even better material was to come once he hit puberty and his voice broke.
Wilson's cover of
the Tams' "Dancing Mood" arrived in 1966, helping to set the stage for the rocksteady era. The song was a smash, and remained a fan favorite, prompting the singer to recut the song several times in later years.
A deluge of classic hits followed over the next year. "Riding for a Fall," "Once Upon a Time," "Won't You Come Home," "Conquer Me," "True Believer," "I'm Not a King," and "Rain from the Sky" all flooded out of Studio One and onto the Jamaican chart, establishing
Wilson as one of the label's biggest hitmakers. Many of these seminal rocksteady masterpieces were gathered up by
Dodd for the 1969 set
The Best of Delroy Wilson, better known as Original Twelve.
Wilson's lesser hits were equally fabulous, and songs like "Run Run," "Ungrateful Baby," "It's Impossible," and "Mr. DJ" (aka "Feel the Spirit") are today considered classics.
By his late teens, the singer was delivering the kind of emotionally nuanced and soulful performances that would define his adult work. It was at this point, in 1967, that
Wilson split from
Dodd, and joined forces with producer
Bunny Lee. It turned out to be only a brief flirtation, but did result in a clutch of notable recordings, including "This Old Heart of Mind," before the singer returned to Studio One.
However, the following year,
Wilson again departed
Dodd's stable, and launched the W&C label with fellow singer Wilburn Cole. The label was inaugurated with
Wilson's solo "Once Upon a Time" and the duo's "I Want to Love You." Both were fabulous numbers, but they couldn't save W&C's fortunes, and like most Jamaican artist-owned labels, the venture failed. The Links label suffered the same fate. This was an even more extravagant venture, launched this same year by
Wilson,
Ken Boothe,
the Gaylads and
the Melodians. It too released only a small number of singles, including
Wilson's fabulous "Give Love a Try," before folding.
Thus before the year was out, the entire Links crew had moved en masse to producer
Sonia Pottinger's stable. There
Wilson unleashed another stream of classic singles, including the major hit "Put Yourself in My Place." Even with this success, however, the singer remained restless, and briefly joined up with new producer
Keith Hudson for a phenomenal recut of "Run Run," retitled "I'm Gonna Get You." Afterwards he rejoined many of his old Links compatriots at producer
Leslie Kong's Beverley label. Among the superb songs
Wilson cut there was "Show Me the Way" and the effervescent "Gave You My Love."
1970 saw the artist's first tour of the U.K., where he also recorded a number of songs for the Trojan label. Back in Jamaica,
Wilson continued the studio rounds, working with a variety of producers, including his old mentor
Coxsone Dodd, but most memorably with
Bunny Lee. In 1971,
Wilson and
Lee unleashed "Better Must Come," a sufferer's song whose yearning for better days was used by the People's National Party as their campaign theme song. The number defined the times, and helped sweep the PNP to electoral victory, while also titling
Wilson's next album. The singer followed up his smash with the equally memorable "Cool Operator."
Wilson continued cutting excellent sides for
Lee, as well as numerous other producers. There were return engagements with Pottinger,
Dodd, and
Hudson; the latter's "Addis Abada" is of particular note. There were stints with
Niney Holness, including the anthemic hit "Rascal Man" and superb "Half Way Up the Stairs"; fabulous recordings with
Joe Gibbs including "Mash Up Illiteracy" and "Pretty Girl"; the astoundingly creative "Ain't That Peculiar" for Douglas Williams; "Have Some Mercy," a major hit cut for A. Folder; as well as equally excellent work with
Gussie Clarke,
Harry J Johnson,
Phil Pratt, Vincent Chin, and others.
1976 brought another smash, a sublime cover of
Bob Marley's "I'm Still Waiting," cut for
Lloyd Charmers. A stellar new album Sarge, and the Tony Robinson produced Greatest Hits both arrived this same year. And the hits just kept coming. Among them was "All in This Together" and "Come in Heaven" for
Gussie Clarke, and a stream of stellar singles for the likes of Jack Ruby and
Bob Andy.
Still,
Wilson's career was considerably slowed by the rise of the DJs in the early '80s. However, he bounced back with 1987's "Don't Put the Blame on Me," cut for
King Jammy, and the equally successful
Lee produced "Ease Up" the following year.
Phil Pratt would oversee his 1986 album, Looking for Love, while Earl "Flabba" Holt produced the following year's Which Way Is Up. In 1994,
Wilson's enduring legacy to Jamaican music was recognized by a special plaque awarded him by the Jamaican government and presented by Prime Minister Patterson. Although the singer continued recording sporadically during the early '90s, by then his health was failing. Tragically,
Wilson died of cirrhosis of the liver on March 6, 1995. ~ Jo-Ann Greene