Glen Ricks, the enigmatic singer who made his mark in Canada and Jamaica, is making another comeback. The artist, now in his early 70s, has recorded a number of songs for different producers in the past year.
Ricks is scheduled to make his live show return on February 21 on Glen Ricks and Friends at Swagg Bar & Restaurant in Nassau, Bahamas. That event also features several homegrown acts such as Badbull Boss and Smokey Blaxx.
Although his career has been marred by years of drug addiction, Ricks says he underwent comprehensive rehabilitation at Patricia House, a leading treatment center for addicts in Kingston, Jamaica. He credits the six months spent there for him being clean for over one year.
“When I was in there, the father let me see certain things. My last two weeks in rehab, I wrote 42 songs, some of them are gospel. I feel great now, I wasted a lot of my life on drugs, but this is the best I’ve felt in years,” said Ricks.
In the last year, he has recorded songs for producers Tristan Palmer, Anthony Cameron and Earl Messam. The album Ricks is currently working on is for the latter’s Wildfire Records, based in Philadelphia.
Born Glen Ricketts in Kingston, Ricks migrated with his family to Toronto, Canada in 1966. As a member of The Fabulous Flames, he had a big hit three years later with ‘Holly Holy’, a reggae cover of Neil Diamond’s song.
That track helped introduce the talented vocalist to Canadian music executives. Ricks released two albums for CBS Canada which impressed none other than American soul singer/producer Donny Hathaway with whom he worked during the mid-1970s.
In the early 1970s, he had a big hit in Jamaica with the ballad, ‘Heart of my World’, and a cover of Hathaway’s ‘This Christmas’.
His fight with substance overshadowed subsequent releases, but Ricks is confident he has finally shaken the monkey off his back. He is prepared for a busy year of new songs and live shows.
