As he awaited his time to go on stage, an endless stream of admirers and well-wishers stopped by Leroy Sibbles’ tent to show respect. The singer/musician was guest of honor for ‘Leroy Sibbles: King of The Reggae Bassline’, held on August 31 at Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre in Kingston.
The event marked the 75-year-old Sibbles’ 60th anniversary in the music business and his achievements as a bass guitarist.
Best known for a hit-laden career with harmony trio The Heptones, Sibbles hit the stage at 11:30 pm. He was introduced by his grand-daughter, Empress Adara, who flew in from Toronto with her mother Camisha and aunt Natalie. She performed Donny Hathaway’s ‘A Song for You’ in tribute to her grandfather, who called Canada home for many years.
The fans sang along to the hits that made him and The Heptones world-famous, including ‘Party Time’, ‘Baby’, ‘Why Did You Leave’, ‘Pretty Looks Isn’t All’, ‘Why Must I Live’, ‘Heptones Gonna Fight’ and ‘Sweet Talking’.
Sibbles then showed his prowess on the bass guitar, recalling many of the classic ‘riddims’ he played at Studio One, where he made his name with The Heptones. They included ‘Satta Massa Gana’ by The Abyssinians, ‘Mean Girl’ (which drove hits such as Luciano’s ‘Sweep Over my Soul’ and Capleton’s ‘Stand Tall’); John Holt’s ‘A Love I Can Feel’, the backdrop for Beres Hammond’s ‘Tempted to Touch’, and Tony Rebel’s ‘Fresh Vegetable’, and the immortal ‘Full Up’, which made songs like ‘Pass The Kutchie’ by The Mighty Diamonds, and ‘Political Fiction’ by Half Pint big hits.
As he played, Sibbles and singer Andrew Cassanova gave fans a history lesson on how each riddim impacted contemporary music.
“My greatest achievement, definitely, is my bass creative accompaniments, because it is the connection between singers and deejays’ careers,” said Sibbles.
Saxophonist Dean Fraser, singers Duane Stephenson, Etana, Singing Melody and percussionist Bongo Herman also performed on ‘King of The Reggae Bassline’. During their sets, they hailed Sibbles’ trailblazing accomplishments.
Leroy Sibbles is a Juno Award winner. In 2002, he was awarded the Order of Distinction, Jamaica’s sixth-highest honor.
