‘Timeless Basslines’, an album of songs featuring legendary musician Lloyd Parks, is scheduled for release in early 2025. Parks puts a fresh spin on songs he helped make classics, such as Dennis Brown’s ‘Should I’, ‘Two Sevens Clash’ by Culture and ‘Groovy Little Thing’ by Beres Hammond.
According to Parks, who is in his mid 70s, “This album is like a documentary about my history and what I have done. The whole idea was to do an album where people get to know who Lloyd Parks is.”
The self-produced project is tentatively scheduled for release in February, celebrated as Reggae Month in Jamaica.
Parks hails from Olympic Gardens, a working-class community in Kingston where drummer Sly Dunbar and fellow bassist Ranchie McLean grew up. They cut their teeth as musicians on the Red Hills Road club circuit in Jamaica’s capital during the early 1970s.
While not as heralded as Aston “Familyman” Barrett of The Wailers and Robbie Shakespeare, Parks played on some of reggae’s biggest hit songs including Al Brown’s ‘Here I Am Baby’, ‘Fire Burning’ by Bob Andy, ‘Everything I Own’ by Ken Boothe, ‘How Could I Leave’ by Dennis Brown and ‘Girl I Love You’ by Horace Andy.
“This album jus’ tells a part of my story which goes back to the 1960s, an’ later with people like Dennis Brown an’ (producer) Joe Gibbs,” said Parks, who has led the We The People Band since 1975.
