Joe Gibbs

Born in Montego Bay, before Joe Gibson became one of the most influential and dominant reggae producers on the scene in the 1970’s, he was a naval engineer at Guantánamo Bay. Upon returning to Kingston, Jamaica, he opened his own TV and radio repair shop, which would later become a record shop and recording studio. In late 1966, Gibson was approached by singer Roy Shirley, with whom he created the revolutionary rocksteady hit “Hold Them”. Shortly after this success, he launched his label Amalgamated with the help of Bunny Lee. Not really having any musical training himself, he enlisted the recording engineer Lee Perry to assist with production. Although the pair scored hits like Errol Dunkey’s “You’re Gonna Need Me”, Perry eventually moved on to create his own label, and Gibson recruited Winston “Niney the Observer” Holness. With Niney in pocket, they produced Nicky Thomas’ 1970’s hit “Love of the Common People”. “Love of the Common People” brought Gibson’s cultivated reggae sound to an international audience, breaking the UK’s Top 10 Singles Chart. This change ushered in a new wave of rocksteady music, as he kept recording artists like The Ethiopians, Delroy Wilson, Ken Parker, Peter Tosh, The Slickers, The Pioneers, The Mellotones, and The Heptones – including their two volumes of single compilations The Heptones and Friends which became best-sellers in Jamaica.

Gibson later began regularly partnering with co-producer Errol “ET” Thompson and his studio band “The Professionals”. As Joe Gibbs and The Professionals, they released the acclaimed African Dub series, which brought his music to the punk audience in Britain. During this period, they also teamed up with a young Dennis Brown, creating landmarks like “Money in My Pocket”, “Should I Stay at Home”, “Love Has Found Its Way”, and “How Can I Live”, in addition to Big Youth’s “Ah So We Stay” and “Eviction” by Black Uhuru. With over 100 Jamaican number one records, the duo became known as The Mighty Two. Some other artists they worked with include Marcia Aitken, Althea & Donna, John Holt, Barrington Levy, Cornell Campbell, Dean Fraser, Beres Hammond, Ranking Joe, Prince Jazzbo, Prince Mohammed, Dillinger, Trinity, Prince Far I, Clint Eastwood, I-Roy and Kojak & Liza.

Not only was Gibson prominent within the reggae and dub scene, but he once again branched into punk through influencing artists like The Clash with the album “Two Sevens Clash” by Culture, as well as solidified himself in history with Althea and Donna’s “Uptown Top Ranking” which reached number one on the UK Charts.