Derrick Harriott

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

This article needs additional citations for verification.
Please help improve this article by adding reliable references. Unsourced material may be challenged and removed. (December 2007)

Derrick Harriott (born Derrick Clinton Harriott, 6 February 1939, Jamaica) is a singer and record producer.^[1] He has produced recordings by Big Youth, Chariot Riders, The Chosen Few, Dennis Brown, The Ethiopians, Keith & Tex, The Kingstonians, Rudy Mills, Scotty, Sly & Revolutionaries, and Winston McAnuff.

1 Career
2 Discography
- 2.1 Albums
- 2.2 Compilation albums
3 Footnotes
4 See also
5 External links

[edit] Career

As a student at Excelsior High School, Harriott formed a duo with Claude Sang Jr., and in 1958 he formed the Jiving Juniors with Eugene Dwyer, Herman Sang, and Maurice Winter.^[2] In 1960 and 1961 the group had hit singles with "Over The River" (for Coxsone Dodd) and "Lollipop Girl" (for Duke Reid). In 1962, Harriott left to form his own record label, Crystal, and embark on a solo career.^[2] His first solo release, "I Care", was a hit, with further hits following with "What Can I Do" (1964), "The Jerk" (1965) and "I'm Only Human" (1965), all of which were included on his debut album, The Best Of Derrick Harriott. In 1967 he had further solo hits with "The Loser" and "Solomon", as well as with productions of other artists, including The Ethiopians' "No Baptism", and Keith And Tex's "Tonight" and "Stop That Train".^[2]

The lyrics to his song "Message from a Black Man" (circa 1970) echoed the growing black consciousness in American soul music of that time. In 1970 he issued The Crystalites' The Undertaker, an instrumental album in a similar vein to the early music of The Upsetters. He produced successful albums by other artists, including DJ Scotty's Schooldays, Dennis Brown's Super Reggae and Soul Hits, and also his own 14 Chartbuster Hits. He was one of the first producers to use King Tubby mixing talents at his Waterhouse studio, issuing one of the earliest dub albums, Scrub A Dub, credited to The Crystallites. Harriott followed this with another dub/instrumental album, More Scrubbing The Dub. His late 1970s productions used backing from The Revolutionaries on albums such as Winston McAnuff's Pick Hits To Click (1978), DJ Ray I's Rasta Revival (1978) and his own Enter The Chariot and Disco 6 (a compilation album featuring Dennis Brown, Cornell Campbell and Horace Andy).

In the 1980s, he continued to have hits with soul cover versions, such as "Skin To Skin" and "Checking Out". In 1988 he scored with "Starting All Over Again", a duet with Yellowman, with lyrics about Hurricane Gilbert.^[2] In July 2002 in Toronto, Canada,Harriott performed at the two-night Legends of Ska festival.^[3] ^[4] Other performers included: Skatalites, Rico Rodriguez, Lester Sterling, Johnny Moore, Lynn Taitt, Prince Buster, Alton Ellis, Lord Creator, Justin Hinds, Roy Wilson, Derrick Morgan and Lord Tanamo.

[edit] Discography

[edit] Albums

The Best Of Derrick Harriott - 1965 - Island
The Best Of Derrick Harriott Volume 2 - 1968 - Trojan
Sings Jamaican Reggae - 1969 - Crystal/Pama
The Crystalites - Undertaker - 1970
Psychedelic Train - 1970 - Crystal/Trojan
Presents Scrub-A-Dub Reggae - 1974 - Crystal
More Scrubbing The Dub - 1975 - Crystal
Songs For Midnight Lovers - 1976 - Crystal/Trojan
Derrick Harriott & The Revolutionaries - Reggae Chart Busters Seventies Style - 1977
Reggae Disco Rockers - 1977 - Charmers
Born to Love You - 1979 - Crystal

[edit] Compilation albums

Derrick Harriott & Various Artists - 14 Chartbuster Hits - 1973 - Crystal
Derrick Harriott & The Crystalites / Chariot Riders - 1970 - Blockbuster Reggae Instrumentals
Greatest Reggae Hits - 1975 - Crystal/Trojan
Disco 6 - 1977
Enter The Chariot - 1978
Derrick Harriott & Various Artists - Those Reggae Oldies - 1978
Derrick Harriott & The Jiving Juniors - The Donkey Years 1961-1965 - Jamaican Gold (1994)
Derrick Harriott & Various Artists - Step Softly 1965-1972 - Trojan (1988)
Derrick Harriott - Sings Jamaican Rock Steady Reggae - Jamaican Gold
Derrick Harriott & The Crystalites - For A Fistful of Dollars - Jamaican Gold
From Chariot's Vault Volume 2: 16 Reggae Hits - Jamaican Gold
Derrick Harriott & Various Artists - Riding the Roots Chariot - 1998 - Pressure Sounds
Derrick Harriott & Various Artists - Skin To Skin - 1989 - Sarge
Derrick Harriott & Various Artists - Musical Chariot - 1990 - Charly Records