|
Horace Swaby (June 21, 1954–May 18, 1999), better known
as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican reggae singer and keyboardist, popular during the last half of the 20th century. He was born in St. Andrew, Jamaica and learned to play the organ in high school. He also met Clive Chin; the Chin
family owned an influential record store in Kingston. Swaby
recorded "Iggy Iggy" in Clive's father's studio, Aquarius Records. He took the name Augustus Pablo for this recording.
After releasing a few more singles, Pablo came out with "East of the River Nile", a unique blend of East Asian and Jamaican
sounds, and the song became a moderate hit. Augustus Pablo popularized the use of the melodica in Reggae music. He soon joined Now Generation (Mikey Chung's band) and played the keyboard with them while his friend, Clive, began his own career as a record
producer. Pablo and Chin recorded "Java" together, as soon as Pablo quit Now Generation and Clive was able to get the studio
time. The song was a massive hit, and launched Pablo's solo career. He recorded with Chin and arous others, including Leonard Chin, his uncle, and Lee Perry. He scored another smash hit with "My Desire" (John Holt).
Fed up with his lack of income, Pablo formed a label with his brother, Rockers, and released a steady stream of well-received songs, mostly instrumental versions of
older hits from Studio One. In spite of his success with Rockers, Pablo's
seminal 1974 album, Rebel Rock Reggae - This Is Augustus Pablo was recorded with Clive and
Pat Chin. This was followed by a
collaboration with the legendary reggae singer King Tubby to great acclaim,
releasing 1975's Ital Dub.
In the later 1970s, Pablo turned to producing, including the hit "Black Star Liner"
(Fred Locks). He also worked with
I-Roy, Jacob Miller, Horace Andy and Freddy McKay; this period was eventually commemorated with the critically acclaimed compilation King Tubby Meets the Rockers Uptown. This was followed by East of the River Nile (1978, Black Ark), another
acclaimed hit album.
In the 1980s, Pablo's career slowed significantly. He had begun to establish an
American audience, and released Risin
Sun in 1986 to good reviews and sales. He also produced several hit's, including
"Ragamuffin Year" (Junior Delgado). In addition, Pablo
toured extensively throughout the world, making a memorable live album in Tokyo in
1987. That same year, Rockers Come East re-established his career, and he began to release a series of
critically acclaimed though somewhat inacessible albums in the 1990s, including
Blowing With
the Wind and also producing several, such as Night and
Day (Dawn Penn) and
Jah Made Them
All (Yami Bolo). Pablo died of
a nerve disorder on May 18, 1999.
External link
|