King of Reggae Basslines title crowns Leroy Sibbles six-decade career

When the roll of great reggae basslines is called up, a formidable force present will be Leroy ‘Heptones’ Sibbles. Not shy to blow his own trumpet, or in this case, play his own bass, Sibbles is known to tell his fans, “Every prominent Jamaican singer – past and present – is on a Leroy Sibbles bassline. I create the basslines that bassmen play.”

Sibbles has had a storied six-decade-long career as a member of the Heptones as a soloist, and equally impressive as a bass player, throwing down countless basslines that have stood the test of time. He has played rhythms for vocalists Bob Andy, Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe, John Holt, Burning Spear, Dennis Brown, Slim Smith, and many others. He was also a pivotal contributor to tracks like Declaration of Rights, Queen of the Minstrel, Freedom Blues, Love Me Forever, Satta Massaganna, Ten to One, and Full up.

Saturday, August 31, will be a special day for singer and bassist. He will be officially crowned ‘King of Reggae Basslines’ at a concert scheduled for the Ranny Williams Entertainment Centre in St Andrew. The announcement was made last Wednesday at the media launch for the concert which features Marcia Griffiths, Etana, Singing Melody, Duane Stepehnson and Sibbles himself. Spearheading the project is Vonni Koromanti.

“It feels like 60 years,” Sibbles told The Gleaner with a laugh at the launch. “I have been through thick and thin ... seen it all. I’m blessed because my downtimes have been few. Most of my life has been joyful and I’m grateful and happy ... thank God.”

Unlike many of singers in the genre, Sibbles didn’t start out in church, but he has music and entertainment in his bloodline.

“My great-grandmother was revivalist, my grandmother was revivalist and my mother was a dancer ... sound system and ting. I started out as an electric art welder. I did about a year on that and after I branched into music. From my first release ... Gunmen Coming to Town, produced by Ken Lack, I knew that this was what I wanted. And at that time when I was writing that song there wasn’t a lot of gun ting happening, “ Sibbles shared, adding that it was perhaps a premonition of what was to come.

He had been playing the acoustic guitar before, and the bass, which he would go on to master, was introduced to him by legendary keyboardist, songwriter and musical director, Jackie Mittoo.

“He wanted me to play bass with him at a club because he was a star now. Fattie Fattie had made him a star. He wanted a trio and he already had himself on keyboards, he had a drummer and he needed a bass. Jackie played the songs that he wanted me to play ... I listened to the songs, I copied the songs and we went to the club and we mash up the place,” Sibbles recalled.

DRUM AND BASS

Keynote speaker at the launch, JaRIA Chairman, drummer and attorney-at-law, Ewan Simpson, waxed poetic and had the audience moving to the beat of his drum.

The bass and the drum “in our music is blended in an indistinguishable manner to form the central pillar of that which has come to be known as the heartbeat of our people. Reggae has carried a message that represents not just the heartbeat but the brain... the conscience of the world. In the beginning was the word and the word was sound and the sound was the beat of the drum but the vibration of the drum created waves and the waves attached to a melody and that melody was the sound of the bass,” Simpson said, as he went on to recognise the greatness embodied in Leroy Sibbles.

Born in the heart of Trench Town, Leroy Sibbles rose to prominence as one third of The Heptones, a group formed in 1965. He received the Order of Distinction from the Jamaican Government in 2002.

yasmine.peru@gleanerjm.com