Augustus Pablo
| Augustus Pablo | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Horace Swaby |
| Born |
21 June 1954 St. Andrew, Jamaica |
| Died | 18 May 1999 (aged 44) |
| Genres | Roots reggae, dub |
| Occupation(s) | Record producer, instrumentalist |
| Instruments | Keyboard, melodica, guitar |
| Years active | 1970s–1999 |
| Associated acts | Now Generation |
Horace Swaby (21 June 1954 – 18 May 1999), known as Augustus Pablo, was a Jamaican roots reggae and dub record producer, melodica player and keyboardist, active from the 1970s onwards.
He popularised the use of the melodica (an instrument at that time primarily used in Jamaica to teach music to schoolchildren) in reggae music. His album King Tubbys Meets Rockers Uptown (1976) is often regarded as one of the most important examples of dub.
He was born in St. Andrew, Jamaica, and learned to play the organ at the Kingston College School, where an girl lent him a melodica, an instrument that fascinated him. He also met Herman Chin Loy, who after working at his cousin Leslie Kong's Beverley's record shop, had set up his own Aquarius store in Half Way Tree. Swaby recorded early tracks including "Higgi Higgi", "East of the River Nile", "Song of the East" and "The Red Sea" between 1971 and 1973 for Chin-Loy's Aquarius Records. Chin Loy had previously used the name Augustus Pablo generically for keyboard instrumentals recorded by Lloyd Charmers and Glen Adams, and Swaby took the name for this recording.
"East of the River Nile", a unique blend of East Asian and Jamaican sounds, became a moderate hit. He soon joined Now Generation (Mikey Chung's band) and played keyboard with them while his friend Clive Chin began his own career as a record producer. Pablo and Chin recorded "Java" (1972) together, as soon as Pablo quit Now Generation and Clive was able to obtain studio time. This instrumental was a massive hit and launched Pablo's solo career. He recorded with Chin and others including Lee Perry and Chin's uncle, Leonard Chin. Pablo scored another smash hit with "My Desire" (John Holt).
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