Byron Lee and the Dragonaires
| Byron Lee and the Dragonaires | |
|---|---|
| Also known as | The Ska Kings, Byron Lee's Dragonaires |
| Origin | Jamaica |
| Genres | Ska, mento, reggae, calypso, soca |
| Years active | 1950–present |
| Labels | WIRL, Dynamic Sounds |
| Website | ByronLeeMusic.com |
Byron Lee and the Dragonaires (known as Byron Lee's Dragonaires after Lee's death and now The Dragonaires) are a Jamaican ska, calypso and soca band. The band played a crucial pioneering role in bringing Caribbean music to the world. Byron Lee died on 4 November 2008, after suffering from cancer for a sustained period.
The band was originally formed around 1950 by Byron Lee and his friend Carl Brady, taking its name from the St. George's College football team that they played for. The band originally played mento, and performed their first shows in the college common room to celebrate the team's victories. After a few years of playing at parties, birthdays and weddings, Lee decided to turn professional. By 1956, the Dragonaires had become a fixture on Jamaica's hotel circuit, playing under their own name and also providing backing to visiting American stars including Harry Belafonte, Chuck Berry, The Drifters, Sam Cooke, and Fats Domino. The Dragonaires prided themselves on being able to play any style of music, their repertoire including covers of American pop and R&B hits, and they soon adapted to include ska when that became popular.
The band recorded their debut single, "Dumplin's", in 1959 at the WIRL studios owned by future Prime Minister Edward Seaga, who would also become the band's manager. The single was released on the Dragonaire's own Dragon's Breath label in Jamaica, and was the second release on the Blue Beat label in the United Kingdom, and was unusual for a Jamaican single as it featured an electric organ and a Fender bass which Lee had purchased during a visit to the United States - the first such instruments ever seen on the island. Lee and Seaga both realised that ska was the music to provide Jamaica with a musical identity that could break the domination of American R&B, and the Dragonaires became one of the major ska bands of the early 1960s, releasing singles such as "Fireflies", "Mash! Mr Lee", "Joy Ride", and a ska version of "Over the Rainbow", both under their own name, and as The Ska Kings. In 1961, the band received a huge break when they were cast as the hotel band in the first James Bond film, Dr. No. The band performed several songs in the film, although the recordings were actually made by guitarist Ernest Ranglin. In 1964, the band was featured in a program called “This is Ska!” alongside Jimmy Cliff, Prince Buster, and Toots and the Maytals.
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