Dwight Pinkney

Dwight Pinkney
Born	1945 Manchester Parish, Jamaica
Genres	Ska, Rocksteady, Reggae
Instruments	Guitar
Years active	1963 – present
Associated acts	The Sharks, Zap Pow, Roots Radics, The Distinguished Personalities Band

Dwight Pinkney OD (born 1945), also known as Brother Dee, is a Jamaican guitarist best known for his work as a session musician and as a member of Zap Pow and the Roots Radics, who since 1999 has recorded as a solo artist.

Pinkney was born in Manchester Parish, Jamaica, moving to Kingston as a youth. In the mid-1960s he formed The Sharks as guitarist, the band recording for Studio One and backing The Wailers on their 1965 Jamaican hit single "Put It On", also providing backing for recordings by Ken Boothe and The Gaylads. One of Pinkney's most successful songs, written in 1967 while a member of The Sharks, is "How Could I Live", which was originally released as the b-side of Jeff Dixon and Marcia Griffiths' "Words" single, and has since been recorded by artists including Myrna Hague, The Heptones, Richie Stephens, George Nooks, and Dennis Brown (as "How Could I Leave"). Pinkney moved on to work with Zap Pow in 1969, a band with members including Beres Hammond, David Madden, and Glen DaCosta. Zap Pow recorded two albums and their best-known song, "This is Reggae Music", was co-written by Pinkney. In the mid-1970s, Pinkney put his recording career on hold to attend the Jamaican School of Music, undertaking a course in Afro-American music, and studying arranging, and later taking on a teaching role. Pinkney's 1979 arrangement of The Astronauts' Festival Song Competition-winning "Born Jamaican" won him a Guinness Jamaica award, and he returned once again to recording.

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