Rupie Edwards
| Rupie Edwards | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Rupert Lloyd Edwards |
| Born |
4 July 1945 Goshen, Saint Ann Parish, Jamaica |
| Genres | Reggae |
| Occupation(s) | Singer, record producer |
| Instruments | Vocals, record producer |
| Years active | Early 1960s–present |
| Labels | Success, Opportunity, Cactus/Trojan |
Rupert Lloyd "Rupie" Edwards (born 4 July 1945) is a Jamaican reggae singer and record producer.
Rupie Edwards was born in Goshen, in Saint Ann Parish. The family moved to Kingston in 1958, where he sang in talent contests, including those run by Vere Johns. He was spotted by producer S.L. Smith, for whom he recorded his debut single, "Guilty Convict" b/w "Just Because", released on Smith's Hi=Lite label nd licensed to Blue Beat Records in 1962.
After recording a few further singles, he formed the Ambassadors in 1965 with Paragons singer Junior Menz and guitarist Eric Frater, becoming the Virtues with the addition of Dobby Dobson. They recorded several singles for Harry J, as well as Edwards' first self-production, "Burning Love", credited to Rupie Edwards and the Virtues.
The Virtues broke up in 1968, and Edwards started to focus mainly on his work as a producer, although he continued to release his own records in the late 1960s and early 1970s. By the beginning of the 1970s, he had recorded artists like The Heptones, The Mighty Diamonds, Bob Andy, Johnny Clarke, Joe Higgs, Gregory Isaacs ("Lonely Man") and The Ethiopians on his own record labels 'Success' and 'Opportunity', based at his Success record shop in Orange Street, and on the Trojan Records sub-labels Big Records and Cactus. He also worked with DJs such as U-Roy, Dennis Alcapone and I-Roy, and released some instrumental versions with his studio band, The Rupie Edwards All Stars. The group included musicians such as saxophonist Tommy McCook, trombone player Vin Gordon, drummer Carlton 'Santa' Davis, guitarist Hux Brown, pianist Gladstone Anderson, bassist Clifton 'Jackie' Jackson and organist Winston Wright.
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