5/28/2006

Happy Birthday Prince Buster.


Cecil Bustamente Campbell, better known as Prince Buster, is a musician from Kingston, Jamaica and is regarded as one of the most important figures in the history of ska music.

Campbell's music career began around the growing 'sound system craze.' Across Jamaica, music promoters drove vans filled with stereo equipment to stage mobile parties. The operators of the sound system would play the most popular R&B dance records of the day, and often they would have a vocalist called a toaster call out the dancers' names, chant in rhythm, and make light-hearted boasts. The toaster form was the primary influence on early rap MC's.

Between 1962 and 1967 Prince Buster, already a sought-after producer, churned out over 600 songs including "One Step Beyond," "Al Capone," which was the first Jamaican record to break into Britain's top 20, and "Madness," later to inspire the band The North London Invaders. The North London Invaders, better known as Madness, released their first single "The Prince" in September 1979, which was followed by their debut album One Step Beyond.

Material: wikipedia.org & snwmf.com