Desmond Dekker was one of the Jamaican greats, no doubt about it, and the first to break the international market. “The Israelites”, when it appeared in 1968, was so unlike anything else in the charts that it felt like it came from another planet. He was overshadowed by the whole late 70s reggae scene led by Bob Marley, but he was always there as the forerunner of the spread of Jamaican music.
Dead at only 64, it’s a tribute to the man that his big hits – “007 (Shanty Town)”, “The Israelites”, “It Mek” – still sound great today.
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