Official Garnett Silk Live Performance 1994

Official Garnett Silk Live Performance 1994

One of the most exciting young talents to arise out of the '80s dancehall scene, Garnett Silk began his career as a child toaster, but ended it as one of Jamaica's most astonishing singers; with a rich and emotive voice, he took the nation by storm. He seemed destined for international stardom, when his career was cut cruelly short by his death in 1994.

Born Garnett Damoin Smith in Jamaica's Manchester parish on April 2, 1966, the young DJ-to-be, had decided on his career choice as a small child. Encouraged by family and friends, Silk first took the stage at the Soul Remembrance sound system at the tender age of 12, under the moniker Little Bimbo. The tiny toaster so impressed the audience that he swiftly began DJ'ing regularly, first at Soul Remembrance, and then as the decade turned, at Pepper's Disco, Stereophonic, and then Destiny Outernational. It was at this latter sound system where the teen first met Tony Rebel, another Manchester native. Rebel was making a name for himself as a cultural toaster and went on to become a major influence on the dancehall scene, and on Little Bimbo himself. The DJ was still in his teens when he cut his first song, 1985's "Ram Dance Master"; he may have recorded others, but none have yet surfaced. It was another two years before Little Bimbo's debut single, "Problems Everywhere," appeared. Cut with producer Delroy Collins, the posthumous Journey album features not just the single, but an album's worth of material recorded by the two at this time.

Garnett Silk Meets the Conquering LionIn 1987, Little Bimbo linked up with Sugar Minott and recorded the "No Disrespect" single for the older man's Youth Promotion label. Coincidentally, Tony Rebel was at this time the star DJ for Minott's Youth Promotion sound system, and he and Little Bimbo immediately hooked back up. The pair began performing as a duo around the sound systems to much acclaim. The Garnett Silk Meets the Conquering Lion: A Dub Plate Selection album dates from about this time and features a clutch of exclusive recordings the DJ cut for the sound system from the mid-'80s through the end of the decade. Rebel, a Rastarfari, eventually converted Little Bimbo to his religion with the help of dub poet Yasus Afari, a close friend of both the DJs. If Rebel had a massive impact on Silk's religious beliefs and toasting themes, Derrick Morgan would have an equal impact on his career.

Tony Rebel Meets Garnett Silk in a Dancehall ConferenceIn 1989, the veteran singing star and producer brought Rebel and Little Bimbo into Bunny Lee's studio in Dunhaney Park to record the two both individually and as a duo. Morgan had one listen and sat Little Bimbo down and gave him some fatherly advice -- stop toasting and start singing. he Heartbeat label's Tony Rebel Meets Garnet Silk in a Dancehall Conference compiles these early Morgan-overseen recordings and captures Little Bimbo (and he was still known by that name at the time) at the crossroads of his career. Several of the tracks are pure toasts, others are somewhere in between, but when Little Bimbo sang, even though his delivery still has the clipped tones of dancehall, he was magnificent. His solo cover of "Killing Me Softly With Her Song" was heartbreaking in delivery, while "Help the Poor and Needy," a version of "A Little Oil in My Lamp," split between Rebel's rough toasts and Little Bimbo's fervid singing, was equally memorable.

Over the next year, the still-maturing singer cut a number of singles for a variety of producers -- King Tubby, Donovan Germain, and Prince/King Jammy amongst them -- before hooking up with Steely & Clevie in 1990. He inked a contract with the production team and recorded an album's worth of songs for them. However, only one, "We Can Be Together," a duet with Chevelle Franklin, was actually released, at least in the singer's lifetime. Discouraged, he returned to Manchester and threw himself into songwriting, often in partnership with an old friend, Anthony "Fire" Rochester.

Nothing Can Divide UsThe intervening period wasn't a total waste as he now had a sheaf of new songs and a new name. Besides the one single, Steely & Clevie had also convinced Little Bimbo to drop his old moniker and take up Garnett Silk instead; the silk, of course, referring to his smooth, silky tones. Another run-in with Tony Rebel brought an introduction to Courtney Cole, owner of the Roof International label. Silk would record a plethora of seminal songs at the producer's Ocho Rios studio, amongst them were the hits "Mama," "Seven Spanish Angels," and a phenomenal cover of the Johnny Nash classic "I Can See Clearly Now," the biggest smash of the group.

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