Desmond Dekker
Before Bob Marley became reggae’s global symbol, Desmond Dekker put a homegrown Jamaican record at No. 1 in Britain. “007” narrated rude-boy Kingston; “Israelites” made the world listen.
Desmond Dekker developed his career with producer Leslie Kong and became one of Jamaica’s most important early international voices. “007 (Shanty Town)” carried the rude-boy world of post-independence Kingston into the British charts in 1967. “Israelites,” recorded with The Aces, went further: No. 1 in Britain in 1969 and a US top-ten hit. Dekker’s success matters because it predates reggae’s 1970s global industry. His high, unmistakable voice and concise story songs proved that Jamaican records made in Jamaica could cross the Atlantic on their own terms. He later remained especially important to British ska and reggae audiences until his death in 2006.