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The Gaylads, Harris 'BB' or 'Bibby' Seaton(BB Seaton) born Kingston 3rd September 1945, Winston Delano Stewart born Kingston 5th January 1947 and Maurice Roberts born Kingston 2nd July 1945, were not only hugely popular but also hugely influential. At times history can be difficult to compile but harder still to comprehend. Many Jamaican artists and musicians somehow seem to have been overlooked in the retrospectively written histories of reggae music. Their greatest popularity occurred before there was any international interest in the music and their names have subsequently been all but forgotten. Only true aficionados and serious musical scholars remain aware of their massive contribution to the development of the music...
"And yet there can be few Jamaican vocal groups for whom the title 'superstars' is more fitting than The Gaylads..." Lol Cane-Honeysett, Trojan Records
In the early sixties Harris Seaton and Winston Stewart cut solo sides for Clement 'Coxsone' Dodd(CS Dodd)'s All Stars, D Darling, Ronaldo & Powie and Worldisc labels and Winston also sang with The Rhythm Aces. Vocal duos such as Higgs & Wilson and Alton & Eddie were the order of the day and in 1962 Delano and BB came together as Winston & Bibby. The following year they were joined by Maurice Roberts and The Gaylads came into being.
The trio was immediately successful but the fast and furious ska beat was not always the best of settings for vocal dexterity and harmonic subtlety. In 1966 the advent of the more measured rock steady beat allowed the trio to really come into their own and they began to record some seriously sophisticated vocal arrangements. Classical rock steady tracks including 'Love Me With All Your Heart', 'Peculiar Man' and 'Red Rose' were all singularly successful and featured on the trio's faultless debut album 'Soul Beat' released in 1967. This was rapidly followed by another long player 'Sunshine Is Golden', a mixture of "folk and calypso", which looked and sounded as if it was aimed at the tourist market with the exception of the remarkable 'Sounds Of Africa'. Also released on a Studio One single and re-titled 'Africa' the record was a rock steady Rastafarian inspired repatriation tour de force long before these themes became "popular or profitable".
"Versatility is quite evident in the Maurice, Harris and Winston combination; their records go big from Folk, Pop to Rock Steady but this again just seems so natural for The Gaylads." Liner notes for 'Soul Beat'
Towards the end of 1967 The Gaylads recorded for Sonia Pottinger's High Note label and 'It's Hard To Confess', released on the Rainbow label, was a major hit later followed by 'ABC Rock Steady', released, appropriately enough, on Gay Feet. 'Joy In The Morning', recorded for WIRL, was another big hit and has subsequently become one of Jamaica's favourite ever songs endlessly played out at revival dances the world over. That same year, in an inspired bid for independence and self determination, The Gaylads came together with fellow artists, Ken Boothe, The Melodians and Delroy Wilson to establish the Links label. A number of superb releases appeared on the label including The Gaylads' 'Looking For A Girl', Ken Boothe's 'Can't You See' and The Melodians' 'It Comes And Goes'.
Delano Stewart now left the trio for a solo career and, over the next couple of years, his work with Mrs Pottinger resulted in a slew of early reggae classics including 'Tell Me Baby', 'That's Life', 'Dance With Me' and the 'Stay A Little Bit Longer' album. Bibby and Maurice recorded for a variety of producers including Lee Perry ('I Wear My Slanders' aka 'If You Don't Mind') and, as 1969 drew to a close, they signed to Leslie Kong's hit making Beverleys label where they joined Jimmy Cliff, Ken Boothe, Desmond Dekker, The Maytals, The Melodians, The Pioneers and Bob Marley & The Wailers. Leslie Kong had established an enviable reputation and The Gaylads now scaled the chart heights on Beverleys with records such as 'There's A Fire', 'My Jamaican Girl' and 'Fire & Rain' which became the title track of their third album. On the majority of these recordings the third vocal part was provided by two temporary members of the group: Howard Barrett or Ricky Grant.
Bibby Seaton also established the Splash label with Lloyd Charmers and the Soul Beat label with Pete Weston of Micron and was playing in his Conscious Minds band. He decided to leave the group and focus on the Soul Beat label. Brothers Randell and Hopeton Thaxter joined Maurice Roberts in The Gaylads. They changed their name, first to The Gayladds then to Psalms, and eventually became regular backing singers for Bunny Wailer. Bibby continued performing and recording both with Conscious Minds and as a solo singer and also became actively involved in working for the protection of the rights of Jamaican musicians.
In 1991 Mr Dodd celebrated thirty five years in the music business with two massive concerts in Kingston and Montego Bay named '1956 to 1991 The Beat Goes On' featuring a stellar line up of artists who had worked at Studio One over the years. The original duo of Bibby Seaton and Delano Stewart reformed for the these historic performances and two years later in November 1993 Maurice Roberts joined them at the Rock Steady Reunion in Kingston... their first time together in nearly a quarter of a century. |
| Oct 22, 2011 (Oct 4, 2017 Update) Text by Harry Hawks
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