Barrington Levy is a dancehall/reggae singer from Jamaica was 60 last week.

He began in 1976 when he formed a band called the Mighty Multitude with his cousin Everton Dacres. The pairing only lasted a year with Levy embarking on a solo career the following year and his first release was A Long Time Since We Don’t Have No Love.

His fame in Jamaica was immense and in the early/mid 80s he had released a few albums followed by a stack of singles and in 1985, his album and single, both called Here I Come, won him the Best Vocalist award at the British Reggae Awards. That song became his only UK hit just missing the top 40 by one place.

In the late 90s, he recorded some songs in collaboration with Bounty Killer and Snoop Dogg and in the 21st century he continues to perform live as well as releasing albums. In 2016, his album Acousticalevy was nominated for a Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album.

In 2021, the Gorillaz released the Meanwhile EP as a celebration of London’s Notting Hill Carnival, it also served as a tribute because the carnival was cancelled that year due to the pandemic. The lead title track featured both Jelani Blackman and Barrington Levy.

Let’s remember his only UK hit from 1985.