A tribute fit for a King
Long before artistes like Black Uhuru, Junior Reid and Wayne “Sleng Teng” Smith helped put Waterhouse on the music map, there was osbourne “King Tubby” Ruddock, a downto-earth sound engineer who operated a recording studio at Drumalie Avenue in the community.
Tubby, 48, was murdered in February 1989 at his home in Duhaney Park. A pioneer of dub and sound effects, his feats are legendary and remain the yardstick for engineers.
On March 27, his former business manager Paul Scott spearheads Sound System Club Presents — Firehouse Crew and Friends Tribute to King Tubby 31 Years
Since his Passing, a virtual show that will be streamed live from the King Jammy’s studio in Waterhouse.
“This event is very important to me (and) close to my heart. I was the managing director of King Tubby’s Music Ltd and had a very good working relationship with King Tubby. He was such a great and humble man. A very good boss, one of the best I have ever worked for,” said Scott who lives in London.
The show will also feature The Firehouse Crew, a talented band which started their career with King
Tubby before finding fame at producer Phillip “Fatis” Burrell’s Xterminator label in the 1990s; singer Anthony Redrose, another Tubby protégé; saxophonist Dean Frasier; singers Courtney Melody, Thriller U, Duane Stephenson and Miriam Simone from Suriname.
Lloyd “King Jammy’s” James, the outstanding engineer/producer whose famed studio will host the event, will be special guest with his sound system. James first met Tubby as an 11 year-old when he moved to Waterhouse in the 1950s from Montego Bay; he learned the rudiments of engineering from him and in the 1970s was his in-house engineer.
“Well, Tubby was a genius…a self-taught genius. He loved to create new sounds an’ was jus’ exceptional at what he did,” James told the Jamaica observer.
One of the things King Tubby did was create amplifiers that enhanced the force of sound systems during the early 1960s when music producers began noticing his skills. Late that decade, he worked as an engineer at producer Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle studio, but by the early 1970s had established his own studio in Waterhouse.
Using innovative techniques, he perfected dub and Disco mix, sonic instrumental versions to hit songs for producers like Bunny Lee, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Glen Brown and Michael “Mikey Dread” Campbell. Dub is considered a forerunner to the remix which is an integral part of contemporary music.
Tubby’s patented feel on songs like King Tubby’s Meets The Rockers Uptown (Augustus Pablo) and Merry Up (Glen Brown) earned him international acclaim.
In 1979, he stepped into production with Horace Andy’s anti-violence song Pure Ranking. Six years later, he embraced the digital revolution with Tempo, Redrose’s breakthrough song.
Scott says the upcoming show is the first of an annual tribute to King Tubby. It will also be used to lobby the Jamaican Government to recognise him with a national award, a gesture James believes should have been made long ago.
James, who helped transform dancehall during the 1980s with digital productions like the Sleng Teng rhythm, said Osbourne
“King Tubby” Ruddock’s legacy transcends engineering.
“His greatest contribution is giving young artistes and engineers a chance to excel at his studio. Tubby was never selfish an’ what he did can be seen in the works of di people he helped.”