J’can classical singer dies
- Dem 3 Jamaican Tenors’ David Reid passes
DEM 3 JAMAICAN TENORS, a trio of three generations of classically trained Jamaican singers, who thrilled the hearts of many fans in the USA and Jamaica for over a decade, now has to contend with the death of another of its members.
Nonagenarian David Augustus Reid, O.D. died on February 12. Reid’s was the charmed tenor solo voice for Jamaica’s official national events for several decades. A release on Reid’s passing noted that it was his voice that rendered the national anthem of Jamaica for the selection committee in Parliament before it officially became the national anthem.
Reid headlined and featured in recitals and classical concerts for over 70 years, spanning many genres, with Jamaica’s premier choirs and chorales, including the National Chorale of Jamaica, the Operatic Society, the Jamaica Musical Theatre Company, The Diocesan Festival Choir, The Methodist Chorale, and Dem 3 Jamaican Tenors in the diaspora.
Dem 3 Jamaican Tenors brought together three friends - David Reid, Cecil Cooper, and Steve Higgins - all tenors, who started their performing careers in Jamaica. They toured many cities in the USA to critical acclaim until Cecil Cooper’s passing in 2016 and David Reid’s retirement at 88 years old. They sang Broadway standards, ballads, jazz, Jamaican folk music, classical arias, and of course, sacred music. The gentlemen’s act was punctuated with their delightful signature repartee, which left their admiring patrons in stitches.
“Sadly, Cecil Cooper left us just seven years ago, and now, we say goodbye to David Reid. Steve Higgins continues the musical legacy of Dem 3 Jamaican Tenors from his base in Ft Lauderdale Florida, with both Cooper’s and Reid’s blessing. These concerts will be under the Steve Higgins Productions banner in the USA, the UK, Canada, and Europe,” the release noted.
“David was like a father to me and Cecil the brother I never had. This is the end of an era, and I miss them dreadfully,” said Higgins. “Although devastated, it warms my heart that we have audio and video recordings of both David Reid’s and Cecil Cooper’s voices, especially our official Dem 3 Jamaican Tenors CD, which is still available for all to enjoy. It has been an immeasurable honour to have sung and partnered with this pair of world-class troubadours.”