Don Drummond

Don Drummond
Background information
Born	March 12, 1932(1932-03-12) Kingston, Jamaica
Died	May 6, 1969(1969-05-06) (aged 37) Kingston, Jamaica
Genres	Reggae
Instruments	Trombone
Years active	1950–1965
Associated acts	The Skatalites

Don Drummond (March 12, 1932^[1][2][3] – May 6, 1969) was a Jamaican ska trombonist and composer. He was one of the original members of The Skatalites, and composed many of their tunes.

Drummond was born at the Jubilee Hospital in Kingston, Jamaica to Doris Monroe and Uriah Drummond.^[2] He was educated at Kingston's Alpha Boys School, where he later taught his younger schoolmate Rico Rodriguez to play the trombone.^[4]

His musical career began in 1950 with the Eric Dean's All-Stars.^[1] He continued into the 1960s with others, including Kenny Williams.

With the birth of ska Don joined The Skatalites. With Drummond's politiczed conversion to the Rastafari movement, other band members followed his lead.^[5] He became a household name in Jamaica, before suffering mental problems. He was rated by pianist George Shearing to be amongst the world's top five trombone players.

In 1965 he was convicted of the murder of his longtime girlfriend, Anita "Marguerita" Mahfood, an exotic rhumba dancer and singer, on January 1, 1965. He was imprisoned at Belle Vue Asylum, Kingston where he remained until his death four years later. The official cause of death was "natural causes", possibly heart failure caused by malnutrition or improper medication,^[2] but other theories were put forward; some of his colleagues believed it was a government plot against the Kingston musical scene, and some believed that he was killed by gangsters as revenge for the murder of Mahfood.^[6]

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Walker, Klive (2005). Dubwise: reasoning from the reggae underground. Insomniac Press. ISBN 1894663969.  (online at Google Book Search)
2. ^ ^{a b c} Cane-Honeysett, L: Don Drummond Memorial Album, liner notes. Trojan, 2009.
3. ^ Other sources like Larkin, Colin (2005): The Virgin encyclopedia of reggae. Virgin. ISBN 0753502429 or Gary Lewis on studiowon.com state his year of birth as 1943.
4. ^ Allmusic.com biography for Rico Rodriguez
5. ^ Porter, Darwin & Danforth Prince (2006). Frommer's Jamaica, Edition 4 (Illustrated). London: Frommer's. p. 262. ISBN 0471946141, ISBN 9780471946144.
6. ^ Timm, Bob (22 August 1997). "Was Don Drummond Murdered?". about.com. Archived from the original on 28 April 2005. http://web.archive.org/web/20050428015640/http://ska.miningco.com/library/weekly/aa082297.htm. Retrieved 12 March 2010. 

External links

• Don Drummond at Allmusic
• Don Drummond discography at Discogs
• Short Don Drummond Biography
• Short biography at allaboutjazz.com
• Beyond The Mic: Don Drummond Remembered
• Splash and Ripple from Green Island: The Musical Legacy of Don Drummond

Persondata
Name	Drummond, Don
Alternative names
Short description	Jamaican ska trombonist and composer
Date of birth	March 12, 1932
Place of birth	Kingston, Jamaica
Date of death	May 6, 1969
Place of death	Kingston, Jamaica