The Uniques (Jamaican group)

The Uniques were a Jamaican ska, rocksteady and reggae vocal group active formed in 1966 and active with varying line-ups until the late 1970s.

The Uniques originally formed as a vocal harmony trio of Roy Shirley, Slim Smith, and Franklyn White,Larkin, Colin: "The Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae", 1998, Virgin Books, ISBN 0-7535-0242-9] (the latter two from The Techniques [http://www.pressure.co.uk/item/PS21/ The Pressure Sounds Website | The Uniques — Watch This Sound ] ] ) releasing a few singles in 1966. The group then disbanded, until late 1967 when Smith formed a new version of the group with Jimmy Riley and Lloyd Charmers. The new line-up debuted with "Watch This Sound", a cover version of Stephen Stills' "For What It's Worth", which was a hit along with a string of subsequent singles, many produced by Bunny Lee,Barrow, Steve & Dalton, Peter: "Reggae: The Rough Guide", 1997, Rough Guides, ISBN 1-85828-247-0] including "My Conversation", which Lee sold to Rupie Edwards, who used the rhythm to create the first one-rhythm album, "Yamaha Skank". The group's debut album release, "Absolutely The Uniques" was released by Trojan Records in 1969, although they broke up in the same year.

Bunny Lee issued a showcase album in the 1970s, and the group name was briefly revived by Riley and Cornell Campbell in 1977 for the album "Give Thanks", and again in 1997 with Al Campbell joining Cornell and Riley on the album "The Uniques".

Album discography

*"Absolutely The Uniques" (1969) Trojan
*"Showcase vol. 1" (1978) Third World/Jackpot
*"Give Thanks" (1979) Plant (recorded 1977)
*"The Best of The Uniques" (1994) Trojan
*"Watch This Sound" (1998) Pressure Sounds
*"The Uniques" (1999) Charm

References