Born in Kingston Jamaica Desmond Dekker was one of the original "rude boys"

He was the king of ska in his home country before conquering the world in 1969 with his No 1 hit 'The Israelites." His success was the start of a Caribbean invasion which enriched our shores with an exciting new music style

 

He was the governor for any young skinheads and many a time at "The California Ballroom"

we saw him perform 'You Get It" "OO7" Tougher Than  Tough"" It Mek" and many more.

 

Not always understanding the lyrics in those days  we would be captured by the pulsating Reggae beat that only Desmond Dekker had.

 

Desmond continued to write and perform all over the world until the very end.

 

I had the pleasure of booking Desmond for the christmas Cali-r in 2002.

He came across as a very quiet man whose whole life was music. His long time friend, and singer, Delroy Williams, told me that they had just flown in from Germany to do the show.

When Desmond Dekker hit the stage,his shyness evaporated,

He kept the Cali crowd, moving constantly for an hour and a half before leaving after 2 encores.

 

I booked Desmond for the Luton Carnival in 2003 and the crowds flocked to witness his unique style of Reggae and Ska. On May 25th 2006 Desmond suffered a fatal heart attack at his Surrey home

Desmond Dekker was a legend in his own time and now becomes one of the Gods of Reggae music.

 

Eternal peace and love to you Desmond from everyone at the Cali-r.