Tenor Saw

Latest Release

Essential Albums

Artist Playlists

Compilations

About Tenor Saw

One of the most important figures in early ragga and dancehall, Tenor Saw (born Clive Bright, 1966, Kingston, Jamaica) is best-known for his 1985 hit "Ring the Alarm," a song based on the then-ubiquitous "Stalag 17" rhythm which proved to be one of the biggest -- and catchiest -- hits to come out of reggae's transition into the electronic age. Tenor Saw followed it up with Fever, an LP that -- while it didn't contain his signature song -- proved to be a minor classic of early dancehall, full of simple, catchy melodies, synthesized rhythm-section parts, and Tenor Saw's floating vocals. (The CD reissue of Fever also appended dub versions of most of the original tracks.) With such a promising start to his career, it seemed Tenor Saw would be around for quite a long time; sadly, his life was cut short in August 1988, when he was hit by a car in Houston, TX, and killed. The album Wake the Town was released posthumously in 1992. ~ Steve Huey

HOMETOWN
Jamaica
BORN
1966
GENRE
Reggae

Select a country or region

Africa, Middle East, and India

Asia Pacific

Europe

Latin America and the Caribbean

The United States and Canada