Junior Murvin

Junior Murvin’s yearning falsetto lent a world-weary gravitas to roots reggae classics like “Police & Thieves”, a 1976 lament about police violence that became an international hit when it was covered by The Clash a year later. Murvin was born in the ’40s (the exact year differs between sources) and grew up in Port Antonio, Jamaica. He got his first taste of music as a child by helping operate the pipe organ at his great-grandmother’s Methodist church, and soon he became enamoured with soul stars like Sam Cooke and Curtis Mayfield—the latter of whom had a big impact on Murvin’s own angelic croon. Moving to Kingston in the late ’60s, he performed with The Hippy Boys and saw other modest successes. But his big break finally came when Lee “Scratch” Perry produced his debut solo album, Police & Thieves. The album was released on Island Records in the UK, and the title track’s evocative imagery and spare riddim (courtesy of drummer Sly Dunbar) helped make it a soundtrack for the dispossessed. Murvin continued releasing albums intermittently throughout the ’80s and ’90s, his breathy vocals always full of wisdom and feeling. He died in 2013 after struggles with diabetes and hypertension.