Jackie Mittoo

Best known for his skills on the keyboards, Jamaican-born Donat Roy "Jackie" Mittoo was one of reggae’s most prolific songwriters, arrangers, and producers. In 1963, he joined forces with the iconic Clement "Coxsone" Dodd to open Kingston’s Studio One, a Jamaican music mecca. As the studio’s musical director, he teamed up with fellow virtuosos Tommy McCook, Lloyd Brevette, Lester Sterling, Lloyd Knibb, Johnny Moore, and Don Drummond to form the archetypal ska band the Skatalites. The group lasted only 14 months but their stamp on the one-drop reggae sound is unparalleled, building the bridge between mento and the roots sound made popular by Bob Marley. Following the Skatalites breakup in 1965, Mittoo began a solo career, recording his own compositions as well as churning out early ‘riddims’ for Studio One versioned by the likes of Freddie McGregor, Marcia Griffith, and Marley.