Latest Release
- NOV 21, 2024
- 2 Songs
- Hip Hop Hits of the 90s · 1998
- Wicked Dem a Burn · 1975
- Wicked Dem a Burn · 1973
- The Best of Horace Andy · 2004
- Skylarking - The Best of Horace Andy · 1991
- Skylarking - The Best of Horace Andy · 1996
- Skylarking - The Best of Horace Andy · 1996
- Skylarking - The Best of Horace Andy · 1996
- Wackies Sampler, Vol. 2 · 2005
- In the Light · 1977
Essential Albums
- Listening to Horace Andy is like witnessing the most bittersweet roots-reggae sermon. This collection of the Kingston-raised singer's best songs showcases the undeniable combination of his ethereal voice and soul-satisfying reggae grooves. At times, the vibe dips into a darker zone, as on a haunting cover of Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine" and the foreboding "Riding for a Fall." But salvation arrives through tender moments like the mellifluous "Sea of Love" and the truly romantic "Bless You.”
- Horace Andy has one of those voices you can’t unhear. Produced by Coxsone Dodd at the legendary Studio One, Skylarking—a roundup of Andy’s earliest singles packaged as a debut album—captured a particular strain of early '70s reggae: lovers rock with a touch of roots, smooth and pop-friendly but with an eeriness creeping around the edges. It's a balance embodied in Andy’s high, haunting voice. “Skylarking” is an unquestionable classic, but tracks like “Night Owl” and “See a Man’s Face” are at least as good, braiding mellowness with a simmering intensity in a way few reggae artists captured then or since.
- 2024
Artist Playlists
- A protean, restlessly creative figure in reggae for a half-century.
About Horace Andy
One of the most distinctive singers in reggae, Horace Andy has used his high, keening tenor to capture feelings of mystery and longing. Over his decades-long career, he’s adapted his haunting croon to changing trends in Jamaican music, and in the ’90s he contributed to the rise of UK trip-hop as a frequent collaborator with Bristol group Massive Attack. Andy was born Horace Hinds in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1951. Raised in a sprawling family, he started singing in church and was still a teenager when he signed to Coxsone Dodd’s renowned Studio One label. He took on the surname Andy in part to invite associations with popular singer Bob Andy, but his breakout 1972 album, Skylarking, features his own eerie take on breezy lovers rock. He spent the next decade working with iconic producers like Bunny Lee and Everton Da Silva, and in 1982 he made an early contribution to dancehall with the icy textures and paranoid lyrics of his dubbed-out masterpiece, Dance Hall Style. Andy has stayed busy into the 2020s, working as a touring member of Massive Attack while continuing to release his own solo material (and dub versions thereof).
- HOMETOWN
- Kingston, Jamaica
- BORN
- February 19, 1951
- GENRE
- Reggae