Lord Tanamo

Joseph Abraham Gordon (2 October 1934 – 15 April 2016), better known as Lord Tanamo, was a Jamaican-Canadian singer and songwriter best known for his mento and ska work.

Career

Born in Kingston and raised in Denham Town in the West of the city, Gordon was influenced by Lord Kitchener, who lived in Jamaica in the 1940s. His interest in music began at an early age when he heard a rumba box being played by local musician Cecil Lawes. He went on to perform locally as a teenager, singing calypsos accompanied by Lawes, and began performing in hotels in the early 1950s.

He first recorded for Kingston businessman and sound system operator Stanley Motta, and later recorded with a backing band that included Theophilus Beckford and Ernest Ranglin. His early hits included "Blues Have Got Me Down" (1960) for producer Emil Shallit.

He switched to ska in the early 1960s, and was a founding member of the Skatalites, singing with the band on tracks such as "Come Down" and "I'm in the Mood For Ska". He recorded for Clement Dodd, Duke Reid, and Lindon Pottinger in the 1960s, and had hits with adapted folk songs such as "Iron Bar" and "Matty Rag", and had further hits with songs such as "Ol' Fowl...

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