Long before Marley brought reggae to the world, the Jolly Boys were making mento melodies in Port Antonio.

And though the former has become synonymous with Jamaica, mento — rife with African-derived rhythms, folklore and poignant puns — was the first indigenous sound, informing its successors to this very day.

The Jolly Boys, a rough-and-tumble band of brothers now led by frontman Albert Minott, have been performing in their native parish of Portland for nearly 60 years and have seen several cycles of band members.

Notwithstanding, they represent the journey of Jamaican music.

Back when ‘Portie’ was idyllic and celebrities (from Fleming to Flynn) would frequent, the Jolly Boys were a staple… the best tunes the countryside could offer.

Mento, the music of rum bars, has since been reawakened in the recording studio, thanks largely to the efforts of ace producer Jon Baker and his Gee Street label, along with his creative partner Mark Jones and co-producer/drummer Dale Virgo.

Eschew all thoughts of mento being relegated to hotel lobbies and poolside alfresco dinners; Baker has introduced a new twist to an old sound.

No floral shirts or straw hats here, only smartly attired seniors striking it cool — raspy vocals, superb showmanship, charisma for miles and unadulterated talent that’s right up there with that of the young’uns.

The Jolly Boys are the real deal.

“There hasn’t been an act out of Jamaica that is so endearing since Sean Paul,” Baker says in reference to the band and the completion of their first UK festival tour this summer. “They’re appealing to mainstream audiences… not just those Europeans who favour reggae.”

And though reggae acts like Toots, Shaggy and Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry have dabbled in mento, the Jolly Boys are arguably the first to embrace the genre in an international context.

“The emergence of ska, rocksteady and reggae was so huge in the 1950s and ’60s,” Baker tells SO, “…they were such powerful forces that they dwarfed everything else.”

He believes the story of the Jolly Boys represents an epoch of Jamaican culture, which mustn’t be ignored.

“Mento epitomises the island’s journey, from slavery to independence,” Baker adds.

The journey has somewhat come full circle, manifesting itself in an ambitious project, Great Expectation — the 13-track album set for a September 13th release in the UK with subsequent dates planned for other markets.

“The Jolly Boys are in a way ambassadors of Jamaican culture, pretty much in the same way as Usain Bolt,” Baker adds.

Baker dubs the sound “modern mento” and describes it as a “fusion of new and old”.

Interpret ‘old’ to mean island jams full of wit and double entendre like Emmanuel Road, Linstead Market (Carry Mi Ackee) and Iron Bar, while ‘new’ perhaps refers to the introduction of classics from the Clash, the Stranglers and the band’s reimaging of British singer-cum-Geejam habituée Amy Winehouse’s breakout hit Rehab.

“I’m flattered that Rehab is now part of Jamaican heritage. The Jolly Boys are part of that heritage. If it was good enough for Errol Flynn, it’s good enough for me,” Winehouse is quoted as saying.

There’s even an accompanying music video, which is gaining steady airplay on local networks and enjoys nearly 40,000 hits on YouTube. And Lady Luck is still smiling with the boys as they are set to perform on popular UK morning show Breakfast TV three days before their album hits stores.

“People are tired of the beat-driven syndrome that often plagues reggae,” Baker observes. “They crave entertainment and that’s what the boys bring.”

Their brand of entertainment is an easy blending of acoustics: guitars, banjo, maracas, marumba box and bamboo sax foiled with Minott’s infectious performing style (honed since his days as a fire dancer and coin-diver at the marina).

Baker is confident that plucking the genre from relative obscurity and offering the boys an international platform is working out for the best.

“People absolutely love Albert, he’s something else,” he shares with SO. “I’m determined to see the music restored to its rightful place.”