In tribute to singer John Holt who died on October 20 in London, England, the Jamaica Observer presents ‘Holt a Day’, a daily feature leading up to his funeral, which is slated for November 15.

BY the 1990s, most of the artistes who made their name in the rocksteady era of the 1960s had either died, called it a day or fallen on hard times.

Thanks to ‘vintage’ shows like Heineken Startime, the genre enjoyed a revival in the 1990s and John Holt was one of the main stars.

In a 1995 interview with Reggae Report magazine, Holt took issue with the term ‘rocksteady renaissance’.

“Rocksteady never went anywhere, yuh still hear it in the clubs, at the dances. It never went anywhere,” he said.

Holt, however, admitted that his frequent appearances on ‘Startime’ opened new doors for him, especially on the United States east coast in and South Florida which have large Jamaican communities.

Demand for Holt continued to grow in the 21st century. He performed regularly in the US, Europe and discovered a fresh fan base in Brazil.

Holt won new fans in Europe by performing on festivals like Reggae Superjam in Germany and Garance in France.

— Howard Campbell