February 1 marks the beginning of Reggae Month in Jamaica. It is also the birthday of Dennis Brown, the crown prince of reggae, who was born in 1957.

The gifted singer, who died on July 1 1999 at age 42, recorded countless songs during his 31-year career.

Many of those were hit singles for producers like Derrick Harriott, Clement “Coxson” Dodd, Lloyd “Matador” Daley, Winston “Niney” Holness, Joe Gibbs, Sly and Robbie, Willie Lindo and Gussie Clarke.

Here is a look at some of Dennis Brown’s finest moments with these producers.

Derrick Harriott: 

Derrick Harriott was the first producer to record the crown prince in 1968, with Lips of Wine, the singer’s first hit, released that year. In the early 1970s, Brown recorded Super Reggae & Soul Hits, a memorable album for Harriott’s Crystal Records label that includes songs like Concentration, as well as covers of Glen Campbell’s Wichita Lineman, and The Rays’ Silhouettes. He was backed on this album by The Now Generation Band.

Clement Dodd:

Brown’s next stop was the famed Studio One where he recorded two albums for Dodd — No Man is An Island and If I Follow my Heart. The title tracks of both albums were major hits, along with Little Green Apples, Make it Easy on Yourself and Perhaps.

Lloyd “Matador” Daley:

An electrical engineer by profession, the Matador produced some solid roots tunes by the prince like Baby Don’t do It, Things in Life and Repatriation.

Niney Holness:

Dennis Brown considered Niney the best producer he worked with. Under his guidance, he recorded some of his most potent songs including Westbound Train, Cassandra, No More Shall I Roam, Africa, So Long Rastafari and Wolves And Leopards.

Joe Gibbs:

Proved to be Brown’s most productive partnership, his tandem with Gibbs was flush with hits such as How Could I Leave, Ain’t That Loving You, Should I, Ghetto Girl, Love Has Found Its Way and Money in My Pocket. The latter was a smash in the United Kingdom where it peaked at number 14 on the national chart in 1979. Gibbs produced some of Brown’s finest albums including Visions of Dennis Brown, Words of Wisdom, Foul Play and Love Has Found Its Way.

Sly and Robbie:

The Riddim Twins linked with Brown in the early 1980s and recorded some of his grooviest songs for their Taxi label. These include Have You Ever (Been in Love), Sitting And Watching and Revolution.

Willie Lindo:

Lindo produced Inseparable, arguably Brown’s finest album. It contains the smooth title track, Since I’ve Been Loving You, Early In The Morning, For You and Abbaba Jan Hoi.

Gussie Clarke:

Clarke also got the best out of Brown. Take a listen to songs like To The Foundation, Funny Feeling, Ragamuffin (with Freddie McGregor) and Big All Around (with Gregory Isaacs).

DEB:

DEB was a short-lived label Dennis Brown operated in the late 1970s, producing artistes such as Junior Delgado, Errol Dunkley, Dillinger and Trinity. It also released self-produced tracks like I Don’t Want to Be No General and Children of Israel.