Calypsonian, ska and rocksteady artiste Lord Creator has died. He was 87.

“He died at 11am. He hadn’t been feeling well for some time,” Neseline Patrick, Lord Creator’s wife, said.

The artiste, given name Kenrick Patrick, is perhaps best known for the single, Kingston Town, which was covered by the British band UB40 in 1989 and subsequently sold platinum in the UK.

“He had suffered two strokes, the last one in 2005, he had prostate problems, diabetes and high blood pressure, and he also had surgery on his back in 2013. He was walking a bit until 2019 when he stopped walking altogether,” Patrick said.

Lord Creator sired 15 kids, eight of whom are still alive. He had been in a relationship with Neseline for 31 years, 23 of which they were legally married.

“I will miss him,” Patrick said.

Minister of Culture, Gender, Entertainment and Sport, Olivia Grange has said that the singer made a significant contribution to Jamaican music and was popular particularly for his song, Independent Jamaica, which captured Jamaica’s joyous mood when we gained Independence 61 years ago.

“Lord Creator was fittingly awarded National Honours in 2022, the Order of Distinction (Officer Class), for his contribution to the development of Jamaican music,” Minister Grange said.

“We consider it an honour that the Trinidad-born Lord Creator adopted Jamaica where he made what was his biggest hit along with other popular songs such as Evening News and Don’t Stay Out Late,” Grange added.

She expressed her sympathy to Lord Creator’s widow, Neseline, his other family members, relatives and friends.

“His music will live on and Jamaicans will forever thank him for immortalising in song what is our greatest celebration to date, our Independence. Rest in peace, Lord Creator,” Grange said.

Lord Creator, who was born in Trinidad in 1935, migrated to Jamaica in the 1960s after scoring several hits in the twin-island. He started doing ska and rocksteady music and gained national attention after releasing the song Independent, which celebrated Jamaica’s independence from Britain in 1962.

Hailed as one ska’s pioneers, he is also known for hits such as Big Bamboo, Little Princess and Jamaica Farewell. He recorded Kingston Town in 1970 for producer Clancy Eccles. The song was an interpolation of one of his earlier songs, Babylon, which he had composed as a teenager in Trinidad and later recorded for Randys, back in 1963, on a ska beat.

The song would become his biggest hit. He would have celebrated his 88th birthday on August 21 this year.

Claude Mills