Lloyd Coxsone | |
|---|---|
| Birth name | Lloyd Blackford |
| Born | c.1945 |
| Origin | Morant Bay,Jamaica |
| Genres | Reggae dub |
| Occupation(s) | Record producer, Sound system operator |
| Years active | 1960s-Present day |
| Labels | Safari, Tribesman, Outernational |
Lloyd Coxsone (bornLloyd Blackford, c. 1945) is aJamaican-bornsound system operator andrecord producer, who has been resident in theUnited Kingdom since 1962.
Blackford was born inMorant Bay, Jamaica, c.1945, and moved toWandsworth, London in 1962.[1][2][3] With his surname borrowed from one of Jamaica's leading sound system operators and producers,Clement "Coxsone" Dodd, Blackford operated his own Coxsone Sound system in London from 1965 through to the 1980s, gaining a residency in the 1970s at the Roaring Twenties club inCarnaby Street.[1][2]
In the early 1970s he began working as a producer, having success with one of the earlylovers rock hits,Louisa Mark's "Caught You in a Lie";[2] Coxsone is credited with paving the way for lovers rock by incorporatingsoul records into his sound system sets.[4] In the mid- and late-1970s he launched his own Safari, Tribesman and Outernational labels.[2] Among his best-known works as a producer are twodub albums released in 1975 and 1982 -King of the Dub Rock andKing of the Dub Rock part 2.[5] These mixed his own productions featuring musicians such asMatumbi with rhythms produced in Jamaica byGussie Clarke, with the second album also featuring mixes byScientist.[5] His other productions included the debut single byLevi Roots.[6] In the mid-1980s, Coxsone took a back seat with his sound system, allowing younger men such asBlacker Dread to take a leading role.[1]
Coxsone went into semi-retirement in the late 1980s, but later returned to the sound system circuit with his Sir Coxsone the Outernational system.[3][7] He was paid tribute byI-Roy on the single "Lloyd Coxsone Time".[3]
