Biography
Born in Kingston, Jamaica, in 1954, Bennett launched her musical journey performing in nightclubs. Geoffrey Chung, ahead of his direct work promoting Sharon Forrester, urged her to pursue recordings. Moved by her set at the Epiphany nightclub, the pair cut a version of “Morning Has Broken.” Although the single made little impact, it caught the ear of producer Harry J., who in 1972 asked Chung to oversee Bennett’s interpretation of “Breakfast In Bed.” The track quickly dominated airwaves across the West Indies and resonated strongly with listeners in both the United States and the United Kingdom. Issued on the Blue Mountain label, an Island Records affiliate, early pressings paired it with “Remember When” on the b-side, while subsequent editions featured Scotty’s DJ cut “Skank In Bed.” No woman had reached the top of the Jamaican chart in the preceding five years. Her next release, a reading of the Dixie Cups’ “Chapel Of Love,” duplicated that success by also claiming the number-one spot. In 1976 Harry J. placed “Run Johnny” and “Reverend Lee” with Trojan Records, yet neither restored her earlier momentum. Bennett further documented her own song “Other Woman.” Building on the earlier triumph of “Breakfast In Bed,” Harry J. produced Sheila Hylton’s cover, which entered the UK pop chart in 1979. UB40’s 1988 collaboration with Chrissie Hynde on the same composition yielded a Top 10 hit. By then Bennett had exited the music industry to attend university and later established a thriving practice as a lawyer.