Nitty Gritty

Born Glen Augustus Holness in August Town, Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies, in 1957, the singer died on 24 June 1991 in Brooklyn, New York, USA. Computerized rhythms were gaining ground across Jamaica when Nitty Gritty emerged alongside Tenor Saw, King Kong and Anthony Red Rose, whose own vocal approach closely echoed Nitty Gritty’s gospel-tinged wail. The second eldest of eleven children raised by church-going parents, he first qualified as an electrician and then formed the Soulites. In 1973 he contributed to the Joe Gibbs production “Let The Power Fall On I” alongside Dennis Brown, George Nooks and the Mighty Diamonds. His earliest solo effort, “Every Man Is A Seller,” cut for Sugar Minott’s Youth Promotion label, remained unreleased for a decade. After a short stint voicing for Danny Dread on the Zodiac sound system, he laid several tracks at Channel One and cut two more for Derrick “Bubbles” Howard of the African Brothers before aligning with George Phang in 1984. The following year he joined King Jammy, whose first release together, “Hog Inna Minty,” became an immediate hit; further successes followed with “Good Morning Teacher,” “Sweet Reggae Music,” “Run Down The World” and “Gimme Some Of Your Something.” His debut album Turbo Charged appeared in 1986, the same year he shared billing with King Kong on Musical Confrontation. Shortly afterward he settled in New York, where his output grew more diverse through singles for Uptempo, Black Solidarity and Skengdon. General Penitentiary, recorded in 1987 with the Studio One band, restored him to peak form. An album issued by Blacker Dread in 1989 drew on material first voiced during his initial UK visit in 1986, yet his recording activity tapered off thereafter. At the age of thirty-four he was fatally shot outside the Super Power record shop in Brooklyn.