Don Drummond

Born in Kingston in 1943 Drummond's music career began early, playing trombone with the Eric Deans All-Stars and various other artists & groups. With the birth of ska Don became one of the original members of the The Skatalites and was a household name in Jamaica. He composed many songs for The Skatalites, two of which made it to the UK top 10 in the mid 1960's (Man In The Street & Guns Of Navarone). With over 200 songs under his belt he was considered the busiest man in ska music. Drummond was plagued by mental problems but kept going strong with his music until he was convicted of murdering his 23 year old girlfriend Anita Mahfood in 1965. He was sent to Belle Vue Asylum where he died in 1969 with suicide being the official cause. Many conspiracies surround Drummonds death, including a theory that he was beaten to death by guards working for an anti-rasta government. Another theory involves gangsters who were involved with Mahfood's father. Drummond's legacy lives on as being the godfather of Jamaican ska.