Joe Higgs Birthday Tribute Set for St Andrew Park

A birthday tribute for Joe Higgs will be held today at St Andrew Park, recognising his work as both a performer and a guide to younger Jamaican talent. The programme, titled “Joe Higgs: The Father of Reggae”, marks the date on which the late musician would have turned 86.

Born Joseph “Joe” Benjamin Higgs, the Trench Town figure helped shape the paths of The Wailers and Jimmy Cliff before his death in California in 1999 at 59. His family is presenting the event with support from veteran guitarist Earl “Chinna” Smith, whose Inna De Yard band is among the performers listed for the show.

Sangie Davis, Marlon Brown, Kai Wakeling and Narado Williams are also down to honour Higgs. He first gained wide attention in the early 1960s through Higgs and Wilson, the duo he formed with Roy Wilson.

Higgs and Wilson scored a major 1960 success with “Oh Manny Oh”, produced by Edward Seaga before Seaga later became Jamaica’s prime minister. The pair also recorded “There’s A Reward”, written by Higgs, which went on to be closely identified with him. Wilson died in Florida in 2012.

During the 1970s, Higgs went on tour with Jimmy Cliff and The Wailers. He later moved to Southern California in the 1980s, where he became an important voice in the area’s expanding reggae scene. Stephen-Rhae Johnson portrays Higgs in “Bob Marley: One Love”, the 2024 Paramount Pictures film on the reggae icon.