Eek-A-Mouse
b. Ripton Joseph Hilton, 1957, Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies. One of the most individual talents to emerge from Jamaica, Eek A Mouse's unique phrasing and singing style were to become as instantly recognisable as his 6' 6" frame (Eek A Mouse was the name of a racehorse Hilton frequently lost money on at the races; the one time he refused to back it, the horse duly won). His first two releases, My Father's Land and Creation, he made under his real name in the mid-70s. After spells with the Papa Roots, Black Ark, Gemini, Jah Life, Black Scorpio and Virgo sound systems he began recording with Joe Gibbs in 1980. Once A Virgin, Modelling Queen and Virgin Girl became sizeable hits the following year, by which time he'd joined forces with producer and Volcano sound owner, Henry Junjo Lawes. Utilising the Roots Radics at Channel One with Scientist invariably mixing the final results. Junjo and Linval Thompson coaxed a series of best-selling albums and numerous hit singles from the idiosyncratic DJ throughout the years 1980 to 1984. 
In 1981 following his debut album WA DO DEM, he became the unscheduled star of that year's Reggae Sunsplash. In 1982 singles like Ganja Smuggling, For Hire And Removal and Do You Remember maintained his rocketing profile, as did the album SKIDIP. Terrorists In The City, Anarexol and Operation Eradication—voiced in response to the death of his friend Errol Scorcher—all sold well, and THE MOUSE AND THE MAN and ASSASSINATOR albums (not to mention several appearances on live dancehall albums) quickly followed in 1983, but already there were signs that his distinctive trademark ‘biddy biddy bengs’ were becoming all too familiar. After MOUSEKETEER—last of his albums with Junjo—his popularity began to wane despite the occasional good record and a steady reputation as a performing artist. U-NEEK heralded a comeback in 1991 with tracks produced by Gussie Clarke, Daddy O and Matt Robinson. That year he enjoyed a walk-on part in the movie NEW JACK CITY, and recorded for both Wild Apache and former Channel One engineer, Soljie.