The Maytals
Arguably the Maytals were only ever kept from becoming ‘international’ artists by the runaway success of Bob Marley And The Wailers in the '70s. Rumour has it that Island Records’ Chris Blackwell only originally signed the Wailers because he was unable to obtain the Maytals’ signatures at the time! Frederick Toots Hibbert, Nathaniel Jerry Matthias/McCarthy and Henry Raleigh Gordon came together in 1962 at the start of Jamaica's ska craze and began recording for Coxsone Dodd's Studio One organisation. Ska vocalists needed to work very hard indeed to make themselves stand out against the heavy, frantic and often overpowering rhythms, and Toots sang himself hoarse in true Baptist preacher style, while Jerry and Raleigh filled in whatever gaps were left to make a solid, impenetrable wall of sound. Subtlety was not their strong point, but the sheer, vibrant joy of all that they were doing is evident in every note. It was not too long before the Maytals were the number one vocal group in Jamaica—a position they would maintain throughout the '60s and on into the '70s. 
They left Coxsone after some massive hits and moved on to his ex-employee and arch-rival Prince Buster, celebrating with the vengeful Broadway Jungle/’Dog War’: ‘We were caught in the jungle …In the hands of a man . . .’ However, their stay with Buster was also short-lived and the Maytals moved on again to Byron Lee's BMN stable. In 1965 they made Jamaican musical history when both sides of Daddy/’It's You’ topped both Jamaican charts, and in 1966 they won the prestigious Jamaican Festival Song Competition with Bam Bam. Many of their releases in these early days were credited to The Vikings or The Flames, for as Toots says: ‘Promoters in Jamaica called us all kinds of different names because they didn't want us to get our royalties’. The future was looking bright for the group, but Toots was imprisoned in late 1966 for possession of ganja (marijuana) and he was not released until 1968. The Maytals began work for Leslie Kong's Beverleys label, and their first release was a huge hit in Jamaica and the UK—54-46 That's My Number featured one of reggae's most enduring bass lines as Toots details his prison experiences in song (54-46 was his prison number). This was the beginning of a hugely successful period—both artistically and financially—for the group, and they recorded many classic records for Beverley's including Do The Reggay one of the first songs ever to use ‘reggae’ in the title, Monkey Man, which actually made the UK charts, and ‘Sweet and Dandy’, which won the Festival Song Competition again for them in 1969. They also appeared in a cameo role in the hugely popular film THE HARDER THEY COME, singing one of their all- time favourites, Pressure Drop. 
Kong's untimely death in 1971 from a heart attack robbed them of their mentor. Many believed that their best work was recorded while at Beverley's; evidence of its popularity was found in the 2-Tone craze in the late '70s when the new bands formed a large part of their repertoire from Toots Hibbert's Beverleys song book. They returned to Byron Lee—now the very successful owner of Dynamic Sounds, a state-of-the-art recording, mastering and record pressing complex. In 1972 the Maytals won the Festival Song Competition yet again with ‘Pomps and Pride’. Through their work with Dynamic they attracted the attention of Chris Blackwell and became Toots And The Maytals. For the first time in 14 years they became widely known outside of reggae circles. Their UK and USA tours were sell outs, and Island Records released what was to be their biggest selling album ever, REGGAE GOT SOUL, which took them into the UK album charts. They made history again in 1980 when, on 29 September, they recorded a live show at London's Hammersmith Palais which was mastered, processed, pressed and in the shops 24 hours later. Few live excursions have been able to capture the feel and spontaneity of this album, which showcases the Maytals at their best : live without any embellishments. By now they had left their Jamaican audiences far behind but their nebulous ‘pop’ audience soon moved on to the next big sensation. While the Maytals continued to tour and make records on into the '90s, real lasting international success always seemed to elude them. Toots dispensed with the services of Jerry & Raleigh for his 1982 tour and has even experimented with non reggae line-ups. It will be interesting to see what direction he will now take to match the myriad achievements of his illustrious past.