Jamaican Ska Legend Dies, Aged 80

Lloyd Brevett, co-founder of influential ska band The Skatalites, has died aged 80 after being treated for a stroke and seizures.

He played upright bass for the band, whose original line-up only lasted for 18 months between 1963 and 1965. During that time tracks like Guns of Navarone and Eastern Standard Time are credited with making the genre popular.

Billboard reports that he passed away at Andrews Memorial Hospital in St. Andrew, Jamaica, where he was being treated.

He was taught bass by his father, David, who built the instruments himself. Emerging into the 'Godfather' of Jamaican bass players he was awarded Jamaica's fifth highest honour, the Order Of Distinction, in a career that was littered with accolades.

Earlier this year his son Okeene Brevett was shot dead after returning home from accepting an award from the Jamaica Recording Industry Association on behalf of his father. It is believed his health had deteriorated since then.

 Watch him talk about ska during an interview for a documentary on reggae below: