The Cimarons are a British reggae band formed in 1967. They were the UK's first self-contained indigenous reggae band.^[1][2]

History

Jamaican natives, The Cimarons, emigrated to London as teenagers and met at the Tavistock Youth and Community Centre in Harlesden, North London in 1967. With a lineup consisting of Franklyn Dunn (bass), Carl Levy (keyboards), Locksley Gichie (lead guitar), Maurice Ellis (drums) and vocalist Carl Lewis. Vocalist, Winston Reid (better known as Winston Reedy) joined in 1973. They were primarily session musicians at Trojan Records, and backed many artists, including Jimmy Cliff and Dennis Brown. They performed at the Edinburgh Reggae Festival in 1973, where they also backed Nicky Thomas's performance of "Is It Because I'm Black". They appeared on Top of the Pops in multiple performances including with Ken Boothe in 1974. They were studio musicians and producers on Boothe’s Everything I Own LP on certain tracks.

Their first LP In Time, on Trojan Records in 1974 featured a rendition of the O'Jays' "Ship Ahoy", "Utopian Feeling", "Over the Rainbow," and "My Blue Heaven". Vulcan Records released their second LP On the Rock two years later which was recorded both in Jamaica at Lee “Scratch” Perry’s Black Ark Studio, Channel One Studios and Randy’s recording studio and in England at London’s Chalk Farm Studios. The LP included a cover of Bob Marley's "Talking Blues" which charted in Jamaica at the number 1 spot for several weeks where it was released on Tommy Cowan's Talent Corp label. The album also featured a tribute to Paul Bogle, the leader of the 1865 Morant Bay Rebellion who was made a National Hero by the Jamaican government in 1969.

They switched to Polydor Records, releasing Live at the Roundhouse in 1978. Polydor released Maka the same year. During this period, they did a major British tour supporting Sham 69.Three more albums followed: Freedom Street, Reggaebility and On the Rock Part 2. After the last of these, in 1983, they didn't surface again until 1995 when Lagoon Records released People Say and Reggae Time, both compilations of earlier albums, followed by The Best of the Cimarons, released in 1999 on Culture Press.

Gichie and Dunn continue to perform as The Cimarons.

Discography

Albums

• In Time (1974) Trojan
• On the Rock (1976) Vulcan
• Maka (1978) Polydor
• Live (1978) Polydor^[3]
• Freedom Street (1980) Virgin
• Reggaebility (1982) Hallmark
• On De Rock Part 2 (1983) Butt (recorded 1976)

Compilations

• People Say (1991) Lagoon (recorded 1974-76)
• Reggae Time Lagoon
• The Best of the Cimarons (1992) Culture Press
• Maroon Land (2001) Rhino
• Reggae Best (2004) Culture Press
• Reggae Masters (2007) Creon

Singles

• "Funky Fight" (1970) Big Shot
• "Oh Mammy Blue" (1971) Downtown
• "Holy Christmas" (1971) Downtown
• "Struggling Man" (1972) Horse (split 7-inch with The Prophets)
• "Snoopy vs. the Red Baron" (1973) Mooncrest (as Hotshots) UK #4
• "Talking Blues" (#1 in Jamaica)^[2]
• "Check Out Yourself" Trojan
• "You Can Get It If You Really Want" (1974) Trojan
• "Dim the Light" (1976) Trojan
• "Over the Rainbow" Trojan
• "Harder Than the Rock" (1978) Polydor^[4]
• "Mother Earth" (1978) Polydor^[5]
• "Willin' (Rock Against Racism)"/"Truly" (1978) Polydor^[6]
• "Ready for Love" (1981) Charisma
• "With a Little Luck" (1982) IMP
• "Big Girls Don't Cry" (1982) Safari
• "How Can I Prove Myself to You" (1982)
• "Be My Guest Tonight" (1995)
• "Time Passage" Fontana

The Cimarons also backed several singers on Trojan singles, often credited on the B-side with an instrumental version of the A-side.