July 11, 1947 – October 19, 2014
John Kenneth Holt CD was born in Greenwich Farm in Kingston. At age 12 he was a regular entrant in local talent contests, winning at least 28 of them. In 1965 John helped to create a group called the Paragons. He worked with all the great producers of that era including Coxsone Dodd, Duke Reid, Bunny Lee, Harry J and Jungo Laws. He was fortunate that no matter who he worked with, the hits just kept coming.
No one can argue that John was indeed on of Jamaica’s prolific hit-makers. “Ali-Baba”, “Stick by Me”, “Ok Fred”…just to name a few. By the early 1970s John was one of the biggest stars of Reggae, and his work with Producer Bunny Lee was key to his success.
The voice of John Holt was iconic and uniquely recognizable, which led to him being dubbed, “10,000 volts of Holt”. The government of Jamaica honoured him with a Distinction Commander Class. He remains one of Jamaica’s most successful artistes and certainly a home favourite. His catalogue consists of over 50 albums, and is a must-have for music lovers worldwide.
Hits include:
- “Fattie Fattie”
- “A Love I Can Feel”
- “Police in Helicopter”
- “The Tide is High”
- “Stick By Me”
- “If I were A Carpenter”
- “Sweetie Come Brush Me”
…and many many more