Sly Dunbar, legendary reggae drummer who anchored tracks from Bob Marley to Bob Dylan, dies as 73

"Two-time Grammy Award-winning reggae drummer Sly Dunbar, who fueled countless tracks from Bob Marley to Bob Dylan and was one-half of the influential reggae rhythm section Sly & Robbie, has died. He was 73. Dunbar's wife, Thelma, announced the death to the Jamaica Gleaner. Dunbar and bassist Robbie Shakespeare Sly & Robbie, also known as The Riddim Twins played on reggae classics by Black Uhuru, Jimmy Cliff and Peter Tosh and would garner attention far from Jamaica, from the likes of Grace Jones and the Rolling Stones."

"Sly & Robbie played on three of Jones' albums Warm Leatherette, Nightclubbing and Living My Life as well as four albums by Serge Gainsbourg and three by Dylan, 1983's Infidels, 1985's Empire Burlesque and 1988's Down in the Groove. Words cannot describe how heartbroken I am to hear of the passing of my friend and legend, singer Ali Campbell of UB40 posted on Facebook."

"Modern day beats simply wouldn't be what they are without the influence of reggae and dancehall riddims that Sly single-handedly pioneered. Sly & Robbie were undisputed masters of the art, bringing a nuanced, unhurried and rock-solid rhythmic approach, Rolling Stone magazine wrote in tribute. Shakespeare died in 2021. Dunbar played with the Revolutionaries, the house band for Jamaica's Channel One studio, while also touring, and played on Junior Murvin's Police and Thieves, Maxi Priest's Easy to Love, Dave and Ansell Collins' classic Double Barrel and Marley's Punky Reggae Party."

Sly Dunbar, two-time Grammy-winning reggae drummer, died at 73; his wife Thelma announced the death. He formed the influential rhythm section Sly & Robbie with bassist Robbie Shakespeare and played on classics by Black Uhuru, Jimmy Cliff, Peter Tosh and Bob Marley, as well as recordings by Grace Jones, Serge Gainsbourg and Bob Dylan. Dunbar toured, performed with the Revolutionaries at Channel One and played on notable tracks including Junior Murvin's "Police and Thieves" and Dave and Ansell Collins' "Double Barrel." He earned 13 Grammy nominations with two wins and co-founded Taxi Records in 1980.

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