Albert Griffiths
Albert Griffiths, frontman of the reggae band The Gladiators, died on Tuesday evening in Aberdeen, St Elizabeth. He was 74 years old.
His son Anthony confirmed Griffiths death to
Loop News. He had been diagnosed with Parkinson s disease over 10 years ago and stopped touring with The Gladiators since.
Cabel Stephenson, who managed the Gladiators between 1994 to 2004, said: The Gladiators was one of the first groups in reggae to enter the international global space and Albert was breaking language barriers and championing reggae music from the 1970s. He gave us one of Jamaica s biggest number one songs, Hello Carol . He was a great person, he played the bass but he was known as a brilliant rhythm guitarist who played on many hit songs at Studio One.
Pioneering reggae singer and musician Albert Griffiths of roots band The Gladiators has died, his former manager, Cabel ‘Jeffrey’ Stephenson, told
The Gleaner. Griffiths, who had been ailing for some time, passed away on Wednesday morning at his home in St Elizabeth. Born on New Year’s Day, Griffiths was two weeks shy of his 75th birthday.
“Albert stopped touring about 14 years owing to illness and has been at his home in Aberdeen, where he was being cared for very well,” Stephenson said of the vocalist, who recorded blockbuster hit Hello Carol in the late sixties. “It is sad that an entire era of singers is passing away. The Gladiators were one of the first acts signed to Virgin Records and took their career on an international level.”