Junior Byles Junior Byles
Junior Byles (Kerrie Byles Junior, most known for his 'Fade Away' is a reggae artist born in the poor parts of Kingston, Jamaica 1948. 'Fade Away', with its strong spiritual warnings for materialism and egoism, was recorded in 1975 for producer Joseph Hoo Kim. It was a massive hit in Jamaica and was also a big success in the UK, and was covered five years later by among others Adrian Sherwood's New Age Steppers group and by Salmonella Dub NZ, made a special version of it. By 1975, Byles' health had begun to decline. Suffering from depression, he was deeply affected by the death of Haile Selassie, unable to reconcile this with his belief in Selassie's divinity, and attempted suicide, but survived. He then had a very though life and was living on the street in USA, scavenging for food in dumpsters, and begging from passers-by. Byles occasionally resurfaced, recording albums 1989, and 1992. He returned to live performance in 2004 in Jamaica, receiving positive reviews. His legacy of recordings from the 1970s, however, maintain his status as one of roots reggae's leading talents.