East of Suez

Say the name Dandy Livingstone to most American reggae fans and they'll draw a blank, but in the U.K. he remains a revered figure, and one of the most influential. Born in Jamaica, but relocating to the U.K. in the late '50s at age 15, Livingstone cut his first single in 1963 while still at college, and over the next decade defined the U.K.'s reggae sound both as a singer and producer. On some levels he was Britain's answer to Prince Buster; both were fine singers and an even more gifted producers with their own distinctive sounds. While Buster famously melded the military tattoos that entranced him as a child to the music he loved, Livingstone blended the myriad styles of music he adored – Jamaican, American, and British – then decanted them over the grooves.