Ska and Reggae Pioneer Johnny Moore Dies at 70

Trumpeter Johnny "Dizzy" Moore, a  founding member of legendary Jamaican ska and reggae band The Skatalites, died August 16 of cancer. He was 70.

Johnny Moore founded The Skatalites in 1964 together with Tommy McCook, Roland Alphonso and Drummond, who were some of Jamaica’s  finest session musicians, The Skatalites’ unique fusion of boogie-woogie, R&B, Jazz, mento, calypso and African rhythms introduced the world to ska, which in turn evolved into today’s modern reggae sound. The original group broke up in 1965 after a short eighteen months of existence, leaving its members to pursue solo careers for a number of years.

Moore lived in the United States during the 1970s. In the early 1980s he returned to Jamaica. Before retiring due to health problems, he toured with abroad with reggae musician Bunny Wailer.