CARIBBEAN MUSICIAN BYRON LEE DIES AT AGE 73

November 04, 2008

His music has been around for more than five decades and today the music world in the Caribbean and beyond mourns the passing of musical icon Byron Lee. Love news spoke earlier today with Lee’s friend Keith Lyn.

Keith Lyn, Musician

“Well he was ill for quite a few years with cancer, they had removed his bladder completely and then he was wearing a bag and all that. Just over three months, maybe four months they diagnosed bone cancer and so just a week from this Sunday he came home because the doctors couldn’t do any more for him up there in Florida.  He was supposed to go the hospital one night and go home, but they had a presentation to him, the Order of Jamaica while he was in hospital and when he was supposed to leave he couldn’t because he was in terrific pain and so they had to treat him for the pain in the hospital and they kept him in and that’s where he died. He died today sometime before midday.”

Ava Diaz, Reporter

“Obviously Byron Lee contributed quite a lot to musicians within the region, how do you think he will be remembered?”

Keith Lyn, Musician

“In a lot of ways; for me personally, I was involved for quite a long time, he kind of put me on the map so to speak and selected music for me, I will remember him for that. Musicians all over Jamaica and the Caribbean will remember him for being the pioneer who set the standards for how people treated musicians because they used to treat us like you can’t eat with everybody else, you have to eat outside under the tree, or something like that but he changed all that. He will be remembered in Jamaica for the carnival, for bringing the carnival to Jamaica and a lot of people in the Caribbean will also remember him for taking their music like from Trinidad for instance and bringing that to the Jamaican carnival and all the various presentations as far as presenting a stage show, they will remember him for that. They will remember him for the numerous recordings that the band did, there are too numerous to mention at this time, I don’t even know how many. Most of all he will be remembered as a very shrewd businessman and leader of the band Byron Lee and the Dragonnaires. I am sure he would have like to come back to Belize to visit at least. He leaves a big family behind; he had sons and daughters and grandchildren, his wife Sheila is still around. The boys are more or less running the business for him and have been doing so for a while now and taking care of the band. We are really going to miss his presence here in Jamaica because we kept in touch even though I left the band a long time ago, we kept pretty much in touch for the last couple years, ever since the illness started I spent a lot of time with him. The old boys of St. George’s College which he attended, we presented him as knight of St. George the other day, we are going to miss him greatly.” 

For many years Byron Lee and the Dragonnaires was the major draw of the September celebrations in Belize. Love news spoke with local promoter Sylvanna Woods who worked with Byron lee for over a decade.

Sylvanna Woods, Former Band Promoter

"Byron Lee loved music with a passion, he loved everyplace he performed and I always remember Byron Lee saying “When I die I want to die on this stage at the Civic singing Tiny Winey”. Every time Byron Lee came to Belize he would always hold something for the children because he said the music has to live on and he would always hold a concert for the children. On one of his last visits, when I was involved through Kriol Gial Produckshans he collaborated with the Music Industry Association and they had a great music seminar, in fact I am looking at some of the pictures right now as I re-live great Byron lee moments, mentally and spiritually, where he met with Bredda David, Leela Vernon, Mr. Peters, Lucio, Stone Tree, so many people, Belize Music Agency and they discussed the ins and outs and challenges of being a musician and he shared with them what he went through and shared great tips on how you make or break yourself in the industry, how you align yourself to the product of tourism and the country’s image and so on. On a note from musicians, I know I have heard Lucio from Orange Walk saying how much Byron Lee’s mastery of music and approach to it influenced him, certainly Santino can share that with you too and so many others. On a personal note for myself, I certainly feel like a better person for having worked for about a decade with this great contributor to Caribbean cultural identify because his music transcended instrumentation, his music spoke to what was fundamentally Caribbean and his versions, he always use to apply for the copyright to play other people’s music at times and his version of their music too. I remember when Leela Vernon performed with him at the Biltmore and how spiritual that felt because here was a connection being made. Most of all about Byron Lee what I will remember when Byron Lee in one of his performances said “no we will change that line and say Kriol gial you are the one” I will always remember that. I feel privileged to have met him and to have worked with him and the Caribbean identity is stronger because of Byron lee.”

Byron Lee is survived by his wife Shiela and his five children.

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