Osbourne 'King Tubby' Ruddock

Did you know this about King Tubby?

• He is often cited as the original inventor of Dub music and is the reason he’s also considered to be the father of “the remix!”

• By the time he was a teenager, he was already part of the Jamaican music scene.

• He started as a radio repairman building amps and radio transmitters. These were used by the sound systems that were sweeping the Kingston music scene.

• He was in great demand as a repairman as the rival sound systems' competition often resulted in damaged equipment.

• He became the go-to repairman for several sound systems in Kingston due to his in-depth knowledge of electronics.

• In 1968 he opened his shop, 'Tubby's Home Town Hi-Fi,' and formed his sound system. His sound system quickly became popular due to its superior sound quality and the use of echo and reverb effects, something which the other sound systems neither had the capability or understanding to use.

• He started working at Treasure Isle records under the producer Duke Reid. This opportunity allowed him to hone his skills on the mixing desk and try out new techniques.

• He started working on the instrumental 'flipsides' that accompanied vocal tracks.

• Rather than merely taking the vocals out, which other 'remixes' did, he used the mixing desk to re-work the instrumentals, taking them apart and putting them back together.

• He added effects such as delay, reverb, echo, and phasing, all techniques which were in their infancy in the early seventies.

• His 'remixes' were so popular that his sound-system became one of Kingston's most popular, which enabled Tubby to open his studio.

• In 1971 he opened 'Waterhouse' with only a 4-track mixer bought from another studio.

• Although small, Tubby's studio became known for its innovative production techniques, and he fast became one of the most well-respected producers in Jamaica. Well-known artists were falling over themselves to work with him.

• The vocalist Glen Brown was seemingly the first artist to credit a King Tubby mix on a record (Tubby's at the Control). He continued to work with King Tubby throughout the seventies, and the 1996 collection 'Termination Dub' showcases work from these sessions.

  So when does remixing become 'Dub'?

• By re-taping or 'dubbing' an original track through his 12 channel mixing desk (Tubby upgraded his original 4-track!!), he could manipulate the original track until it was almost unrecognizable. Highlighting the bass and drum parts was often the aim.

• His most famous 'dub' is often considered 'King Tubby meets the Rockers Uptown.' Originally recorded as the song 'Baby I love you so,' the track featured Bob Marley's drummer Carlton Barrett. Once the dub was complete, the original drum track was almost unrecognizable as, through mixing, Tubby had created an entirely new rhythm.

• Towards the end of his musical career, he built a new and bigger studio and focused more on managing his several labels. In what seemed like a robbery gone wrong, Tubby was sadly shot and killed outside his home on 6th February 1989. His murder is still unsolved.

• So why is he so important? His insatiable thirst for new sounds and experimentation with the mixing desk means that he can be considered one of the most important producers in the industry.