Throughout the 1970’s and 1980’s, Otis Gayle established himself as one of Canada’s premier reggae artists. In 1983, he was awarded a Juno Award in that country for Best Reggae Song for Heaven Must Have Sent You.
Fifty-odd years since he started his career with Byron Lee and The Dragonaires, the singer is still on the hunt for hit songs. He is hoping his latest singles, Jah is The Answer and Think it Over, can earn him a return to the charts.
“Jah is The Answer was written and produced by me last November; it was (colleague) Carl Henry’s idea and it was to help people who are down and out. Think it Over was written and produced by me and was released last year,” he said.
Done to the music of Dennis Brown’s Wolf & Leopards, Jah is The Answer is a spiritual single that calls for resilience in the face of challenges. It maintains Gayle’s steady flow of releases in Canada, where he still lives, and Jamaica.
Gayle settled in Toronto during the late 1960’s while touring with The Dragonaires, but popped into Jamaica sporadically to record for producers like Clement “Coxson” Dodd at Studio One. I’ll be Around, a cover of The Spinners hit, is his best known song for Dodd.
According to Gayle, “Reggae has changed since I went to Canada but we still got a long way to go.”
In addition to promoting Jah is The Answer and Think it Over in Jamaica and Toronto, he plans to do a lot of shows in 2020.
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