By Howard Campbell—
Observer senior writer—
Trevor Castell
While he is recognised by ‘elders’ in Waterhouse as one of that community’s early dancehall artistes, Lacksley Castell’s name does not ring a bell with most youth in his hometown.
For many years, the location of his gravesite at May Pen Cemetery in West Kingston has been a mystery. But his family recently got good news when it was finally located through the persistence of Rohan Thompson, a close friend.
Trevor Castell, Lacksley’s younger brother, told the Jamaica Observer that he was informed of the discovery on April 9.
“It’s a good thing, it means so much to me, my family, my brothers Clifton and Dennis, my nieces and nephews that never get a chance to know him,” he said.
Lacksley Castell died in November 1983 at age 24. He had been recording music since his late teens for Augustus Pablo and Negus Roots, a Waterhouse-based label. He was buried without a headstone which made identifying his final resting place difficult.
“We plan to do something proper for him; a tomb, something like dat. We also have another brother Winston Castell, down there (May Pen Cemetery), who I am trying to find and dat would be cool,” said Trevor.
Interestingly, one month before his brother’s grave was found, Trevor Castell released The Castell Brothers, an EP which heard him covering six of Lacksley’s songs.
The South Florida-based Castell had worked on the project for several years but wanted it to be up to his brother’s standard before releasing it.
Among the songs he covers are Black Sheep, Raggy Road, and Leaving, which were originally produced by Negus Roots.
Lacksley Castell was one of many singers to emerge from Waterhouse during the late 1970s. His contemporaries included Hugh Mundell, a promising roots vocalist who was murdered one month before Castell succumbed to illness.
While Mundell retains a strong following in Europe, thanks to the reissue of his albums like Africa Must be Free by 1983, Lacksley Castell has drifted into obscurity.
Two years younger than Lacksley, Trevor Castell began his recording career in the early 1980s with producer Bunny Lee. His songs include Gypsy Lady and Mr Carpenter Man which were produced by Sugar Minott.
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