Day 208 of 365 Day Jamaican Music Challenge - Tyrone Taylor - Rainy Sunset

The late Tyrone Taylor recorded his first solo song "Delilah" in 1968 before teaming up with singer Vince Brown to form the Soul Menders, but after meeting with little success contemplated giving up music all together.  He decided to stick it out by stepping away from the mic and learning to play a variety of instruments instead but in 1972 he joined up with Soul Twins and recorded a couple tunes that achieved moderate success.  In 1975 he finally got some airplay as a solo artist with the track "Fight It Blackman" that he recorded for Jack Ruby.  He followed it up with a couple more successful records for Ruby before scoring with "Sufferation" a tune he cut for Winston "Niney" Holness in 1977 which also received the full-on King Tubby dub treatment.  In 1981 he recorded and self-produced "Cottage In Negril," the worldwide hit tune in which he would become synonymous and which earning Tyrone an international recording deal with MCA Records.  When his follow-up bombed, MCA shelved a proposed album and let him go.  Sadly, Tyrone Taylor was fighting a drug addiction and in the decade that followed recorded only sporadically.  In 1994 he teamed up with producer Clive Hunt for what was to be his final hit, "Rainy Sunset" an absolutely soulful gem originally released as a 7" and on his subsequent album Totally Tyrone on the Tuff Gong label.  And while I'm not really a big fan of the "lovers" style of "easy-listening" reggae, "Rainy Sunset" always puts me in a warm mellow mood.  Unfortunately Tyrone Taylor passed away in 2007, but this tune serves as a testament to an artist with a truly great voice.