Marcia Griffiths

Young Marcia Griffiths first showcased her vocal talents singing in her church choir and later at many of her school’s musical productions. Following a party in which she was discovered signing by the Blues Buster member Phillip “Boasie” James, Griffiths was invited to participate in a television variety show, which became a highly successful debut. Griffiths subsequently became a singer with the popular ska group Byron Lee & the Dragonaires, during which time she signed with Clement “Coxsone” Dodd’s Studio One Records.

Griffiths began her solo singing career with the 1967 hit “Feel Like Jumping”, which enjoyed chart success in Jamaica and the UK, followed by the further singles “Melody Life” and “Truly”. Following her debut full-length “Marcia Griffiths at Studio One”, the singer collaborated with Bob Andy of the Paragons, notably on the hit Nina Simone cover “Young, Gifted and Black” in 1970. The subsequent hit “Pied Piper” was released by the duo, after which Griffiths issued her solo sophomore album “Sweet Bitter Love” in 1974. The same year Bob Marley invited Griffiths to be one of his backing singers known as the I-Threes, alongside Rita Marley and Judy Mowatt. Marcia Griffiths made her debut with the group on the album “Natty Dread” and became a crucial presence in the Wailers’ stage and recording line-up until Marley’s death in 1981.

The I-Threes however became a successful recording group in their own right by releasing the albums “Beginning” in 1983, and “Songs of Bob Marley” in 1995. On top of her contributions to the Wailers, Griffiths continued her solo career and issued the albums “Naturally” in 1978 and “Steppin’” in 1979. Following “Steppin’” the singer earned commercial success with the 1982 single “Electric Boogie”, which actually reached the U.S. charts in 1989 aided by a notable Washington D.C. disc jockey. The single led to the 'Electric Slide' becoming a staple at wedding and get-togethers, and remains the highest selling single by any female reggae singer.

The album “Rock My Soul” appeared in 1984, followed by “Marcia” in 1988, “Carousel” in 1990, and “Indomitable” in 1995. A series of new albums arrived in the late ‘90s and into the new millennium, aided by Griffiths international success, the releases cemented the singer as a staple and pioneer of the reggae genre.