Caribbean News Service (CNS)
KINGSTON, Jamaica, Sep 08 2016 – The ska pioneer Prince Buster, who shaped the course of Jamaican music, has died at the age of 78.
He died at home in Miami at 07:20 local time (11:20 GMT) on Thursday.
Born in Kingston, Jamaica, as Cecil Bustamante Campbell, he became a legend of the burgeoning ska music genre in 1960s Jamaica under the stage name Prince Buster.
He was an influence on groups including Madness and The Specials in the British ska revival of the late 1970s.
His decision to use a syncopated beat on tracks such as Little Honey, They Got to Go and Thirty Pieces of Silver is credited as pivotal in ska music’s development and he gave himself the moniker “King of Ska”.
A keen boxer in his youth, Prince Buster converted to Islam after meeting Muhammad Ali.
Prince Buster is survived by his wife Mola Ali and his children.