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Nerlin 'Lynn' Taitt, born Jun 22, 1934 in San Fernando and died January 20, 2010 at the age of 75 in Montreal, Canada. Pictured above at age 70 in Nov 2005. Lynn, as he was called by those he knew him, had a life long career in music. From his early days with steelpan in Trinidad to his work in Jamaica before migrating to Canada, Lynn did what he loved until the end. Lynn's arranging skills and natural talent had an impact on Ska, which lead to the Rock steady beat; out of which Reggae was born. His first influence on Jamaican music came when he arranged for Hopeton Lewis. Although in talking with Lynn, he never expected recognition for doing what he loved. Ironically, most of his recognition came through documentation from a Canadian, Jim Dooley. WACK is the only radio station in Trinidad that had the opportunity to interview Mr. Taiit recently. You can listen to that interview, a mini bio of Mr. Taitt, on our podcast. Lynn went to Jamaica with his band in August 1963 to play for an event honouring Jamaica's first independence. After not being paid for that event by the band's manager, Lynn and his band decided to stay in Jamaica, where he linked up with Byron Lee who helped them with lodging and additional work for the band. Lynn Taitt and the Jets was very popular as rock steady became more known. Lynn played with and toured the UK, Japan and Canada with the Skatalites. On one such trip to Toronto in 1968, where they were invited to play for the first West Indian festival in Toronto, Lynn decided to stay in Canada. After a few years with the band moving around the country, Lynn settled in Montreal where he lived until his death. Lyn has arranged for numerous artists in the Calypso fraternity in Canada. Twice he was invited to play for the Montreal Jazz Festival. Lynn was an accomplished arranger, pannist, and guitarist who wrote his own music. He also played the piano/keyboard. Though Lynn had few recordings, his work will live on in the hundreds if not thousands of songs he arranged for artists in Jamaica and Canada.The Management and Staff of WACK 90.1 extend our deepest condolences to the Taitt family. Lynn is pictured below in his home studio in Montreal in 2005 at age 70. Photos, courtesy of Jim Dooley. Initial research for the interview was done by Marlene Simon of WACK, with assistance from Jim Dooley to whom I forever grateful.
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| Last Updated ( Sunday, 21 February 2010 11:45 ) |
