Chris Wayne

b. Kingston, Jamaica, West Indies. Wayne was surrounded by music from an early age, being inspired by his Jonestown neighbour Johnny Osbourne, who released hit after hit as part of the Wildcats, and later with the Sensations, prior to his relocation to Canada. Wayne was also influenced by American R&B and by the age of seven he was performing Michael Jackson material. By his teens Wayne was providing backing vocals at Joe Gibbs’ studio, which led to a solo career. His initial foray into the business proved disastrous when the tapes of his sessions with Bingi Gene, of Sugar Minott’s Youth Promotion organization, were lost en route to the pressing plant. Undeterred, Wayne pursued his musical aspirations when he began working with Studio One veterans Wesley Tinglin and the Viceroys. He replaced vocalist Norris Reid, who had left the group to concentrate on solo work with Augustus Pablo. Wayne performed on the 1984 release Chancery Lane, although early pressings did not credit the performer in spite of the fact that he was pictured on the cover. The album featured ‘Take Care Of The Youths’, ‘Life Is Not An Easy Game’, ‘Push Push’ and Wayne’s own composition, ‘New Clothes’. The group embarked on recording sessions for a follow-up album that did not surface, and in 1985 Wayne left to re-establish his solo career. He returned to Youth Promotion, where, this time, his master tapes safely reached the pressing plant, resulting in ‘Aint That Enough’ and ‘Fan Me Pretty Girl’. Wayne continued to maintain a satisfactory profile within the reggae charts and his contribution to the music is widely acknowledged.