Swaby was born in 1953 in St. Andrews, Jamaica. In his mid-teens, he was introduced to the melodica -- a unique instrument that combines a harmonica and a keyboard -- by Upsetters' keyboardist Glen Adams. Adams was the first to adopt the Augustus Pablo moniker, but when he left for the United States, he left the name to Swaby.
Pablo's melodica playing, which the New York Times called the best in the world, gave birth to his trademark far east sound that he blended perfectly with instrumental reggae run through effects processors. Of course, this is the music now known as dub, which Swaby and King Tubby are creditted for pioneering.
It's hard to communicate the profound affect that he had on reggae and dub music. Pablo's first major hit came when he was still less than 20 years old -- 1972's "Java." He produced for countless reggae legends such as Jacob Miller, Yami Bolo, Dennis Brown, and Israel Vibration in addition to releasing some of the most influential dub music of the 1970's.
Pablo's catalog is extensive, with many of his earlier works available on Blood & Fire. He had also recently completed an album titled "Valley of Jehosaphat" for RAS Records, his first album in several years. "Valley of Jehosaphat" was released in late March of this year.
Despite absolutely no national coverage from CNN, ABC News, or USA Today (there was a nice writeup, however, in the New York Times), there's no doubt that Pablo will be sorely missed by the entire reggae community and the music community at large. His unique blend of eastern and western musical styles through the medium of dub music will be remembered for years to come, as it is still strongly influencing many of today's reggae and trip-hop artists.
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