Reggae legend Robbie Shakespeare dies aged 68

Born Robert Warren Dale Shakespeare successful East Kingston successful 1953, Shakespeare was a prolific bassist who worked with reggae greats including Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Gregory Isaacs, Reuters reports. He besides played alongside immoderate of the world's top stone and popular stars, among them The Rolling Stones, Bob Dylan and Grace Jones.

Shakespeare's location state is besides mourning his passing.

Olivia Grange, Jamaica's civilization minister, said successful a statement Wednesday: "I americium successful daze and sorrow aft conscionable receiving the quality that my person and brother, the legendary bassist Robbie Shakespeare has died."

She added: "Robbie's nonaccomplishment volition beryllium felt by the manufacture astatine location and abroad. He volition beryllium sorely missed."

Jamaica's Prime Minister, Andrew Holness, paid tribute to the musician.

Holness posted on Twitter Wednesday: "When it comes to Reggae bass playing, nary 1 comes adjacent to having the power of Robbie Shakespeare. He volition beryllium remembered for his sterling publication to the euphony manufacture and Jamaica's culture. May his psyche Rest In Peace."

Last twelvemonth Rolling Stone mag featured Shakespeare successful its database of the "50 top bassists of each time." Of the Sly and Robbie partnership, the euphony work said: "No different philharmonic entity successful the post-Marley epoch has been truthful omnipresent successful shaping the dependable of Jamaica and bringing it to the world."

This sentiment was echoed by Grange, who said the brace were "among Jamaica's top musicians."

Offering her "deepest condolences to those helium leaves behind," she added: "This fantastic squad took bass playing and drumming to the highest level arsenic they made euphony for themselves arsenic a group, and for galore different artistes locally and internationally."

Sly and Robbie produced euphony for movie soundtracks, including "Poetic Justice."

Shakespeare received 13 Grammy nominations, winning 2 awards -- 1 successful 1984 for champion reggae signaling for "Anthem" and again successful 1998 for champion reggae medium for "Friends."

Bougard added: "He is the astir prolific bass subordinate successful history, having played bass on, and produced, much than 30,000 tracks for artists ranging from Bob Marley to Bob Dylan, Peter Tosh to Paul McCartney, Black Uhuru to Madonna among thousands of others.

"He was mentored aboriginal successful his vocation by Aston Barrett, Bob Marley's bassist, and rapidly recovered his ain signature -- heavy, yet musical, thunderous yet sweet."