Phylis Dillon
Phylis Dillon was born in 1944 in Linstead, St Catherin, Jamaica. Inspired by artists such as Connie Francis, Patti Page and Dionne Darwick, she started to attend talent shows. Eventually Dillon was discoverd during a performance at the Glass Bucket Club in Kingston, Jamaica. She was discovered by Lynn Taitt, a session guitarist from Duke Reid.
Dillon recorded her first record for Duke Reid in 1966, ‘’Don’t Stay Away’’. A recording that has been described as perhaps the finest female performance in Jamaican music. ‘’Don’t Stay Away’’ was an original composition featuring Tommy McCook and the Supersonics as the backing band, while her other songs were mainly covers from obscure American songs.
Dillon had a great time as an artist and is regarded as one of the key singers in the rocksteady era. Later Dillon moved to New York where lived some kind of double life. She had a family and career in the United States, but frequently flew back to Jamaica to continue recording music for Reid. In 1971 Dillon stopped recording music, but after 20 years she toured the UK, Germany and Japan