Show Details
Dean Hilson & The Ska Vendors – A Tribute to Tommy McCook Vol. 2 Live at Birds
Transmitter Records proudly presents its latest release: Dean Hilson & The Ska Vendors – A Tribute to Tommy McCook Vol. 2 Live at Birds Basement — a celebration of one of Jamaican music’s most influential architects.
Steven Montgomery, band leader of the Ska Vendors, thought it was about time for Dean Hilson to take the limelight and what better project than to shine a light on Tommy McCook. Hilson took the baton and ran with it.
This album captures the immediacy and warmth of 1960s Jamaican studio culture, with performances tracked in real time, single take, no overdubs. The repertoire draws from the golden-era Treasure Isle catalogue — instrumental rocksteady classics originally shaped by the legendary saxophonist Tommy McCook.
Tommy McCook was one of the founding figures of Jamaican popular music. A founding member and bandleader of The Skatalites, and later musical director of Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle studio band, The Supersonics, McCook helped define the sound of ska, rocksteady and early reggae. Trained at the Alpha Boys School in Kingston — an institution that produced generations of Jamaica’s finest musicians — McCook brought deep jazz discipline and American R&B influence into the emerging island sound. His tenor saxophone style was lyrical, restrained and melodic, favouring tone and phrasing over bravado.
At Treasure Isle during the mid-to-late 1960s, McCook set the musical standard — arranging, directing sessions and shaping recordings that would become cornerstones of rocksteady. His influence extends across decades of Jamaican music and into the global revival scenes that followed.
Dean Hilson — A Modern Standard Bearer
Stepping into that leadership role for this project is Dean Hilson, one of Australia’s most respected tenor saxophonists and a towering figure in Melbourne’s jazz and roots community. Hilson is widely regarded as a master stylist — equally at home in hard bop, soul jazz and rhythm & blues. A long-time educator, collaborator and arranger, his
influence on Melbourne’s jazz ecosystem spans generations of musicians. His deep understanding of phrasing and tone makes him uniquely suited to interpreting McCook’s repertoire with authenticity and nuance.
The Ska Vendors is a ska band based in Melbourne, Australia playing early Jamaican rhythm and blues, ska, rocksteady and reggae. Many of the musicians have won ARIA awards or Music Victoria Awards.
Joining the on stage for the second set will be vocalists Pat Powell, Kerri Simpson, Nicky Bomba and Stick Mareebo.
The Ska Vendors
Steven Montgomery - vocals
Kerri Simpson - vocals
Pat Powell - vocals
Stick Mareebo - Toasting
Nicky Bomba - vocals
Steve Philips - drums
Tim Webb - bass
Chris Rogers - bass
Dan Kerr - guitar
John Holmes - guitar
Michael Havir - keys
Tony Hicks - flute/saxophone
Russell Roberts - trombone
Dean Hilson - saxophone
Ed Farrar - trumpet
Book Tickets
Price Range:
From $38 + booking fee.
Early Doors Open: 6:00 pm
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