Dave & Ansel Collins

Dave & Ansel Collins

Dave & Ansel Collins are a Jamaican reggae duo from Kingston, Jamaica, active from 1970 to the present. They are also billed as Dave and Ansil Collins or Dave & Ansel Collins. The pair consists of Dave Barker, a session vocalist born David John Crooks in Kingston on 10 October 1947, and Ansel Collins, a keyboard player born in Kingston in 1949. Their work sits across deejay, reggae, ska and skinhead reggae.

Early work and partnership

In the late 1960s, Barker and Collins work for producer Lee “Scratch” Perry in Kingston. They join forces in 1971 for the ska single “Double Barrel”. Released on Techniques Records, part of the Trojan Records label, the record tops the Jamaican and UK charts in March 1971. It is also the first record played on by drummer Sly Dunbar, who is fourteen at the time.

Notable recordings and career

The follow-up single, “Monkey Spanner”, also achieves international success. Most of their recorded material is written by Winston Riley. After recording an album, Collins and Barker part company. Collins continues as a session player, while Barker moves to the UK and sings with a number of soul groups.

Later activity

The duo attempt a comeback in 1981 without success. In 1986, Collins appears as one of Ernest Reed’s backing musicians in the reggae-themed comedy film Club Paradise, billed as “Ansel (sic) ‘Double Barrel’ Collins”. Over a long career, he also works with The Upsetters, Black Uhuru, The Mighty Diamonds, Barrington Levy, Gregory Isaacs, U-Roy, Pama International and Jimmy Cliff.