Sly Dunbar, Half of Sly and Robbie, Legendary Reggae Rhythm Section, Dies at 73

Lowell Fillmore “Sly” Dunbar, the drumming half of the legendary reggae rhythm section Sly and Robbie, has died, according to the Guardian and a statement from his daughter to TMZ. Dunbar’s wife, Thelma, told Jamaican publication the Gleaner that she found him unresponsive on Monday morning. No cause of death was given; he was 73.

Sly and Robbie anchored recordings by countless musicians, ranging from reggae icons like Lee Perry, Junior Murvin and Jimmy Cliff and tracks by Bob Marley, to Bob Dylan, the Rolling Stones and Grace Jones. Over the years he also performed extensively with such reggae artists as Black Uhuru, Peter Tosh, Bunny Wailer and Chaka Demus & Pliers, and guested with more mainstream artists like No Doubt, Serge Gainsbourg and Mick Jagger’s solo work. He won two Grammy Awards amid 13 nominations.

Born Lowell Fillmore Dunbar in Kingston, Jamaica in 1952, Dunbar began drumming as a child and connected with bassist Robbie Shakespeare – who died in 2021 – as a teen. The pair formed the rhythm section of the group the Revolutionaries (which also performed as the Aggrovators) and rapidly became the most in-demand rhythm section of the reggae genre, as well as releasing multiple albums of their own.

Reggae is a genre that sounds simple but is not, and countless dilettante musicians have embarrassed themselves by performing it badly. Yet Sly and Robbie were undisputed masters of the art, bringing a nuanced, unhurried and rock-solid rhythmic approach — Dunbar’s first recorded appearance, on Dave and Ansell Collins’ classic “Double Barrel,” reached No. 1 in the U.K. in 1971.

The pair were in heavy demand throughout the decades, yet their peak may have been the early 1980s, when they remained active as session musicians and as a solo act; formed their own label, Taxi Records; and anchored not only Grace Jones’ three classic albums — “Warm Leatherette,” “Nightclubbing” and “Living My Life” – four albums by Serge Gainsbourg, and two for Bob Dylan, including the strong 1983 outing “Infidels” (which also saw them united with Dire Straits frontman Mark Knopfler and former Rolling Stones guitarist Mick Taylor).

Sly and Robbie released more than 30 albums as a duo, the most recent being 2019’s “Sly & Robbie vs. Roots Radics: The Final Battle.” Dunbar also released three solo albums across the late ’70s and early ’80s.