Glenroy Anthony Smith, O.D. (better known as Ernie Smith) will bring musical joy and entertainment to participants and four honorees at the Caribbean Community of Retired Persons (CCRP) Living Legacy Awards 2018. The Awards Luncheon will take place on Friday, September 28, at the Mona Visitors’ Lodge, University of the West Indies Mona Campus, beginning at 12:00 noon. Dr. the Hon. Glen Christian, O.J., O.D., Joy Crooks, O.D., Dr. Owen James, O.D., and Dr. Jean Small will be honored at the event.
“As one of the first CCRP Living Legacy Award recipients [in 2012] I am looking forward to performing at this year’s event. CCRP continues to ensure that Jamaica remembers the legacy of our elders and I applaud them for it,” said the renowned singer, songwriter and musician with the mellow voice.
Born in Kingston in 1945, Ernie Smith grew up in the parish of St. Ann in a large musical family (he has eight siblings). After high school, he formed a singing group with four of his brothers and sisters. His singing and songwriting career took off when he recorded an original composition (“I Can’t Take It”) at Federal Records.
Smith’s professional music career went from strength to strength. He won Grand Prize at the World Popular Song Festival in Tokyo with his song “Life Is Just For Living” – as the first Jamaican musician to win an international award. He was the first popular musician to be honored by the Jamaican Government with the Badge of Honour in 1973. He lived overseas for 13 years and was credited for popularizing reggae music in Canada.
Returning to Jamaica in 1988 after Hurricane Gilbert, Smith recalls watching people exchanging gifts and thanking God for life, instead of crying about their losses. He picked up his career as a highly successful solo artist. Last year he celebrated 50 years since his first recording, “I Can’t Take It,” with a Mass at the Bamboo Catholic Church, where he once served as an altar boy; and a “Solid Gold” concert in September 2017.
Ernie Smith has never stopped singing and playing. He has written over 200 songs and has received numerous awards at home and abroad, including a Bronze Musgrave Medal in 2003 and an Order of Distinction in 2006.
See original article posted in the Gleaner on Saturday, September 8, 2018.
Jamaica Highlights 