Skatalites Co-Founder Lloyd Brevett Dead at 80

Bassist helped define the sound of ska

May 3, 2012 2:35 PM ET

LLoyd Brevett of the Skatalites

David Corio/Redferns

Lloyd Brevett, bassist and co-founder of the highly influential ska band the Skatalites, died this morning at the age of 80, Billboard reports. Brevett, known for playing the upright bass, passed away at Andrews Memorial Hospital in St. Andrew, Jamaica, after being treated for a stroke and seizures.

The original Skatalites only existed for 18 months between 1963 and 1965, but were essential in popularizing their genre, which included elements of R&B, jazz, calypso and Cuban music. The band's best known songs included "Guns of Navarone" and "Eastern Standard Time," both of which helped to lay the groundwork for the emergence of rocksteady and reggae.