The Cimarons

The Cimarons are a pioneering British reggae band formed in 1967 and widely recognized as the UK’s first self-contained indigenous reggae group. Made up of Jamaican immigrants who arrived in London as teenagers, the band was founded after guitarist Locksley Gichie met bassist Franklyn Dunn in Harlesden. Drawing their name from the American TV series Cimarron Strip, the original lineup included Dunn, Gichie, Carl Levy, Maurice Ellis, and vocalist Carl Lewis, with Winston Reedy joining later as a key frontman. The band quickly became central to the British reggae scene, performing their first live show in 1968 and later establishing themselves as in-demand session musicians for Trojan Records. They backed major artists such as Jimmy Cliff, Dennis Brown, and Ken Boothe, appeared on Top of the Pops, and even performed with Bob Marley in 1972. Their debut album In Time (1974) showcased their versatility with reggae interpretations of soul and pop standards, while their second album On the Rock (1976), recorded in both Jamaica and the UK, achieved major success, including a Jamaican number-one hit with their version of Bob Marley’s “Talking Blues.” During the late 1970s, The Cimarons were closely linked with the punk and anti-racist movements, performing alongside bands like The Clash and Generation X and releasing several albums on Polydor Records. After a quiet period following their 1983 release On the Rock Part 2, their work was revisited through compilation albums in the 1990s. Members such as Winston Reedy went on to influential solo careers, while Gichie and Dunn have continued to perform under The Cimarons name, cementing the group’s legacy as trailblazers of British reggae.