283349 fans
Despite the death of their front man Jacob Miller in 1980, Inner Circle went on to become Grammy-winning reggae favourites best known for their crossover hit 'Bad Boys', which was used as the theme tune to popular reality TV series 'Cops' and in a Will Smith movie of the same name. Brothers Ian and Roger Lewis originally formed the group in 1968 and they backed local Jamaican acts such as The Chosen Few and Eric Donaldson and played in Kingston's hotels before releasing their debut album 'Dread Reggae Hits' in 1973. The addition of Jacob Miller's sweet vocal melodies and Rastafarian righteousness helped the band really take off with the albums 'Reggae Thing' in 1976 and 'Ready for the World' in 1977, and they also made an appearance in the reggae feature film 'Rockers', alongside Gregory Isaacs and Burning Spear. After Chris Blackwell spotted them performing at the One Love Peace Concert in Jamaica with Bob Marley, he signed them to his Island Records label and helped them find success in Britain with the albums 'Everything Is Great' and 'New Age Music', but in 1980 Miller was involved in a car crash in Jamaica and died aged 27. After a period of inactivity, the band then regrouped with Calton Coffie as lead singer, announcing their comeback in 1986 with the album 'Black Roses'. They went on to enjoy their biggest success in America when 'Bad Boys' was re-issued as a single in '93 and the album 'Bad to the Bone' won the Grammy Award for Best Band Reggae Album. Another single 'Summer Jammin'' was featured in the Eddie Murphy comedy movie 'Beverly Hills Cop III'. They also reached number three in the UK Charts and scored a big global hit with the feel-good, Caribbean pop anthem 'Sweet (A La La La La Long)', before working with Beenie Man, Mr Vegas and Glen Washington on the album 'Big Tings' in 2000 and with Damien Marley, Steel Pulse and Junior Reid on 'State of da World' in 2009. More recently they released album 'Hawaii Sings Jacob Miller' in 2013 and continue to perform across the world 45 years after first forming.Artist biography compiled by BDS/West 10. All rights reserved
