Grammy Award-winning drummer, Paul Douglas, shares his story on Star Gazing with Shaun Cain.

There are many Jamaican musicians who are quietly and humbly burning an indelible trail in the international music fields.

We might not hear about them every day but they have not escaped the gaze of the key movers and shakers in the global music industry.

When drummer Paul Douglas was growing in a musical family on Vernon Avenue in the small town of Oracabessa, St. Mary, he often dreamed of playing music professionally with some of his heroes at the time. But little did he realise that what the future had planned for him would defy his imagination.

His parents, Norma and Edwin Douglas, were upstanding members of the community. His mother was a structured disciplinarian, who did not suffer fool gladly. Paul thrived in that environment because there were clear boundaries, which helped him to develop strong values that continue to guide him to this day.

His poise has made him a revered musician around the globe. When he left St Mary decades ago to pursue his musical dreams in the Jamaican capital, Kingston, fortune was on his side.

Paul played drums for some of the most illustrious names in Jamaican music during the early days of his career. He shared his enviable talents with Tommy McCook and the Supersonics, Boris Gardiner, Ken Booth, Bob Marley & the Wailers, Byron Lee & the Dragonaires, Eric Gayle, B. B Seaton & the Gaylads, Johnny Nash, Lee “Scratch” Perry, Marcia Griffiths, Judy Mowatt and Beris Hammond.

As his confidence and experience mushroomed, he moved to Toronto, Canada where he immediately fused into the Reggae scenes in the city. While in Canada, Paul had a chance encounter to play drums for the Reverend Al Green of Let's Stay Together fame. The St Ann-born and St Mary-raised musician became one of the most headhunted drummers, who was once the Bandleader for Leroy Sibbles. He would eventually win two Drummer of the Year awards, one in 1987 and the other in 1988.

Years later, the Jamaican drummer extraordinaire trekked across the border to the United States. It was there that he met and became friends with mult-Grammy Award winner, Bonnie Raitt, for whom he also played drums. The Jamaican told the Star Gazing with Shaun Cain Show that he is Sabian Cymbal endorser as well as an Ahead Drumsticks endorser.

Paul subsequently became a member of the legendary band, Toots & the Maytals with which he travelled the world and proudly shared Jamaica's musical heritage for more than 20 years. He won a Grammy Award with the band in 2004 and 7 Grammy nominations all together over the years.

Paul's resume boasts several eyebrow-raising contributions, especially to the works of celebrated international artistes such as Willie Nelson, Eric Clapton, Jonathan Butler, Isaac Hayes and The Eagles among others.

Since the passing of Toot Hibbert in 2020, Paul has committed himself as a full-time member of the OBessa band, which released its first single “Freedom Street” recently. The full album, “We are Solid” is set to be published in the not too distant future. While most of the members of Obessa were part of the Maytals, lead singer, Rojjah Mendez joins fresh from the north coast hotel entertainment circuit in Jamaica where he used to ply his trade.

Paul has been raising his profile as a recording artiste. His debut project, “Jazz Mi Reggae”, has proved to be a soothing and mellow listen, with the poignant tracks Give Love A Try and This Time. With Paul's vast experience, it might be fair to say there's a lot more music where that album came from.