Reggae star Gregory Isaacs dies at age 60

Jamaican singer Gregory Isaacs died of cancer today at his London home, his manager confirms. He was 60.

Isaacs became one of the world’s biggest reggae stars in the 1970s and 1980s with major hits like “Night Nurse” (hear it after the jump) and “Rumours,” spanning the transition from more traditional styles to synth-based dancehall.

“Yes, it’s true,” Isaacs’ manager, Copeland Forbes, writes in an email to the Music Mix. “Gregory passed away this morning in London at 4 A.M. He had a tumor which had spread to other areas of his body. He was 60 years old. I spoke with him last week and he said that I should read Psalm 41 and Psalm 91 for him. I had made arrangements to go back to London on Wednesday to see him as I hadn’t seen him since we went to London together to do the Big Chill Festival (his last show in his life), which had over 60,000 people in attendance. He was the only reggae act on the bill. May his soul rest in peace.”

Please join the Music Mix in sending our condolences to the family, friends, and fans of reggae’s Cool Ruler.