Leba Hibbert honors Toots on UK Tour

When Toots Hibbert died in September, 2020, his daughter Leba had no doubt about her plans once the period of mourning was over. She would carry on his legacy as lead singer of The Maytals, the legendary group he formed in the early 1960s.

She has kept that promise. In May, Toots And The Maytals Featuring Leba Hibbert did 18 shows in the United Kingdom. Their ‘Reggae Got Soul 50th Anniversary Tour’ played to strong audiences in Wales, Scotland and England.

Leba was pleased with the response to the shows.

“There were lots of memorable moments. Every night, the fans would chant, ‘one more song, one more song!’ Fans told me they travelled far to come to the shows, they cried when I did the duet (‘You’ve Got A Friend’) with me and my father because while doing that song we showed slides/pictures of me and my Dad on a video screen,” she said.

The 18-date tour started on May 7 at Y Plas in Cardiff, Wales, and ended on May 30 at Ashton Hall in Lancaster. It also made stops in areas where Toots Hibbert was a force, such as London, Bristol, Leeds, Liverpool, Manchester, Southampton, Edinburgh and Glasgow.

As for glitches, Leba preferred to be positive.

“You will always have disappointments. We live in an imperfect world, the disappointments never needed my attention,” she said.

It was Toots And The Maytals Featuring Leba Hibbert’s second tour of the UK in one year. Last year, they did 10 shows. The Maytals band comprised Arnaldo Bolt on drums, Gregory Palmer (keyboards), Leebert Morrison (guitar) and Dale Brown (bass guitar). Her son, Colin Thomas, and Christa Daly were the harmony singers.

The shows commemorated the golden anniversary of Toots And The Maytals’ ‘Reggae Got Soul’ album which was distributed by Island Records. It confirmed the singer-songwriter as one of the top acts out of Jamaica, alongside Bob Marley, Bunny Wailer, Peter Tosh and Burning Spear.

It contains songs such as ‘Never You Change’, ‘Living in The Ghetto’, ‘Six And Seven Books’ and ‘I Shall Sing’.

Toots was a bonafide star by the time Leba joined him on the road during the late 1980s as a member of 54-46, his harmony trio. Those tours prepared her for carrying on his legacy when she officially launched ‘Featuring Leba Hibbert’ three years ago.

Even as she works on solo projects, staying true to his legend is priority.

“These shows /events/performances, anything that is done concerning my father’s/family’s legacy will always be personal,” said Leba.

(Photos contributed)