Tony Tribe

Anthony Patrick Orlando Mossop (9 October 1943 – 1979), known professionally as Tony Tribe and Tony Kingston, was a Jamaican and British vocalist. After moving to Great Britain in 1956, he joined The Soul Seekers, a gospel outfit from Calvary Apostolic Church in Camberwell. He subsequently charted at No. 46 on the UK Singles Chart with a solo reggae version of Neil Diamond's "Red Red Wine", which became Trojan Records's first UK chart entry and inspired a UB40 cover version that charted at No. 1 on the UK Singles Chart and the Billboard Hot 100. He also performed at the 1969 Caribbean Reggae Festival. He then moved to Canada and released several singles there including "I Am the Preacher", which charted at No. 65 on the RPM charts, and then an album.

Life and career Anthony Patrick Orlando Mossop was born on 9 October 1943 in Kingston, Jamaica; his first performances were at that city's Ward Theatre aged nine. He moved to Great Britain, taking a full time job in the post room of the High Commission of Jamaica, London. In the mid-1960s, he joined the gospel outfit The Soul Seekers, from Calvary Apostolic Church in Camberwell, and released an EP with them on Herald Records. a song that had previously been a hit for Jimmy James and the Vagabonds. The song's record label, Trojan Records, managed to misspell his stage name as "Tony Tripe". and backed with the Rudies' "Blues", Mossop's version was performed by him on Top of the Pops and charted at No. 46 on the UK Singles Chart, The song's success can be attributed to its popularity among British skinheads, though Ian McCann of the Financial Times suggested in 2017 that the song had made the charts in spite of its "jerky ska rhythm" being "anachronistic even then". In January 2025, Samuel Moore of Singersroom.com described Tribe's version as the third best reggae song of all time. Mossop later performed on Top of the Pops, before releasing a second single, a cover of "Gonna Give Her All the Love I've Got" under the name "I’m Gonna Give You All The Love I’ve Got".

On 21 September 1969, Mossop, Johnny Nash, Desmond Dekker, Max Romeo, the Rudies, Derrick Morgan, Jackie Edwards, Jimmy Cliff, Jimmy James, the Skatalites, the Mohawks, Root and Jenny Jackson, and Black Velvet performed at Wembley Arena For this performance, he dressed in braces as a nod to the support he had received from skinheads. Charlie Gillett of Record Mirror wrote that Tribe's set had been "spoiled because of trouble with his group's amplification system", but that this did not "hide his beautiful soaring voice on "Speak Her Name" and his hit "Red Red Wine"". He also noted that the "thudding reggae beat which pounds through most discotheques and clubs was wisely restricted" during the festival, and this had enabled Mossop, Romeo, and Dekker "to prove themselves to be much better singers than their records suggest".

Multiple sources, including McCann (2017) UB40's version would top the Billboard Hot 100 five years later Additionally, Elan Atias would cover the song in 2001. "What We Need"/"Faith, Hope and Charity" (1972, as Tony Kingston) "Who’s Gonna Sing My Rock and Roll Song"/"Mysterious People" (1973, as Tony Kingston) "Too Heavy To Carry"/"Worst That Could Happen" (1974, as Tony Kingston) "Sweet Music" (1978, as Tony Kingston)