[Mz K]

Wycliffe 'Steely' Johnson, of Steely and Clevie fame, succumbed to complications from kidney problem in a New York hospital last night, sending the music fraternity into a cloud of dismay.
According to music insiders, Steely debuted as a keyboardist with Sugar Minott's Youth Promotion collective in the 1970s. Clevie pioneered the use of drum machines in reggae. Steely and Clevie first played together at Lee "Scratch" Perry's Black Ark Studios during the late 1970s. In 1986, the duo was the house band at King Jammy's Studio, which became the center point of late-1980s reggae, by which time Steely & Clevie were established production leaders with an immense slew of 12-inch and dub singles. The duo formed the Steely & Clevie label in 1987, a year in which reggae riddims and dub influenced hip-hop production by Ced Gee and KRS-One in the Bronx became prominent.


In 2004, Steely was charged with dangerous driving after being involved in an accident in which high-school student Shakara Harris was fatally injured. Steely was cleared of all charges in November 2005