Purpleman

Purpleman
Background information
Also known asPeter Yellow
Born(1962-01-04)4 January 1962
OriginWaterhouse District, Kingston, Jamaica
Died14 August 2020(2020-08-14) (aged 58)
GenresReggae, dancehall
OccupationsMusician, songwriter, deejay
Years active1979–2020

Purpleman, also known as Peter Yellow (born as Anthony Jones; 4 January 1962 – 19 August 2020) was a Jamaican dancehall deejay. Being one of three albino deejays in the 1980s (Yellowman, Purpleman, and King Mellow Yellow), he was originally given the name Peter Yellow before using the name Yellowman, and released an album under this name. The name Purpleman was given to him by Nicodemus.

Biography

Purpleman deejayed with King Jammy's sound system, including performing at 'clashes' with other systems such as Youth Promotion, Arrows, Killamanjaro and Black Scorpio at the 'Shock of the Century' in 1985.[1] Purpleman's first release was an album entitled Hot In 1982. He went on to record a series of albums shared with other deejays including Yellowman, Sister Nancy, and Papa Tollo. In 2014 he made a comeback with a new album entitled Home Once More.

Death

Purpleman died on 14 August 2020 at the Kingston Public Hospital due to heart-related complications.[2]

Discography

Albums

  • Hot (1982), Black Music/Sonic Sounds (as Peter Yellow)
  • DJ Confrontation (1982), CF – with U Brown
  • The Yellow, The Purple & The Nancy (1982), Greensleeves – with Yellowman, Fathead and Sister Nancy
  • Purpleman Saves Papa Tollo in a Dancehall (1983), Vista Sounds – with Papa Tollo
  • Laserbeam (1983), Enterprise (with Sister Candy)
  • Confessions (1983), Vista Sounds – credited to Yellowman, probably for commercial purposes
  • Showdown Vol. 5 (1982), Hitbound – with Yellowman and Fathead
  • Home Once More (2014), VPAL Music
  • Dancehall General (2017) J Island Records
  • Confessions (2024), Burning Sounds

7" singles

  • "D&G" (1986)
  • "Dem A Call Mi Name" (with Saramouche) (198?)
  • "DJs Program" (199?)

12" singles

  • "A Fe We Jah" (197?) (*as Ranking Purple)
  • "Water Pumpee" (198?)
  • "Rose Marie" (198?)
  • "Level Vibes Pumping" (1983)
  • "Keep on Working" (198?) (with Cornell Campbell)
  • "Get Me Mad" (1982)
  • "Water Pumping" (1983)
  • "Daddymix" (199?)

References

  1. ^ Lesser, Beth (2008) Dancehall; The Rise of Jamaican Dancehall Culture, Soul Jazz, ISBN 978-0-9554817-1-0, p. 172
  2. ^ Williams, Shirvan (30 August 2020). "Veteran Dancehall Artiste Purpleman Is Dead". Dancehallmag.com. Retrieved 11 October 2025.