Maxi Priest — Close to You
Introduction:
Max Alfred Elliott (born 10 June 1961 in Lewisham, London), known professionally as Maxi Priest, is the most successful British reggae artist in history and the only reggae singer — from anywhere, including Jamaica — to have achieved a number one on the US Billboard Hot 100. His 1990 single "Close to You" topped the American charts in October of that year. He is one of only two British reggae acts (alongside UB40) to have scored an American Billboard number one. With over 15 million albums sold worldwide, a Grammy-nominated duet with Shaggy ("That Girl"), a US Top Ten duet with Roberta Flack ("Set the Night to Music"), and a UK Top Five cover of Cat Stevens' "Wild World", Maxi Priest built a career that transcended genre and geography and remains, alongside Bob Marley, the most globally impactful reggae artist the music has ever produced.
Lewisham, Saxon Studio & Jamaica:
Born the second youngest of nine siblings to Jamaican parents who had settled in London, Max Elliott grew up in a household shaped by gospel, Jamaican reggae and American soul. His mother was a Pentecostal missionary; his father a factory steelworker. He learned to sing in church. As a teenager, drawn to Rastafarianism after his father's death, he found his way to London's South London sound system scene — initially building speaker boxes for Saxon Studio International before stepping up to the microphone. His uncle Sydney Elliott was an early reggae singer; his cousin Jacob Miller was the original frontman of Inner Circle.
His early performances singing over reggae instrumentals at clubs and sound system parties built him a reputation across London's Caribbean community. His groundbreaking 1984 co-production of Philip Levi's "Mi God Mi King" — the first British reggae production to reach number one in Jamaica — showed his production instincts were exceptional. His debut album You're Safe (1985) was followed by Intentions (1987, with Aswad) and then the pivotal Maxi (1988) — recorded in Kingston with Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare — which contained "Wild World" (UK Top Five, US Top Ten) and established him as a global star.
Maxi Priest - Best Of Me - Track Listing:
01 Chinchilla Choons - Intro (Half-Pint).mp3
02 Wild World - Maxi Priest.mp3
03 Close To You - Maxi Priest.mp3
04 Housecall - Maxi Priest Ft Shabba Ranks,mp3
05 Some Guys Have All The Luck - Maxi Priest.mp3
06 Groovin' In The Midnight - Maxi Priest.mp3
07 Just A Little Bit Longer - Maxi Priest.mp3
08 If I Gave My Heart To You - Maxi Priest.mp3
09 Every Little Thing - Maxi Priest.mp3
10 Loving You Is Easy - Maxi Priest.mp3
11 Holiday - Maxi Priest .mp3
12 Should I - Maxi Priest.mp3
13 Believe In Love - Maxi Priest Ft Shaggy.mp3
14 Wildfire - Maxi Priest.mp3
15 I'm Alright -Maxi Priest (feat. Shaggy).mp3
16 Bubble My Way - Maxi Priest (Feat. Assassin aka Agent Sasco).mp3
17 That Girl - Maxi Priest & Shaggy.mp3
18 How Can We Ease The Pain - Maxi Priest - Best Of Me.mp3
19 Chinchilla Choons ( Skit ).mp3
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Billboard Number One & Beyond:
His 1990 album Bonafide contained "Close to You" — written with Gary Benson and Winston Sela, produced by Handel Tucker, Sly Dunbar and Geoffrey Chung — which topped the US Billboard Hot 100. It was number 7 in the UK, number 2 on the US R&B chart and number 12 on the US Adult Contemporary chart. His 1991 duet with Roberta Flack "Set the Night to Music" reached the US Top Ten. His 1996 duet with Shaggy "That Girl" was a Grammy-nominated worldwide hit, driven by a Hype Williams-directed video that became an MTV staple. He has toured globally for decades and continues to record, releasing Easy to Love in 2014 (Billboard Reggae #2). He remains the most successful solo act in British reggae history.
Key Albums:
- You're Safe (1985) — debut
- Intentions (1987, with Aswad)
- Maxi (1988) — "Wild World" UK Top 5 / US Top 10
- Bonafide (1990) — "Close to You" US #1
- Fe Real (1992)
- Man with the Fun (1996) — "That Girl" (with Shaggy)
- CombiNation (1999)
- 2 the Max (2005)
- Easy to Love (2014) — Billboard Reggae #2
Maxi Priest on Reggae On A Stick: 
Maxi Priest is one of the featured artists on our Reggae On A Stick USB — 100 of the greatest reggae albums compiled onto a single plug-and-play USB drive. Experience Britain's greatest reggae voice alongside 99 other legends.
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