Norris Weir, a member of The Jamaicans a group that won the 1967 Festival Song Competition with the hit song “Ba Ba Boom died in Port St Lucie, Florida on November 17, at age 72. Three days later on November 20, Trevor McNaughton, founder of the rock-steady group The Melodians dies of respiratory failure at a Rehabilitation Hospital in Hollywood, Florida at age 77.
Norris Weir
Fay Weir, his wife of over 50 years, said Weir died from a blood clot in his lung while recuperating from knee surgery he had the previous week.
In 1966 Weir, along with fellow entertainer Tommy Cowan, and three other formed the group – The Jamaicans, The group recorded first recorded for Duke Reid’s Treasure Isle and had hits like “Things You Say and Love,” followed by “Diana” and “Pocket Full of Money.”
On the suggestion of Duke Reid, Weir, a former Kingston College choir member, and Cowan wrote the Festival Song “Ba Ba Boom.”
In 2010, Weir who was very spiritual in his believes was ordained as a minister and turned to singing gospel, recording several hit gospel singles and ten albums. He performed regularly on local gospel shows like “Celebration of Praise” in the South Florida area.
Weir will be laid to rest on December 8 in Fort Pierce, Florida. He is survived by his wife, three sisters and a brother.
Trevor McNaughton
McNaughton was hospitalized in early October but had shown enough improvement recently for him to be transferred to Kendrick Rehabilitation Hospital in Hollywood where he died a week after being admitted.
Born in Hanover, in western Jamaica, McNaughton moved to the Kingston as a teenager and settled in Greenwich Farm, a seafaring community with a growing music scene. There, he formed The Melodians with fellow singers Brent Dowe and Trevor Brevett. They had a number of hit songs during the late 1960s including ‘Little Nut Tree’, ‘Swing and Dine’ and ‘By The Rivers of Babylon.’
McNaughton was predeceased by Dowe in 2006 and Brevett away in 2013, but after recruiting Winston Dias and Taurus Alphonso, the Melodians continued to perform on stage.
McNaughton’s funeral service will be held on December 1 at Emmanuel Funeral Home (14300 W Dixie Highway) in Miami.
