by Jo-Ann GreeneThe consummate vocal group, the Maytals are inextricably tied to Jamaicas musical history, and their long and prolific career has seen the group at the forefront of virtually every shift in musical direction up until the ragga era. Their influence has been so vast, both on their homeland and abroad, their canon of music so immense, that in many ways no band better represents the islands sound than their own. The Maytals formed in 1962, bringing together the vocal talents of Frederick Toots Hibbert, Nathaniel McCarthy (aka Jerry Matthias), and Henry Raleigh Gordon. Matthias was the only one of the trio with any name recognition. Born in 1939, in Portland, Jamaica, the singer had moved to Kingston and cut a single for producer Duke Reid in 1958, while still in his teens. However, the song wasnt successful enough for Reid to record the youngster again. Hibbert hadnt even gotten that far. Born in 1945, in May Pen, Clarendon, the y...