Montego Bay
View of Montego Bay from the hillside.
Montego Bay
Coordinates: 18°28′N 77°55′W / 18.467°N 77.917°W / 18.467; -77.917Coordinates: 18°28′N 77°55′W / 18.467°N 77.917°W / 18.467; -77.917
Country	Jamaica
County	Cornwall
Parish	St. James
Proclaimed city by act of Parliament	1980
Government
• Mayor	Glendon Harris
Population (2001)
• Total	96,488
• St. James Parish	175,127
Time zone	EST (UTC-5)

Montego Bay is the capital of St. James Parish and the second largest city in Jamaica by area and the fourth by population (after Kingston, Spanish Town and Portmore).

It is a tourist destination with duty free shopping, cruise line terminal and the beaches. The city is backed by picturesque low mountains.

History[link]

Christopher Columbus, when he first visited the island in 1494, named the bay Golfo de Buen Tiempo ('Fair Weather Gulf') The name "Montego Bay" is believed to have originated as a corruption of the Spanish word manteca ("lard"), allegedly because during the Spanish period it was the port where lard, leather, and beef were exported.^{[citation needed]} Jamaica was a colony of Spain from 1511 until 1655, when Oliver Cromwell's Caribbean expedition, the Western Design, drove the Spanish from the island.

Montego Bay c. 1820

During the epoch of slavery, from the mid-17th century until 1834, and well into the 20th century, the town functioned primarily as a sugar port. The island's last major slave revolt, the Christmas Rebellion or Baptist War (1831–1832) took place in the area around Montego Bay; the leader of the revolt, Samuel Sharpe, was hanged there in 1832. In 1975, Sharpe was proclaimed a national hero of Jamaica, and the main square of the town was renamed in his honor.

In 1980, Montego Bay was proclaimed a city by act of parliament, but this has not meant that it has acquired any form of autonomy as it continues to be an integral part of St. James Parish.

Today, Montego Bay is known for its large regional hospital (Cornwall Regional Hospital), port facilities, second homes for numerous upper class Jamaicans from Kingston as well as North Americans and Europeans, fine restaurants, and shopping opportunities. The coastland near Montego Bay is occupied by numerous tourist resorts, most newly built, some occupying the grounds of old sugar cane plantations with some of the original buildings and mill-works still standing. The most famous of these are the White Witch's Rose Hall and Tryall, both of which now feature world-class golf courses.

The infrastructure of the city is going through a series of explosive modernizations which once completed, aims to keep Montego Bay as a top destination in the Caribbean and the world. The Montego Bay Convention Centre, built on a large site near to the Rose Hall estate, was opened by Jamaican Prime Minister Bruce Golding on 7th January 2011.^[1]

Doctor's Cave Beach Club is a popular tourist destination in Montego Bay

Rose Hall Golf Club

The Baywest Shopping Center in Montego Bay

Westgate Plaza in Montego Bay

Transportation[link]

Roads[link]

Montego Bay is on the main A1 (Kingston to Lucea) road and the B15 (Montego Bay to Falmouth) road.^[2] It is well served by buses, mini buses and taxis, which operate from the Montego Bay Transport Centre.

Rail[link]

The now disused Montego Bay railway station served the Kingston to Montego Bay main line. The station opened c1894^[3] and closed in October 1992 when all passenger traffic on Jamaica's railways abruptly ceased.^[4]

Air[link]

Montego Bay is served by Jamaica's largest airport, the Sir Donald Sangster International Airport.

Air Jamaica and several North American and European airlines run their Caribbean hub in "MoBay" (Sangster International Airport) connecting the island with the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany, and Canada. The southern U.S. city of Miami can be reached within 70 minutes. The southern U.S. cities of Charlotte, Houston, Atlanta, and Tampa can be reached by nonstop flights in less than three hours. Other locations like Philadelphia, New York City, Boston, Washington D.C., and Chicago can be reached in under four hours.

Port[link]

There is a free port and cruise line terminal on a man-made peninsula jutting into the bay.

In popular culture[link]

The city was the subject of the namesake song by Bobby Bloom in 1970, later covered by Jon Stevens ten years later, and was revived by Amazulu to became a minor hit in the U.S. in September 1986.

Several scenes from the 1973 James Bond film Live and Let Die (in which Roger Moore appeared as Bond for the first time) were filmed around Montego Bay.^[5]

Climate[link]

See also[link]

• List of cities in the Caribbean
• Railway stations in Jamaica

Jamaica portal

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Montego Bay

• Aerial view
• Panoramio - Photos of the World

v t e Settlements in Jamaica For the definition of city, town, etc see Settlements in Jamaica. Cities Kingston Montego Bay Portmore Spanish Town Towns Above Rocks Albert Town Alexandria Alligator Pond Anchovy Annotto Bay Balaclava Bamboo Bath Bethel Town Black River Bluefields Bog Walk Brown's Town Buff Bay Bull Savanna Cambridge Cascade Cave Valley Chapelton Christiana Claremont Clarendon Park Clark's Town Coleyville Constant Spring Croft's Hill Dalvey Darliston Discovery Bay (Dry Harbour) Duncans Easington Ewarton Falmouth Frankfield Franklin Town Frome Gayle Golden Grove Gordon Town Grange Hill Green Island Guy's Hill Hagley Gap Hayes Hartland Highgate Hope Bay Hopewell, Hanover Islington Kellits Lacovia Linstead Lionel Town Little London Lluidas Vale Lucea Lucky Hill Maggotty Malvern Manchioneal Mandeville Maroon Town Mavis Bank May Pen Moneague Moore Town Morant Bay Nain Negril Newcastle Ocho Rios Old Harbour Bay Old Harbour Oracabessa Osbourne Store Petersfield Point Hill Port Antonio Port Esquivel Port Maria Port Royal Porus Race Course Richmond Rio Bueno Riversdale Rocky Point Runaway Bay Saint Ann's Bay Sandy Bay Santa Cruz Savanna-la-Mar Seaford Town Seaforth Sherwood Content Siloah Southfield Stonehenge Trinity Ville Ulster Spring Vineyard Town Wakefield Whitehouse Williamsfield Woodpark Yallahs Villages Accompong Aeolus Valley Airy Castle Barking Lodge Bog Big Woods Boscobel Bull Bay Carmel Cattawood Springs Cotterwood Duckenfield Duncans Haddersfield Hodges Hopewell Hall Hopewell, Clarendon Hopewell, Manchester Hopewell, Saint Andrew Hopewell, Saint Ann Hopewell, Saint Elizabeth Hopewell, Westmoreland Hopeton Long Wood Mavis Banks Nanny Town New Holland New Roads Nine Mile Old Pera Paynes Town Port Morant Roxborough, Manchester San San White Hall Wood Hall Neighbourhoods Kingston and St Andrew Allman Town Barbican Beverly Hills Bournemouth Gardens Camperdown Cassava Piece Cherry Gardens Cockburn Gardens Constant Spring Cooreville Gardens Cross Roads Delacree Park Denham Town Duhaney Park Eastwood Park Fletcher's Land Four Mile Grants Pen Greenwich Town Half Way Tree Hannah Town Harbour View Havendale Hope Pastures Hughenden Jack's Hill Jones Town Kencot Kingston Gardens Kintyre Liguanea Manley Meadows Mannings Hill Maxfield Meadowbrook Meadowbrook Estate Molynes Gardens Mona Mona Heights Mountain View Gardens Nannyville Gardens New Haven New Kingston Newport West Norbrook Norman Gardens Olympic Gardens Papine Patrick Gardens Pembroke Hall Perkins Estate Queensborough Queensbury Rae Town Red Hills Richmond Park Rockfort/Rennock lodge Rollington Town Seaview Gardens Shooters Hill Six Miles St Mary Stony Hill Three Mile Tivoli Gardens Trench Town Vineyard Town Washington Gardens Whitfield Town Woodford Park Ziadie Gardens

Robert "Bobby" Bloom (1945^[1] – February 28, 1974^[2]) was an American^[1] singer-songwriter. He is known best for being a one-hit wonder with the 1970 song, "Montego Bay," which was co-written with and produced by Jeff Barry.

Biography[link]

In the early 1960s, Bloom had been a member of the doo-wop group, The Imaginations, and sang lead on "Wait A Little Longer, Son." Bloom received a big break in 1969 when he was awarded a contract to write and record a jingle for Pepsi, paving the way for his later success with "Montego Bay." Bloom also played a role as a songwriter connected to the Kama Sutra/Buddah group of labels.^[3] He also co-wrote the song "Mony Mony" and with Jeff Barry he co-wrote "Sunshine" by The Archies, their fifth hit single in 1970.

Bloom worked as a sound engineer for musicians such as Louis Jordan and Shuggie Otis.^[3] Bloom often recorded demos of his songs at the recording studio of MAP City Records, owned by friends Peter Anders and Vincent Poncia Jr., with chief engineer Peter H. Rosen^[4] at the controls. Early solo projects included "Love Don't Let Me Down" and "Count on Me."^[3]

The recordings that followed his success with "Montego Bay" in 1970, "Heavy Makes You Happy", "Where Are We Going" and The Bobby Bloom Album all used the same combination of pop, calypso, and rock.^[3]

Bloom suffered from depression towards the end of his life.^[3] Bloom died on February 28, 1974, at the age of 28. He apparently shot himself while cleaning his gun.^[5] Jeff Barry was surprised to find out afterwards that he was the sole beneficiary of Bloom's life insurance policy.^[6]

Discography[link]

Albums[link]

• The Bobby Bloom Album (L&R Records, 1970), reached #126 in the U.S. Billboard 200 chart,^[7] and contained the following tracks:

1. "Careful Not to Break the Spell"
2. "Heavy Makes You Happy (Sha-Na-Boom-Boom)"
3. "Try a Little Harder"
4. "Oh, I Wish You Knew"
5. "Fanta"
6. "Heidi"
7. "This Thing I've Gotten Into"
8. "A Little on the Heavy Side"
9. "Brighten Your Flame"
10. "Give 'Em a Hand"
11. "Montego Bay"

• Where Are We Going (Buddah, 1971)

Singles[link]

• "Montego Bay" (1970) U.S. Billboard Hot 100 #8, UK #3
• "Heavy Makes You Happy" (1970) - UK #31
• "Where Are We Going" (1971) - U.S. #84

^{[1] [8]}

See also[link]

• List of 1970s one-hit wonders in the United States
• List of performers on Top of the Pops

References[link]

Queen Ifrica is a reggae singer and deejay from the hills above Montego Bay, Jamaica. She is the daughter of ska music legend Derrick Morgan but was raised by her mother and stepfather. Her career began in her home town in 1995 when she won a talent competition in a local club. From 1998 she began working with Tony Rebel's Flames productions and she has gone on to perform all over the world in music festivals including Reggae on the River in California and Reggae Sumfest in Jamaica. Queen Ifrica, royal empress, also known as Fyah Muma, took the music world by surprise, when in 1995 she turned on a scorcher of a performance in a talent contest at the aptly named Club Inferno in Montego Bay. The Queen beat all other contestants to win by a landslide. Her baptism in the business included a performance on Reggae Sumfest’s Singer’s Nite; coming onstage after a blazing set by Buju Banton, Queen Ifrica was not overawed by the occasion, but succeeded in commanding a good reception to her message.

Queen Ifrica joined the Flames Production camp in 1998 when, at a show in honour of the late Garnett Silk, Tony Rebel hearing the clean vocals and the unmistakable quality of her performance, asked her to join the Flames camp. Since then, she has worked her way up to being one of the premier female cultural reggae artists in the business. Queen’s stage craft, her repertoire, and her total artist development have bloomed over the years, ultimately making her into a staple in cultural reggae events around the world.

Queen has had several of her recordings become a staple on the airwaves, from the ever popular “Randy” to “Boxers and Stockings”. Queen Ifrica’s music resonates with conscious, purifying energy. She remains grounded in her way of life, her community and her children. She has a strong social consciousness, supporting her words with actions by being an active participant in several community outreach activities. Included in this is her work on the Committee for Community in the heart of Kingston’s inner-city, particularly the S-Corner community in Kingston 13. The United Nations’ celebration of the Year of the Volunteers in 2001 saw her teaming with Tony Rebel and others to deliver a song recognized by the United Nations as a gem.

With her haunting melodies, clear sound and fluid delivery, Queen Ifrica sets out to be a force to be reckoned with, creating timeless rebel music in the ilk of her father Derrick Morgan, Garnett Silk, Nina Simone and Miriam Makeba. Her aspiration is to make music that lives on.

A Rastafarian by faith, she is known for her work in the community and for writing songs about deeply personal subject matter in songs such as Below the Waist and Daddy.^[1][2][3] However, the subject matter of her work also has expressed homophobia, such as in Keep It To Yourself.^[4]