Toots Hibbert's catchy 54-46 is about being wrongfully accused
On the 5th anniversary of the great Fredrick "Toots" Hibbert's passing, Sunny Boy kept asking his dad what the lyrics of 54-46 meant. I overheard Dad telling him that Toots was wrongfully accused of possessing ganja.
Screech brakes. What?
I found a Gleaner article by musicologist Roy Black for his Music Diaries series, where he recounted an interview with Toots in 2009, who still found it too painful to relive the experience.
- Jamaica Gleaner, The Music Diaries, "5446 was Toots' prison number"
Trust me, the article is a good read.
To sum it up, the Maytals' were travelling on two motorcycles to a show in Ocho Rios. A policeman arrested the driver of one of the bikes, Jerry, for not having a pillion licence to take his passenger, Raleigh. Toots, on the other bike, was carrying luggage.
In order to bail Jerry, Toots would have to ride back to Kingston to pick up their manager and bring him to the Linstead police station. He left the luggage at the station.
When Toots returned, he was told that marijuana had been found in the luggage and he was arrested.
And give it to a police man?
I wouldn't do that."
"54-46 (That's My Number)" Toots and the Maytals. 1968
Toots says he was set up by senior musical actors to prevent him from going on tour after winning the festival competition in 1966.
So I was innocent of what they done to me."
"54-46 (That's My Number)" Toots and the Maytals. 1968
What an incredible piece of history that got overtaken by its pop-like catchiness.
Despite his death anniversary being overshadowed by a restive world population (Nepal, 9/11 and Charlie Kirk are dominating headlines), we recognise reggae pioneer Frederick Nathaniel Hibbert, whose cry of pain continues to define a genre.
Here's the original version that recounts Toots' experience being booked for prison:
Here's the one that tells the story of being framed:
