About this concert
Stranger Cole is returning to Australia! 🇯🇲
This December, the beloved Ska, Rocksteady and Reggae pioneer Stranger Cole will embark on a nationwide tour taking in Perth, Adelaide, Sydney, Brisbane and Melbourne (of course).
MORE SKA! DECEMBER 2025 AUSTRALIAN TOUR
Friday 05 – The River, Margaret River
Saturday 06 – Lynott’s Lounge, Perth
Friday 12 – Black Bear Lodge, Brisbane
Saturday 13 – Brunswick Ballroom, Melbourne
Sunday 14 – Jive Bar, Adelaide
Friday 19 – Paddo RSL, Sydney
Stranger Cole is, simply put, a giant of Reggae. He is one of the most important living links to the birth of the Jamaican sound with a career full of hits spanning all eras beginning with the proto-Ska “Rough and Tough” for Duke Reid in 1962. His mid-sixties rocksteady duets with Patsy Todd and Gladdy Anderson, respectively, are considered to be a high point of the genre. In 1968, Stranger Cole’s “Bangarang” with its choppy keyboard and one-drop drumming marked the beginning of a new sound, Reggae.
Stranger Cole’s voice is distinctive, but his live performances are equally famous. Irrepressibly happy with boundless energy belying his 84 years on the planet, he connects with the audience like very few can.
By popular demand, Stranger Cole returns to Australia to perform the ska, rocksteady and reggae songs that have made him a living legend...
As he says; “MORE LIFE!”
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Stranger Cole Biography
Stranger Cole was born Wilburn Theodore Cole in 1945 in Kingston, Jamaica, receiving the nickname “Stranger” because he resembled no one else in his family.
Cole began his recording career with producer Duke Reid, scoring a hit with his 1962 debut, “Rough & Tough,” a full-tilt ska number with a wild harmonica solo. His Louis Jordan revival song, “Run Joe,” was a hit in 1965, and featured members of the Techniques on harmony vocals.
Stranger frequently used duet partners, most notably Millicent “Patsy” Todd and Ken Boothe, and later in his career, Gladstone Anderson (their version of “Just Like a River” is one of Cole’s finest songs), stemming from an apparent shyness in the studio, but Cole developed into a soulful vocalist, and his songs radiate a kid of joyful personality that is rare in most reggae.
Read MoreCole began his recording career with producer Duke Reid, scoring a hit with his 1962 debut, “Rough & Tough,” a full-tilt ska number with a wild harmonica solo. His Louis Jordan revival song, “Run Joe,” was a hit in 1965, and featured members of the Techniques on harmony vocals.
Stranger frequently used duet partners, most notably Millicent “Patsy” Todd and Ken Boothe, and later in his career, Gladstone Anderson (their version of “Just Like a River” is one of Cole’s finest songs), stemming from an apparent shyness in the studio, but Cole developed into a soulful vocalist, and his songs radiate a kid of joyful personality that is rare in most reggae.
Reggae
Ska
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