Ernest Ranglin (born June 19, 1932 in Manchester, Jamaica) is a guitarist whose session work at Studio One helped give birth to the ska genre in the late 1950s. Ranglin played on many classic Jamaican recordings, and he performed with artists such as Jimmy Cliff, Monty Alexander, Prince Buster, The Skatalites and Eric Dean's Orchestra. Some credit Ranglin with the invention of the core style of guitar play (sometimes known as scratching) found in nearly all ska music. He is one of the few musicians to blend jazz and reggae successfully. As child, Ranglin played ukulele, and in his teen years he started playing guitar. While still in his teens, he began performing live, locally and in the Bahamas, often with the young Monty Alexander. Charlie Christian was an early influence. In 1958, Chris Blackwell recorded a Ranglin single, which was the first Island Records release. In 1964, Ranglin, with Chris Blackwell and singer Millie Small recorded "My Boy