Singer David Isaacs, best known for the 1979 hit song Just Like The Sea, has died at the age of 63.

His sister, Beverley Isaacs, told The Gleaner that she discovered his body early Monday morning on the floor of their home in Denham Town, west Kingston.

"I was calling out to him and got no answer. When I went toward his room I saw him on the ground," Ms Isaacs said.

She said Isaacs was the eldest of her mother's 16 children and was born in Denham Town where he got his start as a singer in the late 1960s. His family has requested an autopsy to determine the cause of death.

Typical of Jamaican underground artistes in the 1960s, Isaacs recorded for different producers but never got his break until he was in his early 30s. The best known of his songs from that period was A Place In The Sun which was done for producer Lee 'Scratch' Perry.

A Place In The Sun and a cover of Stranger On The Shore were among several sides Isaacs cut for Perry's Upsetter label. His songs for the eccentric Perry were generally released in the United Kingdom, where the producer had a cult following among Caribbean immigrants and rebellious British youth.

It would not be until 1979 that Isaacs hit the mark with Just Like The Sea, a lovers rock number produced by Witty Reid that made the local charts. It remains his biggest hit.

Solo albums

Isaacs was also a member of roots-reggae group, The Itals, which he joined in 1997. He recorded five solo albums, the last of which, Happy Ending, was released in 1982.

David Isaacs is the latest death in the local music community in 2009.

Musicians Egbert Evans, Wycliffe 'Steely' Johnson and Sonny Bradshaw, have also died.

Beverley Isaacs said her brother is survived by 10 children.

- H.C.