In Kingston, musicians were developing a new sound, consisting of a unique mixture of mento (a kind of calypso) and rhythm and blues, which would later be called Jamaican Ska. Bob and Bunny were fascinated with America's rhythm and blues singers such as Fats Domino, and Louis Jordan. Most of all, the "Drifters", and particularly the "Impressions" had a significant impact on them. Like many other Jamaican teenagers, Bob found music a relief from the realities of ghetto life. By spending most of his time writing and practicing songs with Bunny, he attempted to escape the violent and inequitable world of Kingston (Lee 2).
All Kingston youths were looking for a way out of the endless cycle of poverty. Crime was a solution for some, known as rudies, but on the violent Kingston streets it almost certainly ended in their early death. When Bob attended school, he dreamed of music. However, schoolwork prepared him for unattainable goals, which would only result in empty solutions. The life he was destined for in Trench Town had nothing to do with math and science. By the time he was fifteen, he had quit school, and had become a welder's apprentice. He felt this way he could at least bring some money into the household, but he still dreamed of becoming a musician. However, no one took him too seriously, because at that time everyone wanted to become a recording star. The people Bob grew up with in the Kingston slums were drawn towards Joe Higgs, a popular musician. Higgs like many Kingston residents, was a member of a religious cult known as Rastafarianism (Nicholas49). This cult would later influence.
Bunny and then Bob and their music. Soon Bob would realize that he could not make any progress with his music without the help of someone else. He needed someone who could teach him techniques, like how to project his voice and to hold harmony. Higgs held free music clinics at his home in the ghetto, only one street away from Bob's home.