The Majestics was a band originally formed in the early 1960s as Jay Smith and The Majestics. With Jay Smith and Shawne Jackson on lead vocals, they soon became one of the leading big band groups in Toronto. Unfortunately, Smith’s stay was short, however while he was there they managed one single with Aragon Records in 1965 called “Driven from Home”. Once Smith left, they renamed the band Shawne Jackson and The Majestics.

The rest of the band was filled with talented musicians, many of whom had left other promising groups in order to join. Shawne Jackson’s brother left the Pharaohs to join, guitarist Fred Keelor came in from the Shays, John Crone and Bill Cudmore brought their saxophones when they left The Imperials and Robbie Lane and the Disciples respectively, and drummer Wes Morris left John Lee and The Checkmates. Also a part of the band was Eric Robertson on the piano, Chris Vickery on electric bass, Brian Lucrow on trumpet, Orlando Guerrari on trombone, and Russ Strathdee on baritone saxophone.

The band eventually became a fixture at the Bluenote Cafe, a popular club in downtown Toronto, where they were incorporating a complete horn section and adopting a R&B/soul feel. They caught the attention of ARC Records, and were signed by the label in 1966. It was then where they shortened their name to simply The Majestics. In the beginning they recorded some covers, and when those were received well they released their first album, Instrumental R&B, the following spring. With keyboardist Robertson serving as musical director as well, it contained nearly 40 minutes of Motown and British blues styled covers. Before the year was up, they released their second album for ARC, Funky Broadway. In 1968 they released two new albums, The Soul King Otis Redding- A Tribute, and Here Come Da Judge.

It was after these two albums that the original band broke up. Shawne Jackson formed the short-lived Stone Soul Children, before moving to the USA. It was there where she worked as a secretary and a model, while also trying to re-establish her music career. She signed with Playboy records, released an album along with a few singles, as well as married her husband Domenic Troiano. The Majestics were reformed in the 1970s by Brian Lucrow, which included Vickery, Strathdee, and Arnie Chycoski on horns. They continued touring for a few years, but then broke up, only to be reformed again in the late 1990s, where they would play the occasional gig in Toronto.