Nataraja's (Mostly) Reggae Review Blog

Lee Perry/Various: Voodooism

2009-01-31T17:58:00.000-08:00

Lee Perry/Various - Voodooism
Pressure Sounds CD 009

"Voodooism" was Pressure Sounds' first compilation of the work of the legendary Lee "Scratch" Perry at his equally legendary Black Ark studio (the others which followed it are "Produced and Directed by the Upsetter" and "Divine Madness... Definitely"). The tracks on it are all 7" vinyl rarities from the mid to late 70s, and span a wide spectrum of the Upsetter's inimitable sonic innovations, while remaining firmly within a cohesive theme of deep, spiritual roots.

The CD opens appropriately devotionally with "Psalms 20" by James Booms (aka James Brown), a half-sung, half-spoken recitation of the psalm over a riddim that is a close cousin to that of "War In a Babylon", if not quite close enough to be considered a version of it. The B-side, "Proverbs of Dub", is a typical Upsetter skank with snippets of both lead and background vocals fading in and out of the mix; somewhat by the numbers, but none the worse for that as an example of the unmistakeable Black Ark sound.

Errol Walker (who recorded 2 other Black Ark classics, "In These Times" and "John Public", to be found on Island's monumental "Arkology" box set) contributes "Better Future", an impassioned plea for an end to racism and senseless violence over a suitably swirling and energy-charged mix. "There will come a time when everyone shall know the real meaning of love, what a day that shall be..." There is some very nice echo on the vocal snippets in the bass-heavy dub.

Zap Pow's "River" is a real treat for fans of the thick, swirling, psychedelic sound of the Black Ark - its multi-layered, keyboard-saturated mix flows like its namesake, with jazzy bits of trumpet and trombone floating alongside dreamy, laid-back vocals that nonetheless carry a distant urgency. Its dub, "River Stone", while almost stripped of vocals, goes even deeper into reverberating, smoke-like textures of sound. "Chillout" music long before that was a genre.

The urgency comes back in full force on Earl Sixteen's "Freedom", an uncompromisingly dread chant for liberation and tribute to those "putting up the freedom fight", with clashing, metronomic percussion creating a heavy steppers feel without sacrificing the subtleties of sound that only Scratch could create. Sadly the sound quality on this tune is not great, with noticeable vinyl crackle, especially on the flipside version, "Right You", but the strength of the song itself more than makes up for it. The echo-laden dub emphasises the guitar melody.

"Mash Down" by the Roots (not to be confused with the hip-hop group of the same name), is a moving downtempo harmony tune, with a wistful feel reminiscent of Horace Andy's "Rome". The lyrics have that quintessentially Jamaican mix of testimony to tribulation, Biblical piety and paradoxical optimism, with the strong yet fragile, emotion-laden vocals reminiscent of "country style" groups such as the Maytones or Mighty Diamonds.

The Hombres' "Africa" is a repatriation tune with a dignified strength and devotional lyrics making it feel like a pan-African national anthem. The riddim chugs head-noddingly along behind the vocal, with just enough dissonance to lighten the tone without making it seem incongruous. The dub doesn't do as much in terms of sonic experimentation as many others on this set, but still brings a satisfied smile to the face.

Leo Graham's "Voodooism" is a sprightly tale of resistance against malicious witchcraft, typifying Perry's phase of interest in occult topics, with its half-pious, half-boastful proclamation of faith in divine protection against meddlers and traitors. "Dubism", its version, like many of the others here, masterfully showcases the perfect blending of elements into a warm, organic whole of the Upsetter sound.

"African Style" by the Black Notes is a deep, heavy roots tune, with a dark, deep bass and spooky rattling and hissing sound effects as well as ominous one-note piano lines in the mix, perfectly suiting the passionate demand for casting off Eurocentrism and reclaiming African identity. "Take back your English speaking, and give I I and I teaching". The reverb-drenched dub emphasises the dread, foreboding vibe - classic Black Ark roots to stand alongside that of better-known names such as Junior Delgado or

"Rasta Train", by "Lee & Jimmy" (Perry, of course, and, most likely, Riley), has a very different vibe, with an almost digital-sounding metronomic bassline and Scratch's half-sung, half-scatted toasting accompanied by humming female backing vocals. (Jimmy Riley, despite being credited, is not obviously in evidence, and it's the same riddim, though a different recording of it, to Raphael Green and Dr Alimantado's tune of the same name on "Arkology".) The next track is credited as "Yagga Yagga", also by Lee & Jimmy, but is in fact the dub to "Many a Call" by the Unforgettables, the only major mistake on this set; it's a nice dub, but unremarkable as Black Ark dubs go.

Watty & Tony's "Rise and Shine", however, is one of the great Black Ark oddities - a traditional-sounding Nyabinghi-style chant with obscurely religious lyrics over a fairly minimal percussive riddim, but with spooky atonal piping that distinguishes it from the many similar tunes and gives it the same kind of unnerving feel as parts of Scratch's self-produced, mostly-instrumental albums such as "Return of the Super Ape" or "Revolution Dub".

The set closes with Lloyd & Devon's "Wolf Out Deh" and its version "Shepherd Rod", another condemnation of hypocrites in timelessly Biblical terms sung in a blissful falsetto over a mellow downtempo riddim with warm, swirling keyboards and echoing percussion in the background, and of course Perry's quirky imitation of a wolf's howl among other vocal interjections.

Overall, this is definitely the rootsiest and in my opinion the strongest and most consistent of the Pressure Sounds Lee Perry compilations. While many of the artists and most of the songs on it are fairly obscure compared to, for example, those on "Arkology" or "Open The Gate", they are equally strong (if perhaps not quite reaching the gnostic heights of the latter) and this set amply shows that Perry was and is no respecter of fame or standing, giving the same devotion and inspiration to his productions for lesser-known singers as for the "big names". Any Perry fan, or indeed any roots fan, is unlikely to regret dabbling in a little "Voodooism"...

Lee Perry/Various - Divine Madness... Definitely

2008-06-02T13:25:00.000-07:00

Lee Perry/Various - Divine Madness... Definitely
Pressure Sounds PSCD32

This is the third in Pressure Sounds' series of compilations of Lee "Scratch" Perry productions, following "Voodooism" and "Produced and Directed". Like the others, it concentrates on tunes from the mid-70s prime of the legendary Black Ark studio; however, this compilation also comes with a bonus CD of radio interviews with Scratch (from one of which its title is taken). The tunes presented here are a varied selection, showing off a full selection of the proliferation of styles and trends at the Ark, yet bound together by the inimitable Perry magic.

D. D. Dennis's opener, "Woman and Money", is lyrically rather questionable to say the least, with its equation of women to currency as "the two most dangerous things in this world, that a man just can't live without". However, its chugging, R&B-influenced riddim is head-noddingly satisfying, and more so on its B-side, "10 Cent Shank", which, stripped of the vocal, is dominated by its boogie-style piano solo, making it one of the nicer, if less freaked-out, Perry produced instrumentals, and one which shows the heavy, if often overlooked, influence of 50s and 60s US music on his style.

"River To Cross" by the Viceroys also has an "old-fashioned" feel, though in a different way, with rocksteady, country and gospel being the points of reference. Simple yet effective spiritual harmonies make this an unashamedly joyful, if sadly rather short, track. In contrast, Milton Henry's "Sweet Taste Of Memory" is a fine example of the lovers side of the Black Ark, comparable to some of Perry's work with the likes of Junior Byles or George Faith, a soaring and oddly isolated vocal weaving its way around a multi-layered, esoteric yet laid-back mix, giving far more depth than such a lyric would usually command.

Eric Donaldson's "Stand Up" is a blissful roots classic, with the swirling, mesmerising Black Ark mixing turned up to full effect, featuring reverberating percussion and snippets of melancholy but somehow simultaneously joyful trombone. Eric is passionately charged with righteousness, yet relaxed and triumphant as only a Scratch production could make one, joyfully proclaiming "Don't you shed no tears for me, don't you cry no more... everything is alright". The dub is a particularly mad one, with cut-up bits of echoing vocal (not on the original tune), ringing cowbells and extreme use of reverb and distortion: Scratch in deranged genius mode to the fullest extent.

"So Many Ways" by Reggie Antonie is somewhat more conventional, although still rather odd in its combination of a cliched love song lyric, crooned in the style of an easy listening track from the 50s (Elvis and Sinatra both come to mind), laid over a typically slow and eccentric Upsetter skank. Again there is an odd isolation effect on the vocal, one of Scratch's trademarks on tunes by solo singers. The dub is basically a straight version overlaid by random percussion solos which seem (and probably are) totally improvised.

Time Unlimited (the group which first brought to fame Junior Delgado, later to record the magnificent roots epic "Sons Of Slaves" for Scratch) provide the repatriation tune "Africa We Are Going Home", punctuated by dramatically yelping and howling scat vocals (perhaps meant to imitate various African animals). The dub emphasises the jaunty keyboard skank, with ghostly echoes of the group vocals somewhere far in the background, but almost indiscernible on a casual listen. There is a dark yet playful, slightly cinematic mood here that is reminiscent of some Prince Buster ska tunes.

Bree Daniels's "Oh Me Oh My" is another fairly insignificant lovers lyric, yet again given weight and depth by Scratch's inspired mixing, that blissful, swirling vibe in effect again, with fuzzy keyboards in the foreground and distant echoes of percussion like waves crashing somewhere behind. The dub emphasises the fluid, mixed-up textures, bringing back the vocal and various instruments, then dropping them again, and extending for over a minute longer than the vocal to produce a whole which feels a lot more than the sum of its parts.

"Take Warning" by Ralph Haughton and the Ebony Sisters has a classic roots feel and is heavily reminiscent of Perry's work with Max Romeo, particularly in its use of the female vocal chorus, but also in Haughton's preacher-like phrasing and combination of Biblical and anti-gang violence lyrics, and in its satisfyingly solid Upsetter riddim. The version is also reminiscent of those to Max's well-known tracks, with the bass to the forefront, tantalising snippets of vocal (Perry plays on words by cutting the "war" from "warning") and striking, powerful rhythm guitar.

Jimmy Riley's "Sons Of Negus" is even dreader, the most uptempo track on this set, with a powerful, foreboding riddim, and Riley testifying passionately, over dramatic organ crescendos and in his trademark raw, soulful yet uncompromisingly rootsy voice, against false Rastas and acts of slander, while exhorting the true faithful to "stay red now, in the kingdom of dreadlocks". On the version, "Kingdom of Dub", Perry overdubs a spoken-word dialogue between a news reporter and a Rasta elder (played, of course, by Scratch himself), while the heavy riddim bubbles in the background.

The set finishes with a glorious, nearly 10 minute long instrumental version, by the inimitable Augustus Pablo (here playing both synth keyboards and melodica), to George Faith's "To Be A Lover", on which Pablo's playing is so lyrical in tone that, if you know the lyrics to the original (which can be found on the Island box set "Arkology"), it's almost impossible not to start singing along by the middle of the tune, while playful studio effects complement the rich, warm mood: a beautifully mellow closer to a satisfying, if not necessarily all heavy roots, selection which is guaranteed to leave the listener with a smile.

The accompanying radio interview CD features Scratch talking to reggae journalists Roger Eagle and Steve Barker, starting out in relatively straightforward style (talking about Coxsone Dodd, Bob Marley and other contemporaries), but soon getting into the typical Perry rhyming, preaching, quoting lyrics and cryptic plays on words forming a sometimes scary, sometimes funny, sometimes deep and sometimes seemingly wilfully stupid, yet always entertaining stream of consciousness; it's not actually one continuous interview, but edited together from various sessions of the seminal radio programme "On The Wire" from 1984, 1986 and 1991. While probably not something that most listeners would want to listen to particularly often, it's certainly a valuable and fascinating, if tantalising, document of the thought processes of one of the most legendary of eccentric geniuses, including his explanation of his infamous burning down of the original Black Ark and his comments on what is often regarded as his masterpiece, the 1977 album "Heart of the Congos": however, the highlight is Scratch's 3 minute freestyle toast over the super heavy "Ark of the Covenant" riddim from that album, which is track 10 on the disc.

Roots fans may be slightly mystified at first listen by the preponderance of lovers tracks on this set (although they will certainly not be disappointed by tunes like "Stand Up", "Take Warning" and particularly "Sons Of Negus"); however, despite some lyrical quality control issues, sonically this compilation represents the full spectrum of inspired insanity of the Black Ark, and is essential for Scratch fans who want to hear something beyond the better-known tunes from his immensely prolific 70s output. Another nice one from Pressure Sounds.

Misty In Roots - Roots Controller

2008-05-27T05:54:00.001-07:00

Misty In Roots - Roots Controller
Real World CD

"Roots Controller" is not exactly an original Misty in Roots album, and not exactly a retrospective compilation, but a sort of mixture of the two - containing 6 tracks newly recorded for its release in 2002, and 7 tracks from previously released albums (3 from 1983's "Earth", 2 from 1985's "Musi O Tunya", and 2 live tracks from the classic 1979 performance at the Counter Eurovision. It's also just about the only album by this classic UK roots band which is readily available, certainly on CD, as unlike their contemporaries Aswad and Steel Pulse, Misty have not yet had a comprehensive reissue program...

The 2002 tracks open the compilation, but there is very little about them to suggest that they were recorded any later than round about 1980, and without checking the dates it would be difficult to tell which were the "new" and "old" tracks. "True Rasta" opens in classic roots style with a spirited horn riff and lyric quoting from the Book of Revelation, as well as borrowing some lines (tho not the riddim) from 70s Black Ark classic "Vampire" by Devon Irons - a tune that fits well alongside any of Misty's early material.

"Cover Up", with its reference to the murder of Stephen Lawrence, is the only track betraying its relatively recent vintage - however, sonically it's pure late 70s business, with a horn refrain slightly reminiscent of the Specials' "Ghost Town" (itself derivative of Prince Buster's "Seven Wonders Of The World") giving it a slight 2 Tone feel. "How Long Jah" is a dark, powerful roots harmony tune, again with superlative horns, reminiscent of Israel Vibration's classic work with Tommy Cowan, and dissolving into a satisfyingly echo-heavy dub, with lyrics addressing the age-old Rasta themes of slavery and its legacy of poverty.

"Almighty (The Way)" is a slight down-turn in quality, with an overly bouncy and "happy"-sounding major key riddim somewhat at odds with its pious lyrics; however, it stops just short of cheesiness, and still carries conviction. "Dance Hall Babylon" is also a little disconcerting lyrically, with its blanket condemnation of newer dancehall music ("heathens, they don't praise Jah in the dance, all they want is sex and vanity") feeling rather reactionary and anachronistic, but still serving to nail their colours clearly to the table as uncompromising defenders of pure roots music, and the mellow, spacious steppers riddim is nice enough.

"On The Road" is another mellow, downtempo track with a celebratory feel, despite its lyrics telling of homelessness and hard times; it's a heartfelt tale of the UK immigrant experience that's reminiscent of the early UK roots collected on the Pressure Sounds compilation "Don't Call Us Immigrants". In all, I doubt any other reggae band was producing anything remotely near to as authentic late 70s to early 80s style roots in 2002 as Misty In Roots were, drawing a powerful contrast with contemporaries who tried to go dancehall or pop in the 80s and 90s, with usually cringeworthy results.

From the 1983 album "Earth" there is "Follow Fashion", another laid-back yet lyrically serious tune condemning escapism and the superficiality of commercial and pop culture, "New Day", with its blissful yet edgy feel, vocally reminiscent of Burning Spear in its almost trance-like devotional tone, accompanied by a subtle, slinky trumpet and echoing guitar, and "Dreadful Dread", with sprightly trumpets and a soaring, floating lead vocal lightening its pleading sufferation lyric; it is obvious that Misty's sound was already something of an anachronism in 1983, ignoring the more minimal, bass-heavy early dancehall sound that was dominating Jamaica at the time for a lush, layered international roots sound drawing on the likes of Culture and the aforementioned Spear and Israel Vibration.

"Musi O Tunya", the follow-up 2 years later, provides 2 contrasting tracks, "Ireation" with its powerful, uptempo skank using a relatively minimal soundscape of bass, echo and percussion - perhaps a slight adaptation to the times, but still clearly UK and uncompromisingly roots, while the title track, named after the original name of the waterfall renamed "Victoria"(?) by the British empire, has a nostalgic, elegiac feel, paying tribute to African heritage, the mood only slightly interrupted by some possibly ill-advised synth keyboards.

However, the real highlights of this set come at its end: the 2 live tracks from 1979's "Live At The Counter Eurovision" (itself a legendary concert and a coming together of several strains of anti-imperialist musical radicalism), which are among the heaviest live reggae tracks on record anywhere (up there with Bob Marley's "Live At The Lyceum"). "Man Kind" opens hard, with a horn riff charged like living electricity, followed by an irresistible skank and a fiery, impassioned vocal delivering a lyric of apocalyptic warning with an ambience of unparalleled power and dread; even during the long instrumental section the vibe remains utterly compelling.

"Ghetto Of The City" is, if possible, even heavier, punctuated by gasps and yelps of pure passion, and a depth of emotion in the delivery of its testimony to poverty and oppression that is almost overwhelming, accompanied by the same inspired organist. This music feels like it has the force to utterly destroy the "ignorant minds, corrupted and confused" that it chants down. Both tracks are almost impossible not to dance to.

Overall, while it has a couple of weaker tracks, this is a compilation of very strong roots music that shows a remarkable consistency considering the tunes on it span a period of over 20 years. It is, however, frustrating in its tantalising offering of a few selections from albums which are almost impossible to get hold of, and it would have been nice for Misty's original albums, in particular "Live At The Counter Eurovision", to have got a full release rather than being plundered to seemingly provide filler tracks for a new album, when Misty were very clearly on form enough to easily provide a full album's worth of roots equalling their older output. Still, while the more laid-back studio tracks take a few listens before they start to come out of the shadow of the ultra-heavy live killers, this is a set that is unlikely to disappoint those who know what they like, if what they like is Roots.

Jah Stitch: Original Ragga Muffin (1975-77)

2008-05-20T14:00:00.000-07:00

Jah Stitch: Original Ragga Muffin (1975-77)
Blood & Fire, BAFCD010

"Original Ragga Muffin" is a collection of the tunes cut by foundation DJ Jah Stitch in the classic rockers/steppers period of the mid to late 70s, primarily for the near-ubiquitous kingpin producer Bunny Lee (many of whose riddims here were recut incredibly prolifically in the contemporary dancehalls), but also featuring 2 tunes cut for the equally legendary Vivian Jackson aka Yabby You.

The opening track, "Give Jah The Glory", is a recut of the riddim to Burning Spear's "Invasion" (aka "Wa Da Da"), on which another singer (possibly Ronnie Davis) makes a creditable attempt at covering the usually hard if not impossible to cover well Spear. Stitch chants devotion to Jah as well as judgement on Babylon over a typically Spear-style rolling horn riff and a very satisfying deep, dubby mix.

"African People (3 in 1)" is over Johnny Clarke's recut of the perennial classic "Declaration of Rights", in which Stitch takes as his starting point the words "Africa", "Zion" and "Ethiopia", deconstructing each letter by letter into a startling improvised sermon of symbology, one of the most inventive DJ tunes to come out of the roots period.

"Ragga Muffin Style" is Stitch's take on Horace Andy's anthemic "Money Money (The Root Of All Evil)", its sharp horn riff and rumbling rockers bassline mixed into raw dub deconstruction while the DJ's vocal is delivered in an almost hypnotically charged dread bass tone, affirming his authentic dread credentials as a "raggamuffin" (one of the first uses of the term "ragga") from the ghetto.

Horace's magnificent "Zion Gate" and Stitch's accompanying toast "Every Wicked Have To Crawl" are presented next as a nearly 7 minute long 12" discomix, with both singer and DJ masterfully riding one of Lee's deepest, heaviest roots riddims, with dread horns rolling like a river. Stitch riffs on Andy's Revelation-inspired message of warning against iniquity, proclaiming that "Righteousness shall stand for all who know that Satan kingdom got to fall" and chanting devotion to the "red, gold and green" over eerily floating snippets of a typically spellbinding "sleepy" vocal.

Next are 2 back-to-back toasts over Johnny Clarke's bass-heavy Bunny Lee-produced version of Bob Marley's much-versioned "Crazy Baldheads" - "Watch Your Step Youthman" following the lyrical theme of the original by calling down fiery judgement on gunmen and warmongers, while "Crazy Joe" re-uses the riddim for a playful attack on rival producer Joe Gibbs, branded here as a "follow fashion monkey" while Stitch and Lee are "the original foundation in dis ya record creation".

"No Dread Can't Dead" is a joyful, defiant proclamation of survival recorded following Stitch's recovery from a near-fatal shooting in 1976, with floating backing vocals and echoing percussion making this one of Bunny Lee's more complex and satisfying mixes. "Sinners Repent Your Soul" appears at first to be a return to stern Old Testament themes, over a rather more minimal mix of the Johnny Clarke song of the same name, but Stitch soon segues from the religious to the radical: "I and I don't want to be left behind in this poverty and frustration... must be a revolution". Repentance and revolution are elided together in a classic example of roots reggae's fusion of secular and spiritual radicalism.

"Judgement" is a version to Yabby You's mighty, apocalyptic "Judgement On The Land" (which can be found on the utterly essential BAF compilation "Jesus Dread"), with its thunderous bass perfectly complemented by righteous horns and ethereal flute, over which Stitch demands in uncompromising terms freedom "from all captivity", while "Militant Man" keeps up the heavy cultural vibes defending the true, righteous and militant Rasta against hypocrites and impostors over an appropriately martial steppers riddim, with nice echo on the piano and snare drums.

"Real Born African" takes another well known Johnny Clarke tune, "Roots Natty Congo", and elaborates on its theme of African diaspora identity, adding to it a conviction in divine guidance for the "chosen people", regardless of circumstances, with some Big Youth-style hollering and swirling synth effects, while "Cool Down Youthman" is yet another biblically styled warning to the youth to stay away from violence, with a Tubby's mix particularly heavy on the echo and reverb.

"African Queen" is the other Vivian Jackson produced track, focusing (atypically for the man known for being the epitome of dread eschatology) on the mellower side of the roots vibe, with a warm, celebratory affirmation of black feminine beauty, in which Stitch quotes Curtis Mayfield and The Last Poets over lazy, muted horns and keyboards.

The set closes with "King Of The Arena", a celebratory (in a different way) cut to the well-versioned classic riddim (one of the first to make Bunny Lee famous in the 70s dancehall landscape), mixing Rastafari themes with joyful sound system boasting, neatly showcasing in one tune the two sides of Stitch's toasting personality.

Very nicely packaged, with typical Blood & Fire photo-collage artwork, and interviews with Stitch himself giving his own story of the making of the tunes, this is a compilation that is sure to find favour with any fans of DJing in the classic 70s roots style. It also nicely complements B&F's first compilation, "If Deejay Was Your Trade", which features several more of Stitch's (alongside other DJs') tunes cut for Lee. Together, these 2 compilations make the ideal introduction to the great mid-70s Jamaican DJ explosion.

The Twinkle Brothers - Countrymen

2008-02-12T17:26:00.000-08:00

The Twinkle Brothers - Countrymen
Virgin Frontline CD CDFL29

Despite having a name sounding like children's entertainers or a cheesy cabaret act, the Twinkle Brothers (led by brothers Norman and Ralston Grant) are in fact one of the heaviest and most principled roots bands of the 70s right up to the present day. Similarly, despite the tourist brochure looking artwork of their 1979 "Countrymen" album, it is a lyrically wide-ranging, yet totally musically uncompromised, album of bass-heavy steppers sure to please any fan of late 70s roots.

"I Don't Want To Be Lonely Any More" sets the scene with its heavy, intense intro and deep bass riddim. The lovers lyric is delivered by Norman with a passionate intensity rarely seen in reggae, reminiscent of 60s US soul singers, but entirely Jamaican. The foreboding horn riff and heavy drumbeats make this a riddim that would be perfectly suited for an apocalyptic roots lyric.

"Patoo", while lyrically somewhat cryptic, rides a similarly insistent riddim, with prominent syndrums and bird call effects, and the trademark Twinkle bass sound that gives the tune a feeling of floating in deep space. While nice enough in itself, however, it effectively serves as an intro for the undisputed sound system killer that is "Never Get Burn", a deadly steppers anthem which opens with a thunderous rewind sound effect. This tune is simply epic - a Biblically inspired anthem proclaiming transcendence of death with testimonies of the Old Testament prophets surviving captivity in Babylon. "Jah protect I and I bassline!"

"Free Us" is equally transcendent and anthemic, with a majestic, soaring horn line courtesy of the great Dave Madden, and lyrics of deep eco/theological mysticism. "Set us free from the garbage of decay to enjoy the liberty of today". Ralston, his voice more fragile than his bother's, takes lead vocal here, delivering a particularly moving, ethereal performance. The dub, with its deep, swirling echo and emphasis on the horns, extends the mystical journey still further into an intensely gnostic soundscape, with percussion, guitar and keyboards fracturing and reflecting off one another until the bass overwhelms them. A truly heavy musical experience.

"Jah Kingdom Come" is more minimal, with Norman back on militant, righteous form, chanting judgement on false preachers and deceitful politicians, and a fairly minimal, almost Nyabinghi style backing, leavened by judicious application of horns and keyboards, but clearly showing the Brothers' uncompromising Rasta worldview and refusal to deal with "politricks".

"Since I Threw The Comb Away" is a passionate testimony of the social rejection of Rastas by everyone from parents to employers. The riddim is as intense and charged with fiery energy as the vocals, making this another classic, rousing steppers anthem, fuelled by the same deep faith in the face of adversity as "Never Get Burn". "Go away with your victimisation, your discrimination!"

"One Head" warns piously against intoxicants, in particular alcohol, a common if somewhat strange theme among particularly religious devotees of Rastafari. The springy, slightly Lee Perry-ish sounding keyboards and clattering percussion interweave nicely for a mellow vibe despite the rather stern message. The strangely titled "Bite Me" is actually a rather moving, bittersweet love song, with particularly nice harmonies and plaintive guitar work, perhaps harking back to the group's origins in the rocksteady era. Another mellow tune, evoking the rural vibe alluded to in the title.

The album closes, arguably too soon, with another heavy roots tune, the apocalyptic "Babylon Falling", on which Norman sounds almost tortured in his proclamation of the coming fall of urban civilisation. "I and I sit upon the mountaintop and watch how Babylon falling"; a deeply prescient vision of economic and ecological disaster which rural, agricultural communities will survive, but which will leave cities as wastelands - a message which, albeit somewhat hidden under theological metaphor, is there in the whole album for those who have ears to hear it, explaining the significance of its title.

Like all Virgin Frontline reissues, this comes exactly as it did on the original LP. It would have been nice to have a few bonus tracks in the form of more dubs or (particularly) DJ versions (which definitely exist of several tracks here). However, the sound quality is excellent, and this is still a very strong album of hard yet soulful roots - one of the relatively few reggae LPs which are solid from beginning to end. May it never get burn, nor get eaten by no worm.

Prince Jammy/Various: The Crowning Of Prince Jammy

2008-02-10T18:51:00.000-08:00

The Crowning Of Prince Jammy
Pressure Sounds CD PSCD25

"The Crowning Of Prince Jammy" is a collection of some of the man born Lloyd James's greatest productions from the late 70s and early 80s, while he was emerging from his "Prince" status as King Tubby's protégé and establishing his own identity as a producer alongside contemporaries such as Jah Thomas and Junjo Lawes, but before the digital revolution of 1985 allowed him to undisputedly claim his position as "King".

The set opens with Black Uhuru's " King Selassie I" (aka "I Love King Selassie"), taken from their Jammy-produced first LP "Love Crisis"; this appears to be the original 1977 version, rather than the overdubbed 1979 version, and is a classic example of the early Uhuru, and Waterhouse, sound. (It can also be found on the Greensleeves re-release of both versions of "Love Crisis"/"Black Sounds Of Freedom").

Next up is Wayne Smith's evocative "Time Is A Moment In Space", a mournful song of lost love which in fact originates from an old country and western tune. A wonky, spooky keyboard is reminiscent of some of Lee Perry's later Black Ark work (eg. Danny Hensworth's "Mr Money Man"), but the heavier, more monotone bass vibe of early dancehall is already evident. The dub has the classic Tubby's echo techniques, but in a pared-down, strong yet subtle context.

Johnny Osbourne's rousing steppers anthem of theological devotion, "Jahovia" was, oddly, not released as a single at the time, but only on the "Fally Ranking" LP. "The Earth is the Lord and the fullness thereof, but it's heating like a melting pot", and the riddim is suitably hot and unrelenting. The version is a particularly bass-heavy, echo-laden workout, "warrior style".

Half Pint's "Puchie Lou" is a completely different vibe, breaking the chronological sequence by skipping forward to 1983; it's a bouncy, melodic love song in an uptempo yet mellow dancehall style, Half Pint showing the lighter side of the Waterhouse singing style. Mighty Rudo's "Waterhouse", a joyful tribute to both the studio and district, is on a similar riddim, despite being from after the birth of digital reggae in 1985. The lyrics resonate with localism of a wholly positive kind and a loved yet never idealised community, while at the same time pleading for an end to violent "political" rivalries conducted on a petty parochial basis: "I'm not here to build no strife, I just want to see everyone staying alive... I don't want to live in the sophisticated kind of cities..."

Earl Zero's "Please Officer", however, takes it straight back to the dark side with another rumbling, bass-heavy steppers riddim and a strident lyric of police brutality which pulls no punches in its condemnation of the whole Babylonian system. This 12" version is extended with a full-length dub to over 7 minutes, and is followed by its equally long and equally heavy B-side instrumental "Pablo In Moonlight City", one of Augustus Pablo's dreadest melodica pieces.

Half Pint returns with "Mr Landlord", over the classic "Hypocrites" riddim, its strong reality lyrics attacking exploitative ghetto landlords leavened by an irrepressibly funky horn riff. The following dub is the one which gives this compilation its title, a thunderous version to Junior Reid's classic "Jailhouse". Why the vocal of this is not included here, I don't know; however, enough snippets of it remain to make the tale of unjust imprisonment and torture comprehensible, adding an extra layer of paranoia to the spine-chillingly dread, wild and multi-layered dub mix; a true classic of "versioning" reminiscent in feel of Black Uhuru at their darkest and most industrial.

"Mr Vincent" by the fairly unknown group Black Crucial is another anti-landlord testimony of poverty, again lightened by the major key sweetness of its riddim, with a particularly nice piece of piano floating in the mix. Johnny Osbourne's "Mr Marshall", however, is another relentlessly heavy steppers tune, opening with powerful crashing of guitars and cymbals and propelled by militant double drumming, the stridently passionate lyric chanting down all warmongers and hypocritical authority figures, making no distinction between state and gangland hierarchies; another of Osbourne's most crucial tunes from the "Fally Ranking" album.

"Return of Jammy's Hi-Fi" is a masterful dub deconstruction of Horace Andy's classic Tubby/Harry J produced "Pure Ranking", showcasing the heaviness and inventiveness of Jammy's mixing, with the blissful keyboard melody melted down and echoed into wild, tantalising swirls of percussion, without even needing to retain any of the vocal. Sugar Minott's "Give The People What They Want" is probably the least memorable track here, due to its relatively conservative (at least in comparison to most of the ultra-heavy tunes here) mix, but still a nicely mixed and sweetly voiced, if rather staid, plea for rights and justice.

The closing track, Hugh Mundell's "Jah Fire Will be Burning", is, while not having as much radical studio deconstruction as most tracks here, still a highlight of the set for being simply one of the heaviest, most apocalyptically dread roots tunes ever recorded, with Nyabinghi style drumming, deep lo-fi bass, and a haunting, majestic trumpet underneath one of the Blessed Youth's darkest and most passionate vocals, describing, in imagery straight from the Book of Revelations, the downfall and bleak aftermath of industrial society. "The smoke of the dreadful furnace turns the sun and the air into darkness... what a great, great day that shall be." Prescient, terrifying and revelatory.

This is by far one of the heaviest collections of late 70s/early 80s tunes out there; almost every track on it is a killer for anyone who likes music which is dark, tense and political, yet also joyful and spiritual. While there are many other Prince/King Jammy compilations around, many of them overlapping with this one, you cannot go wrong with this as an introduction to one of the foremost second-generation reggae producers. My only (slight) gripe with it is the non-inclusion of the original vocal of Junior Reid's "Jailhouse" (I'm still looking for that on CD), which seems odd considering its dub provided the title for the compilation; however, this album proves Pressure Sounds' status as a worthy ascendant to the throne of reggae reissue labels.

The Chantells & Friends - Children Of Jah 1977-79

2008-02-09T18:04:00.000-08:00

The Chantells & Friends - Children Of Jah 1977-79
Blood & Fire CD BAF028

"Children of Jah" brings together some of the finest roots productions of Roy Francis, released on his Phase One label in the late 70s. While there are only 10 tracks here, unlike most Blood & Fire compilations, they are all 12" discomixes, and thus all well over 5 minutes (the longest reaching 8 minutes), meaning that this release is better value for money than that would imply, with over an hour of music here.

The harmony trio The Chantells, despite giving their name to the compilation (as perhaps the best-known act on it), only provide 3 tracks here, as opposed to 4 by the solo singer Lopez Walker, the first of which, "Children of Jah" is extended with its DJ cut, "Time To Unite" by U Brown. "Children of Jah" has sweet yet raw harmonies, somewhat reminiscent of Israel Vibration, but also of older "country style" groups such as the Maytones, the lyrics on the classic Rasta theme of survival of the righteous and innocent despite suffering and exploitation. U Brown picks up the theme and runs with it, and while his lyrics may be somewhat clichéd, his effortless delivery is still a pleasure to listen to, and the riddim is a warm and sweet head-nodder with a lazy Ansel Collins organ lick.

Lopez Walker (oddly often described as "Spear-style", despite a greater vocal similarity to someone like Prince Alla) delivers "Jah Jah New Garden" over a similarly warm and blissful, downtempo yet still powerful riddim, with passionate conviction in his voice aided by floaty piano and strong yet subtle echo in the dub portion of the tune.

Errol Davis's "Path I Have Taken" is a re-titled "Free Speech and Movement", originally by the Royals, combining liberation theology with condemnation of the "heathen", yet uplifting rather than doom-laden in tone, with a punchy horn riff and mellow, rolling guitar work. The dub contains nicely worked echoed vocal snippets along with reverb to keep the vibes mellow yet complex enough not to be dull.

"Assemble Not Thyself" by The Terrors, however, is one of the true highlights of this set, a beautifully anthemic piece of "country style" roots in which the relatively unknown vocal group bring the great Jamaican art of harmonising to one of its undisputable pinnacles. A stern lyrical warning against associating with "sinful people", laced with Biblical imagery of destruction, it nonetheless transcends its arguably conservative message to produce something genuinely moving and timelessly powerful which could as easily be seen as a slightly veiled astute observation of the inherent hypocrisy of "democratic" state politics. While less rich and multi-layered than Scratch's work on that album, the riddim is reminiscent in its ancient-feeling dignity combined with blissful transcendence of "The Heart Of The Congos", and the Terrors nearly equal that group in the beauty of their vocals. A track every reggae harmony fan needs to own.

Walker returns with "Send Another Moses", another cut to the same riddim as "Jah Jah New Garden", again on an Old Testament-inspired theme of repatriation, but this time calling for a revolutionary saviour in much more martial terms, "to whip them [the "heathen" again] with the rod of correction, to throw them in the pit of destruction". The dub is choppier and more kinetic than the first cut.

Steve Boswell & Jah Berry's vocal/DJ combination piece "Cool Rastaman Cool" is the most uptempo track here, with a propulsive, syncopated riddim (Sly Dunbar in "metronomic" style on drums), equally suited for head-nodding or energetic stepping, and a righteous lyric warning against deception and violence, accompanied by complementary solos on both guitar and piano. Berry's toast is in the tough late 70s style which foreshadowed the transition from roots to dancehall, punctuated by charismatic whoops and yelps, and keeping on going for a full 4 minutes, equal in length to the vocal.

The Chantells return with "Desperate Time" (re-using the riddim from their previous lovers hit "Waiting In The Park"), the sweet riddim combining with the stark lyric to produce a tune which manages to uplift while testifying to harsh, bitter reality. Franklin "Bubbler" Waul's fluid, tinkling piano is showcased on the lazy, mellow dub.

Lopez Walker's "Trial Days" has a similar message of injustice and suffering, combined with wry proverbial condemnation of the oppressors who punish without thought: "the horse who gallop on the track no care what him back foot say". Again the depressing tone of the lyrics is mitigated by the sweetness and warmth of the music and the subdued yet blissful feel of the mixing.

The Chantells' last tune, "Natty Supper", is the other highlight of this set, a powerful, passionate testimony of community and celebration as resistance, and of the divine power to be found in the natural cycles of growth and life, providing a bounty of food for all; an ethos deeply rooted in the understanding that food and therefore agriculture is essential to human life, and, despite the obfuscations of politics and economics, the only true key to survival. Anthemic horns and an inspired dub mix drenched with swirling reverb and echo confirm this tune's status as a roots classic (and probably one of the best tunes possible to cook or serve a meal to).

"Fly Away", Lopez Walker's final track, is the only one in which his vocal style is in any way similar to or imitative of Burning Spear, but he still does not sound like a Winston Rodney copyist, just someone using the same kind of rootsy, semi-improvisatory vibe. The wistful lyric again draws on the concept of a transcendent "promised land", far beyond everyday sorrows, and is complemented by a bluesy guitar and another laid-back, head-swaying riddim.

Like 129 Beat Street, this compilation profiles artists who are relatively unknown (at least outside serious reggae collector circles), but entirely comprises top-quality, sophisticated yet authentic roots to rival anything by more familiar artists. Another compilation which, while perhaps likely to be overlooked due to its lack of a "big name" and its short number of tracks, is certain not to disappoint fans of classic 70s roots and harmony.

Junior Byles & Friends - 129 Beat Street: Ja-Man Special 75-78

2008-02-09T16:18:00.000-08:00

Junior Byles & Friends - 129 Beat Street: Ja-Man Special 75-78
Blood & Fire CD BAF023

This Blood & Fire collection brings together some of the crucial, yet relatively obscure, deep roots music released by Dudley "Manzie" Swaby on the Ja-Man label, which, while perhaps lesser known than that from "big-name" producers of the same time period such as Lee Perry, Augustus Pablo or Yabby You, is easily in the same rank as deep, uncompromising yet complex and sophisticated roots music. While there are only 11 tracks here, fewer than on most BAF releases, the majority of them are extended versions made from the vocal and dub sides of original 7"es.

The first 4 tracks are by all voiced by Junior Byles (hence the title credit, although arguably it really ought to be "Manzie & Friends"), who was already well known for his work with Perry, but 2 are in duet with the much lesser known Rupert Reid. "Chant Down Babylon" opens the set with its tough, propulsive riddim and somewhat stereotypical, but passionately delivered, rootsy lyric. There is a nice piano lick and the dub portion emphasises the hardness of the bassline and steppers drum pattern while keeping in a few vocal snippets. (It would have been nice to hear a DJ version of this tune, as the riddim feels especially suited to it.)

Byles's 2 solo tunes which follow are also solid roots, but somewhat mellower; "Know Where You're Going" having a triumphantly celebratory Rastafari lyric and sweetly harmonising backing vocals (and again Ansell Collins's piano expertise in evidence), while "Pitchy-Patchy", with its wryly off-key guitar and syncopated hand percussion, is similarly devotional in the face of suffering and opposition to Rasta. Both showcase the soulful, gospel-influenced side of Byles's expressive voice.

The second Byles/Reid duet, "Remember Me", is probably the deepest roots tune on this set, with a heavy, cyclical-feeling riddim, clashing yet muted cymbals and a powerful, sparing yet insistent piano riff, underpinning a vocal delivered with majestic conviction and a devotional yet apocalyptic lyric reminiscent of the best later 70s work of Yabby You: "Mighty archangels stood right there before I, coming for to carry I away... remember me, when you reach Mount Zion high". The dub uses echo and reverb, judiciously rather than excessively, and a solo from Ansell to further enhance the powerful, righteous dread vibes: a true heavy roots classic.

Reid's solo tune, "See The Dread Deh", is lighter in tone, yet still dread, with playful, joyous horns and a fragile yet assured vocal, somewhat reminiscent of Eric Donaldson.; theistic devotion along with celebration of the cultural visibility of Rastafari again being the lyrical theme. The dub is a particularly nice one, masterfully showcasing each horn part as well as the percussion, with a swirling, echoing feel similar to, yet distinct from, both King Tubby's and Black Ark era Lee Perry's mixing; according to the sleeve notes, it was originally the B side to a Jah Woosh DJ cut, sadly not presented here, to the same riddim.

Pablo Moses's "One People" is another highlight with a dark, brooding deep roots vibe nicely counterpointing the poignant yet optimistic unity lyric, soaked in the same feeling of heartfelt spiritual devotion as most of the material on this compilation. "Be not misled by false prophecy... till we meet in the Promised Land, may Jah hold you in the palm of His hand". Lloyd Parks's heavy, grindstone bass is to the fore in the dub, echoed drumbeats resounding as if in a deep abyss.

Bim Sherman delivers "Mighty Ruler" over a re-cut of the Heptones' Studio One classic lovers tune "Tripe Girl", once again passionately defending the Rastafari movement against its detractors: "men of your type, get out of my sight, you don't know how to unite, you only know to fuss and fight". Collins is on organ instead of piano here, his sweet-sounding riffs perfectly complementing the rolling, head-nodding bassline, with a seamless transition into warm, deep dub that - like most of the extended versions here - makes the vocal and version feel like they were originally intended as a single piece, as for a 12" rather than a 7".

Dave Robinson's "My Homeland", another tune with a warm, joyful horn section, is a poignant repatriation lyric delivered in a style very reminiscent of Dennis Brown's contemporary self-productions: another righteous yet smile-inducing head-nodder, with a strong feeling of depth and interplay between the instruments. The dub again shows Manzie's masterly yet subtle mixing technique. "Wild Goose Race", a very much old school style DJ piece by Brigadier Jerry, is slight yet nice, with some very pleasing dubbing and percussion behind a laconic delivery.

"See A Man's Face", a cover of the Horace Andy tune by Neville Tate, has a powerful uptempo roots feel to complement his vocal, which, while not bearing a particularly close resemblance to Andy's in tone, has the unmistakeable mark of his influence in it, as well as in the structure of the lyric, a pertinent warning against falseness and hypocrisy., advising the listener that appearances are deceptive and things are not always what they seem. The closing track is another DJ track, "So Long" by U Brown, which incorporates elements of horns, percussion and piano into a richly satisfying backing for his effortless flow and well-trodden yet perennial repatriation lyric.

The whole of this set is, while perhaps somewhat one-note lyrically, archetypal roots music of the late 70s period, combining righteousness with subtlety and sophistication in musical construction, and while relatively little-known to those outside the serious roots fanatic scene, will be enjoyable to anyone who likes music of that era. The sleeve notes are well-designed and extensive (as with all of Blood & Fire's releases), with my one criticism being the rather frustrating references to tunes and versions not on this set, at least some of which could have been included given its running time of only 52 minutes. While the label seems, unfortunately, to be on a possibly permanent hiatus, if you are a roots fan find this compilation second hand and buy without hesitation!

Lee Perry & The Upsetters - Ape-Ology

2008-02-01T18:37:00.000-08:00

Lee Perry & The Upsetters - Ape-Ology
Trojan CD TJBDD361

This 2CD set from Trojan - clearly named in response to Island's "Arkology" - collects together 3 classic Lee Perry albums from the height of the legendary Black Ark era (1976-1978). "Scratch The Super Ape" (also released as simply "Super Ape" on Island, but here presented in its original JA mixes and running order) is a mostly-dub album using riddims from well-known Black Ark vocal tunes; "Roast Fish, Collie Weed & Cornbread" is a vocal LP by Scratch himself, and "Return of the Super Ape" is a mixture of the two. The second CD also contains some hitherto-rare bonus tracks from the same period.

"Scratch The Super Ape" opens, in its original order, with "Dread Lion", a scene-setting tune with a dark dub ambience, fuelled by horns, melodica and flute as well as vocal chant from The Heptones, and snippets of scat and effects. It feels like Scratch introducing himself with his dread credentials: "king of the jungle, king of the forest, strong like iron"... "Zion Blood" carries on the same dread, triumphant vibe over Devon Irons's "When Jah Come" riddim: "African blood is flowing through my veins, so I and I shall never fade away", dub-blurred drumbeats and lazy yet heavy brass in the rich background.

"Three In One" has more of a poignant yet playful vibe, sounding as if it might in its original form have been a love song, turned instead to a mellow, pastoral-feeling tribute to the "African chalice". "Curly Dub", despite its name, has no relation to Junior Byles's "Curly Locks", being instead a mostly-instrumental dub with some snippets of what sounds like Perry himself talking/scatting and a slow yet insistent trumpet, which later on in the tune turns out a virtuoso solo which is frustratingly half-hidden behind multiple layers of dub. "Patience Dub", as its name suggests, is another slow yet insistent dub, with half-heard vocal samples, half-muted call-and-response horns and a head-nodding drumbeat, fuzz and echo gradually increasing over its 4 1/2 minutes.

The title track "Super Ape" once again seems to be Perry's self-proclamation through the vocal medium of the Heptones, manifesting himself as the joyous yet implacable "ape man trodding through creation". Really deep, somehow subdued yet still unease-inducing bass frequencies and ghostly bird-call noises used as percussion give a mysterious, trance-like primordial swamp vibe.

"Croaking Lizard" features Prince Jazzbo toasting over a dub of Max Romeo's unstoppable classic "Chase The Devil", the vocals stripped away to reveal the deliciously kinetic steppers bassline and metronomic percussion, while Jazzbo quotes freely from other Max Romeo tunes such as "War In A Babylon"; an exercise in rhythm guaranteed to mash up any dancefloor. "War In A Babylon" itself is the version fodder for the next tune, "Black Vest", again stripped down to unmistakeable basics but with other ingredients (such as a joyous horn riff) added. Snippets of the vocal from Max's other cut on the riddim, "Fire Fe The Vatican", can be heard alongside a sporadic, uncredited toast.

"Underground Root" features the female vocal trio Full Experience, chanting to the "collie root" on another murky, swampy riddim, with guitar echoed almost to oblivion adding to the spooky ambience. "Dub Along", also featuring Full Experience, finishes the album, playfully exhorting the listener to "come along with me", snippets of piano livening up an otherwise fairly plodding dub. While Scratch himself does not contribute vocals (beyond a few samples) to this album, the overall feel is strongly that it is he as auteur conveying a playfully cryptic message through the various vocalists on it.

"Roast Fish, Collie Weed & Cornbread" is an album of Scratch's more direct expression, with his own lead vocals on every track. The funky and bouncily irrepressible "Soul Fire" kicks it off, Perry in manic, celebratory mode, doing the classic reggae trick of turning the threatening, even doom-laden into the joyous: "Soul fire, and we ain't got no water!" "Throw Some Water In" is something of a stream of consciousness, Perry preaching his eccentric health advice using a car engine metaphor over clashing cymbals and cut-up female backing vocals, also seemingly singing an island dweller's praise of the aquatic element, perhaps in balance to the "fire" of the previous track.

"Evil Tongue" is a classic Perry diatribe against hypocrites, and a proclamation of his superior intelligence and inevitable victory over them. "Curly Locks" is, of course, Perry's own rendition of the song he wrote for Junior Byles; a surprisingly sweetly and melodiously sung love song with playful yet seductive backing vocals, and also containing the surreal insult "your father is a pork chop" (which always reminds me of Monty Python). This appears (as with "Soul Fire") to be the same version of it as on "Arkology".

"Ghetto Sidewalk", opening with a sardonic trumpet riff and featuring various creaky, springy and glass-shattering noises as percussion, is Perry's call for an end to poverty and deprivation, but simultaneously a celebration of the vibrancy of Jamaican ghetto life, with also a keen sense of irony: "One thing I'd like to know, where does all the tax payer's money go... Don't say I'm malicious, I'm just a little suspicious". "Favourite Dish" is an eccentric tribute to JA cuisine, garnished with samples of crying babies and the trademark Upsetter cow noise, as well as cymbals and other percussion in the mix. "Music is the key, blend in harmony"; Scratch's alchemy is the mixing of bits of everyday observation into a collage of the sublime and the ridiculous.

"Free Up The Weed" is a righteous defence of JA's ganja-growing economy: "Some plant coffee and some plant tea, why can't I and I plant collie?". Perry effortlessly exposes the hypocrisy and ludicrousness of banning something natural and "made from creation", over an appropriately blissful and head-nodding musical backdrop. "Big Neck Police" is a re-titled "Dreadlocks In Moonlight", a classic swirling, joyful Black Ark mix with anthemic female vocals and Dean Fraser's beautiful sax perfectly complementing a righteously Biblical-inspired, yet still playfully humorous lyric condemning hypocrisy while displaying Scratch's love of metaphor: "You send a sprat to catch a whale, little did you know Jah Jah shark was on your trail". A justified Black Ark classic.

"Yu Squeeze My Panhandle" is another cryptic, stream-of-consciousness proclamation, wittily appended "I hope you penetrate this one". A stripped-down drum and bassline riddim is enlivened with bits of scat vocal and clattering percussion noises in typical Upsetter style. The closing track "Roast Fish & Cornbread" is a classic piece of eccentricity, summing up the themes of the rest of the album, its clip-clopping riddim lurching magnificently along with heavy echo, staccato piano and the great cow noise machine; this is a much rawer, bass-heavier mix than the one found on "Arkology". "Fear not and dread not, skank it in the backyard!"

The album "Return of the Super Ape" opens with the uptempo rocker "Dyon-Anasaw", with its celebratory horns (taken from the Studio One classic "Freedom Blues") and Full Experience chanting nonsense syllables, a perfect expression of the Upsetter's uncomplicatedly happy side. "Return Of The Super Ape" comes second, despite sounding like it might have been intended as an intro track; it's one of Scratch's most abstract and ambient dub excursions, crashing noises and snippets of conversation abounding over deep reverb and a fractured trumpet solo with an almost cinematic feel, oddly recursive changes in tempo making it seem much longer than its 3 1/2 minutes: one for deep herbal meditation.

"Tell Me Something Good" is another bouncy Full Experience tune, which is nice but fairly inconsequential. "Bird In Hand", however, is a truly breathtaking oddity, with a deep, mystical, ethereal vibe and a ghostly, fragile double-tracked lead vocal (thought to be Sam Carty) singing in what many had surmised to be Amharic or another mysterious African language, but turns out to be phonetic Hindi, taken from a Bollywood film song (the origin story can be found here). One of the Black Ark's transcendent moments.

"Crab Years" is another nice, warm-feeling yet ultimately somewhat forgettable dub, lacking as it is in vocals or anything else particularly interesting. "Jah Jah A Natty Dread" is far more gripping (and another highlight of the album following, perhaps deliberately, a relatively weak track): a heavy, propulsive uptempo riddim with wildly crashing drums and swirling, spooky organ, with Scratch on top scatting and ranting form, passionately proclaiming against the Pope, the Devil and other "baldheads"; unhinged in all the good ways.

"Psyche & Trim" continues the theme, albeit a little more cryptically, but clearly enough condemning the greedy, corrupt and exploitative ruling class: "Mister Top Ranking, you gonna get a spanking!", once again over a lively, stepping piano-fuelled riddim. "The Lion" brings back a bit of the joyful, playful vibe (and more strange creaking and groaning noises), Scratch again toasting righteous rhymes in a self-assured tone, with a tinkling boogie piano solo hovering in and out of the mix.

"Huzza A Hana" is another loosely swinging and semi-improvised feeling track, with funky slap bass, jazzy sax and whoops and yelps as interjections which almost prefigure the "oinks" and "ribbits" of 80s dancehall DJs, Perry returning to his "music is the key" lyric, except switching it playfully to nonsense variants like "huzza in the key". The final track "High Ranking Sammy" is another humorous swipe at the pompous and powerful, over a slowed-down, ponderously stomping riddim with plenty of fuzzy echo and percussive noises.

The bonus tracks which fill up CD2 start with Clive Hylton's "From Creation", a hitherto extremely rare vocal tune which, while satisfyingly righteous and rootsy in its slavery/repatriation lyric, unfortunately sounds like it was recorded in a bucket at the bottom of a well (although some might say this adds to its ambience). It's followed by 3 different dub mixes, which, while of slightly better sound quality, are really insufficiently different from each other to merit the inclusion of all of them; the last is probably the best, as the bass and echo is heaviest and some trace of the vocal is retained on it.

The 7" mixes of "Roast Fish & Cornbread" and its dub are also included; these are much closer, if not identical, to the Island mixes, with the vocal much more to the forefront and less bass and echo. Finally, there is U Roy's "OK Corral", a version to the "Return of the Super Ape" riddim, possibly even more stripped-down and bass-heavy than the dub, with U Roy drawling phrases from Western movies amid loud metallic crashing and glass-shattering noises - almost certainly one of the Upsetter's starkest and most abstract productions, somewhat reminiscent in fact of some of the wilder works of Prince Far I. (now that would have been a collaboration...)

This compilation showcases Lee Scratch Perry at his most undiluted and extreme (at least for his "classic period" 70s works). While those seeking transcendent vocal harmonies of the type found in works for Perry by the likes of the Congos, Meditations or Heptones, or uncompromising political rootsiness, are likely to be disappointed by perhaps the majority of tracks, fans of Scratch's eccentricity and overall prankster-genius vision will find this absolutely essential. Some of the material contained here is available elsewhere, but for the most part in far worse sound quality than here, and Trojan is to be commended for bringing together these previously only unevenly available classic albums, and several otherwise hard-to-find bonus tracks, on a nicely packaged double CD. Scratchophiles, obtain without hesitation for heavy dub meditation!

Lee Perry - Produced and Directed by the Upsetter

2008-01-29T15:54:00.000-08:00

Lee Perry - Produced And Directed By The Upsetter
Pressure Sounds PSCD19

Second in the Pressure Sounds label's series of compilations of Lee Perry productions from the Black Ark era, "Produced and Directed by the Upsetter" brings together 10 previously rare 7" singles and their B-side dubs.

"Produced and Directed" opens with Watty "King" Burnett's "Free Man", a joyous tune with deep, funky trombone, in which the "King" proclaims that he is safe from all the dangers of corrupt Jamaican society. Whether his boast is true or not, it captures a powerful vibe of the Black Ark as magical sphere of protection. The dub emphasises the lazy, celebratory bone refrain, while deploying Scratch's trademark echoed vocal snippets to head-nodding effect.

"Zion" by The Flames (probably Winston Jarrett's band of that name, although with the sometimes arbitrary names often given by Scratch to ad hoc vocal groups, it's hard to know for sure) is a mellow tune declaring love to Africa as holy land of Rastafari, with (like many of the tunes on this set) a curiously "old-fashioned" skank and a mannered, soul-influenced vocal. Nice but at only 2 1/2 minutes (and its dub the same length) it doesn't really get the time to leave much of a lasting impression.

Easton Clarke's "Bike No Licence" is a wryly ironic tale of mishaps resulting from a JA traffic curfew, with a sense of humour but a deep testament of injustice beneath. The dub brings to the forefront the jauntily off-key Upsetter keyboards which are a key element of the early to mid Black Ark signature sound, although (like most of the dubs on this set) it isn't a particularly radical departure from the vocal side.

"Crying Over You" by the Heptones, from the same sessions which produced their magnificent "Party time" album, is one of the highlights of this set - an impassioned lyric of lost love, delivered in Leroy's justly celebrated soulful voice. The swirling, tension-filled Black Ark sound is in full effect, with a powerful, majestic horn riff reminiscent of (although not quite the same as) the Studio One classic "Unchained". "Crying Dub" takes it deeper into head-swimming dub gnosticism, vocal snippets and channel-swapping in force again, one of the few dubs here to really display the Upsetter's awesome talent of deconstruction.

The Silvertones' "Financial Crisis" is another tune with a warm, comforting "old-time" feel; despite the darkness of the reality of its subject matter, it portrays a quintessentially Jamaican brand of irrepressible optimism, its chorus exhorting the sufferers to "have a little faith" in divine deliverance from the tribulations of capitalism. However unrealistic the message is, this is a tune that cannot fail to induce happiness, even when stripped of its vocals.

Junior Murvin's "False Teachings" has a fairly stripped-down, basic riddim, but is nonetheless powerfully hypnotic, Murvin's startling falsetto reaching possibly even higher notes usual here, yet still feeling effortless. While blaming alcohol, as he seems to do, for all the hypocrisies of Babylon seems a little odd, it is in fact consistent with the lyrics of several other Black Ark tunes. The tiny snippets of his vocal in the dub seem almost otherworldly.

Winston Heywood and the Hombres' "Backbiting" is another easy-going good time skank, despite its deceptively hard-hitting lyric denouncing exploitative capitalists and warmongers: "Not one will escape this great fire". The dub again doesn't do anything massively interesting, but still nicely showcases the riddim.

"Houses of Parliament" by the Meditations is a percussion-heavy, almost Nyabinghi-style track which stomps along aided by call-and-response vocal (sung primarily in unison rather than harmony) and tinkling piano - very different from, but just as rootsy as, their better-known tunes on the "Arkology" box set. The percussion is even more to the forefront in the dub. "Where will you run to, where will you hide?"

George Faith's "Guide Line" is one of the heaviest and rootsiest tunes here, deep and swirling with a passionate soulful vocal counterpointed by a sweet female chorus - a far cry from George's more typical lovers fare. "We need some love and I-nity". Trippy, layered sound effects make this an exemplary Black Ark tune that could have come from nowhere else. Sampled conversational voices haunt the background in the dub along with more playful effects reminiscent of a classic Looney Tunes cartoon.

Junior Murvin's "Philistines On The Land" is yet another cut to the instantly familiar riddim over which he also voiced "Police and Thieves" and "Bad Weed" (in fact even retaining the "oh yeah" background vocal from the former), but this time the lyric is broader-reaching, extending the message of "Police and Thieves" to condemn the whole of the Western political and economic system through eschatological metaphor. The very randomly titled "Bingo Kid" is in fact a fairly straight dub of the same riddim, with added staccato yet blissed-out keyboard.

While "Crying Over You" and "Guide Line" are IMO the standout tracks, the whole of this compilation is solid, showing perhaps (for the most part) a mellower side of Scratch's Black Ark period, but still with moments of his inimitable wild inventiveness. While not quite on the same level overall as "Arkology" or "Open The Gate", still a very worthwhile set, particularly for connoisseurs of the one and only Jesus Pipecock Perry.

Junior Delgado - Sons Of Slaves

2007-10-22T18:12:00.000-07:00

Junior Delgado
Sons of Slaves: Rebel Anthems from a Roots Legend
Trojan TJACD288

Junior Delgado, famed for his gruff yet warm voice, was a roots singer with a long career of both singing and producing, in his native Jamaica in the 70s and in the UK in later decades. "Sons of Slaves" is one of several retrospective compilations of his works which appeared after his death in London in 2005.

This compilation opens with "Africa We Are Going Home" by Time Unlimited, the group for which Delgado sang lead vocal on several tunes recorded for Lee Perry. "Africa" is an early Black Ark tune with a typically Upsetter skanking riddim and weird sound effects including scat vocal howls and screams. Delgado sounds strangely detached, yet delivers the repatriation lyric with conviction. (Some editions of this compilation apparently also include another Time Unlimited tune, "Reaction"; however, the one I have doesn't...)

The first solo Delgado tune included is the Rupie Edwards-produced "Run Bald Head", one of many Rasta-themed denunciations of the news of Haile Selassie's death as "baldhead"-spreaded false rumours, sung over the riddim of Slim Smith's "I'm So Proud". Also produced by Rupie is "Mi Nuh Matta", a DJ cut recorded by Delgado under his toasting pseudonym of El Cisco, also over Smith's "My Conversation", with Junior extolling the melody in a youthful yet old school style reminiscent of I Roy, with little hint of the stridency of his singing voice.

"Sons Of Slaves", however, is quintessential Delgado, and one of the heaviest of all Black Ark classics. Scratch's mixing is at its wildest and deepest, and Delgado at his most powerful and impassioned as he testifies to the living reality of slavery's legacy. "Are we not the children that run away from plantations?" he asks, before demanding freedom and justice and proclaiming the people of the African diaspora "like a roaring lion". Truly heavy roots, in a nearly 7 minute 12" mix complemented with sublimely deep and echoing dub. Following is a mellow yet righteous rendition of the 23rd Psalm, also recorded at the Black Ark with double-tracked sung and spoken vocals and upbeat yet evocative keyboards, showcasing the devotional side of Delgado's Rasta militancy. Perry's multi-layered mixing is nicely in evidence.

The rather sparser-sounding "Tition", produced by Earl "Chinna" Smith, is another of Delgado's best-known roots classics, a condemnation of political gang violence over a simplistic yet highly effective piano, guitar and bass backing, delivered with stern yet warm dignity. On the same riddim is the self-produced "Jah Jah Say", in which the depth and warmth of Delgado's uniquely gruff-yet-sweet voice is brought to the fore by ethereal backing vocals. The 12" version adds a beautiful, soaring trumpet solo, unfortunately uncredited, plus playful echo and percussion - guaranteed pure niceness.

The remainder of the tunes on this album are all self-produced. "Devil's Throne" is a joyfully triumphant cut of the classic "Creation Rebel" riddim, Delgado returning to his theme of affirming the identity and mission of the African people and proclaiming the inevitable victory of righteousness over evil. "The Raiders" (aka "No Warrior") is an upbeat anti-war tune, declaiming contemporary gang violence in the same breath as historical colonialism with customary warmth and conviction. This 12" version is not as long as the others, adding about a minute of toasting (uncredited, but presumably Delgado himself), rather than a full-length dub or DJ version - once again the theme of the toast is music as sound and power, sold as a panacea in ebullient huckster style with claims like "this ya sound make the cripple them walk, this ya sound make the dumb them talk"; a questionable hyperbole, but clearly delivered with affectionate, tongue-in-cheek intent.

So ends the 70s selection: the rest of the tracks on this set are UK self-productions dating from 1988. "Born To Be Wild" and "Gimme Your Love" are nice, yet unremarkable, lovers tunes, the latter enlivened somewhat with a slight hip-hop influence to its fast-paced, semi-digital beat; however, the lyrics are uninspired. "Hypo", however, is the equal of any of the 70s tracks here, a fiery, militant heavy steppers tune with real horns and Junior on top form, uncompromisingly chanting down the hypocrisy of the global political and economic system - "them feed Ethiopia, yet destroy South Africa... true them no know say rebel a destroy the city". The righteousness is not diminished by the slightly amusing image conjured up by the titular abbreviation. "Kill Nebuchadnezzar and let Babylon fall!"

Most of the remaining 1988 tunes are, however, somewhat lacklustre, with the majority being lightweight lovers lyrics over (sometimes slightly funk-influenced) digital riddims, with little to distinguish between them. The two which somewhat stand out are "Look At The Trees", a vaguely Pablo-ish feeling paean to nature with a bass-heavy riddim somewhat resembling early UK digi steppers, and "Mr Fix It", a lovers tune in a rather atypical mellow, crooning style which is an updating of the rocksteady classic "Do It Sweet", showing the surprising versatility of Delgado's voice, beyond the gruff, wailing style he was often typecast to. However, the rest suffer from a lack of sufficient distinguishing features to make them stick in the mind after listening.

Overall, "Sons Of Slaves" is something of a mixed bag, feeling unbalanced as an overview of Delgado's long and fruitful musical career (which also included experimentation with Indian-influenced, acoustic and trip hop styles); it could have profitably included some of the classic deep roots tunes that he recorded for producers such as Dennis Brown, Sly & Robbie and Augustus Pablo in place of the lesser 1988 tunes. The sleeve notes also frustrate somewhat by mentioning many crucial tunes not included on this compilation! However, it contains enough undisputed "rebel anthems" to be worth purchasing, if perhaps with a little caution exercised over its latter half...

Lee Scratch Perry and Friends: Open The Gate

2007-10-17T19:47:00.000-07:00

Lee Scratch Perry and Friends: Open The Gate
Trojan CDPRY2

"Open The Gate", sadly now deleted (although still fairly easily available second hand, albeit often at inflated prices), is a collection of some of the dreadest, wildest and deepest roots 12"es produced by Lee Perry at the legendary Black Ark, at a time when it had matured into its full potential as a place of hitherto-unparalleled experimentation and multi-layered, psychedelic Afrocentric esoterica. Almost everything on this compilation is difficult to talk about without resorting to an exhausting number of superlatives...

CD1 opens with Anthony Sangie Davis's revisited version of the earlier Perry production "Words", setting the mood nicely with its propulsive, percussion-charged riddim and righteous vocal, followed by Perry's alternately absurd and menacing toast, punctuated by trademark yelps and howls, while guitar and horns build again and again into manic crescendos. "Righteousness is a must, I and I gwan squeeze them pus..."

Devon Irons and Dr Alimantado's "Vampire" (a very different version to the 7" version by Irons alone, which can be found on Island's "Arkology" box set) is even wilder and deeper, probably one of the most magnificently intense productions of the whole Black Ark era. Biblical horns and chanted female backing vocals swirl around in the mix, everything overlaid with multiple layers of reverb and echo, while Irons delivers his dread warning to occultists, hypocrites and parasites. Dr Alimantado delivers one of his most rhythmic and authoritative DJ performances, seemingly picking up on Perry's own apocalyptic, stream-of-consciousness vitality, while the backing singers (probably Full Experience) chant in something which vaguely resembles Hindi. Bizarrely, the fade-out at what seems to be the end of the tune is followed by a repeat of its last few seconds, then the dub from the (much more sedate) 7" mix (apparently this is from the original 12", and therefore Perry's responsibility rather than Trojan's), extending the track time to over 10 minutes.

The 2 Heptones tunes which follow are relatively tame in comparison, but still fine examples of roots harmony, featuring different lead vocals. "Babylon Falling" is an uptempo tune with a joyful, celebratory mood despite (or perhaps because of) its apocalyptic lyrics, squelchy keyboards complementing the bouncy bass and percussion and ??'s raw, soulful lead voice. "Mistry Babylon" has a more wistful, elegiac tone, Leroy Sibbles taking the lead and sounding weary yet defiant: "I know your schemes, I know your plan, can't hold the Rastaman", the dub showcasing the trademark Black Ark swirling, mystical sound.

Sibbles's solo tune "Garden of Life" is next, another determined repatriation anthem with an aching, heavily soul-influenced feel to the vocal and an understated, delicately jazzy piano floating in and out of the foreground. The lyrics equate Ethiopia (albeit not explicitly named) with a paradise of harmony with nature; the dub (like many of Perry's, incorporating large portions of cut-up vocals) emphasises the metronomic drumbeat as well as the interplay of the piano and other percussion.

Carlton Jackson's "History", another undisputed classic, poignantly tells the story of African enslavement and personal survival through self-education, conflating the individual "I" of the narrator with the collective "I" of the African-Jamaican people. "Since 1655 we have been working on the same plantation, chanting the same recitation". Jackson condemns the trickery of the capitalist system (using one of the best examples of the universally popular metaphor of Israel's exile in Babylon) while joyfully proclaiming that "the Rastaman first bring civilisation". History indeed. In one of his most subtle yet strong riddims, Perry envelops the listener in warm, uplifting keyboards and bass.

The tune that was the other side of the same original 12" follows, Junior Delgado's magnificent "Sons Of Slaves", taking the same message and converting it into one of the dreadest, most impassioned deep roots anthems ever recorded. Delgado's raw, gruffly militant hollering vocal charges the lyric with an inimitable urgency, while the wildly, elliptically swirling mix and the dark, insistent bassline are among Perry's (and thus reggae's) deepest and heaviest, pouring all the pain and transcendence of the African diaspora experience into a fiery black ocean of sound, demanding both recognition and liberation. "Are we not the children who ran away from plantations?"

The final track on CD1 is Watty Burnett's "Open The Gate", a fantastic eschatology of repatriation which matches any of the previous pinnacles reached on this compilation. "A time will come when every fig tree will find its own vine" - Burnett's deeper-than-deep bass voice carries an authority bordering on the terrifying, and the martial horns sound like they are blowing down the walls of Jericho (one of the greatest epic, cinematic horn riffs in reggae). The mix is another deep, esoteric wild one, with clashing cymbals, super heavy Tubby's style echo and strange, fuzzed-out background noises all adding to the psychedelic intensity.

On CD2, things are a little less intense. The Mighty Diamonds' "Talk About It" starts as a laid-back love song with a curiously melancholy feel to it, over a typical Upsetter skank, before mutating in the second half of the 12" mix into one of Scratch's truly odd experiments, with a speeded-up, distorted sample of (apparently) Perry's children chanting nonsense phrases overlaying an oddly stop-start, minimalist cut-up of the mix. Eric Donaldson's "Cherry Oh Baby" is an endearing update of the lightweight 60s love song into one of those light-yet-complex skanking tunes which show the mellower, more nostalgic side of the Ark.

Watty Burnett returns in a mellower mood for "Rainy Night in Portland", an adaptation of ??.s soul classic "Rainy Night in Georgia", with the US place names appropriately replaced by JA ones. The sweet eccentricity and the comforting side of Perry's deep, warm mixing form a counterbalance to the anguished intensity of much of the rest of the set, music melted down as finely as on tunes like "Sons of Slaves" or "Open The Gate" it is charged up.

Horace Smart's "Ruffer Ruff" is a different kind of intense, a poignant tale of sufferers' reality presented with stark simplicity against a backdrop of subdued piano and swirling percussion that testifies to pain while acknowledging hope; one of Perry's most moving downtempo tunes, the dub emphasising the bluesy vulnerability and simplicity of the just-slightly-off-key melody.

"Nickodeemus" by the Congos is a tune which was left off the original LP release of the incomparable "Heart Of..." album (although included as a bonus track on the Blood & Fire CD re-release). Little needs to be said of the perfection of the harmonies or Cedric Myton's angelic, soaring falsetto. This is a shimmering, downtempo tune with an ecstatic feel, syncopated drumming which rolls along in an improvised-feeling way giving it an almost jazzy feel. The lyrics derive (somewhat unusually for a Rasta group) from the New Testament, but are rendered almost immaterial by the gorgeousness of the delivery and of the mixing.

"Know Love" by The Twin Roots is another tune with a familiar religious theme and sweet, if rather more understated, harmonics. The groove of this one, punctuated by staccato trumpet, stays in the background for the most part, but gets developed a bit with some, again rather jazzy and improvised-feeling, keyboard parts and lots of multi-layered reverb and echo in the dub (one of the longest on the album at over 9 minutes).

Perry's own "City Too Hot" is a change of pace, with the original madman half-singing. half-toasting his warning of the evils of the city over an effects-heavy, elephantine skank that is indeed "too hot", with a lazy yet passionate trombone solo adding emphasis before getting deconstructed, like everything else, in the reverb madness, along with typical Perry scatting and distortion making cymbals sound like industrial pipes hissing and snare drums almost like tablas. "I and I a go cool out upon the hilltop..." Perry continues in a sing-song fashion, with Full Experience returning on backing vocals, for "Bionic Rats", another gleeful condemnation of exploiters and hypocrites. "Jah Jah set a super trap to catch all you bionic rats..." Perry almost acts more like a bandleader than a producer/vocalist, interacting with the players of instruments in a way that feels simultaneously spontaneous and incredibly tightly planned, and dubbing out his own vocals with joyful abandon while mixing Biblical with comic book imagery in a way that effortlessly blends the sublime and the ridiculous.

Junior Murvin's "Bad Weed", a return to the "Police And Thieves" riddim which Murvin voiced with different lyrics at least 3 times, closes the album (in a longer version than that on "Arkology"). Murvin's occasionally grating falsetto is probably at its most pleasing to the ears here, counterbalanced with the heavy, fuzzy bass as he uses the evergreen gardening metaphor for yet another lyrical attack on hypocrisy, aided by Perry's famous cow sound effect and floaty bass backing vocals somewhere far back in the mix.

This is a collection of some of the most perfect music ever to come out of Jamaica, and just about the only Perry compilation not to have a single dull or misconceived track on it: just pure, distilled transcendent genius from the depths of the Black Ark. For those who cannot get hold of it, the majority of its tracks are available (if not always in exactly the same forms) on other LPs or compilations; however, it is definitely time for a campaign to get Trojan to reissue this one soon!

Horace Andy: In The Light/In The Light Dub

2007-08-25T08:50:00.000-07:00

Horace Andy: In The Light/In The Light Dub
Blood & Fire CD BAFCD006

"In The Light/In The Light Dub", dating originally from 1977, is a US/Jamaican collaboration between the legendary, unearthly-voiced Horace "Sleepy" Andy (who prior to this album had been mostly a singles artist) and New York-based producer Everton DaSilva, using mostly JA musicians but aimed at least partly at a NY audience, presented here by leading UK reissue label Blood & Fire with the vocal and corresponding dub albums together on one CD.

"In The Light" opens with one of Andy's best known hits, "Do You Love My Music", a rousing celebration of the power of reggae music accompanied by punchy horns and a virtuoso, rock-styled guitar solo by Andy Bashford (reminiscent of the likes of Hendrix or Santana). In retaining and celebrating the spirit of prime Jamaican roots while adding a noticeable dose of US influence, it nicely prefigures the vibe of the album.

The following track, "Hey There Woman", is perhaps a little over-similar to that preceding it, and due to its rather slight lyric is thus nice but forgettable; nonetheless, it has first-class musicianship, and the best is yet to come...

"Government Land" (aka "Government Man") is one of the heaviest of all Horace's roots tunes (and one of his personal favourites, according to interviews), a passionate condemnation of the enclosure of land with a resounding anarchist message delivered n typical spine-tinglingly unearthly style: "How long can you keep up this, government man? You know you can't fool wise man, you will run away in the end". The horns flow like a mighty river and add to this tune's majesty. An all time classic.

"Leave Rasta" is much lighter in tone, despite its serious anti-persecution lyric, with its joyful vocals and bouncy riddim., but it's light without being lightweight. "Fever", a reworking of an earlier version recorded for Studio One, is also a lighter moment, and has the somewhat tinny, synth-dominated sound of a lot of New York reggae, something that is often a bit of a turn-off for fans of heavier JA roots; nevertheless, the style fits well with Sleepy's voice, even if it adds little to the original version.

The title track "In The Light" is another example of a light and airy tune with a rootsy Rasta message, testifying to childhood miseducation and misconceptions about African history and Rastafari. Again synths are dominant, but the bass is warm and live and Horace's voice has its trademark ecstatic quality.

"Problems" is a welcome return to deeper, darker roots territory, riding a captivating version of the "Mr Bassie" riddim, with a high-pitched yet foreboding synth taking the role of the melodica. "Everyone got problems, who will solve them?" "If I" keeps the mood with probably the darkest and bass-heaviest riddim on the set, grinding bass and reverberating percussion underpinning a darkly testimonial lyric about the lies taught by the Babylon system and the need to overcome such false teachings that recalls early Black Uhuru: another heavy roots classic to nearly equal "Government Land".

"Collie Herb" is another laid-back, blissful-sounding tune with a lot of synth and a bouncy vibe, extolling the praises of a well-known sacred plant in terms that are well-trodden but perennially (like the plant itself) popular. "Men fight against it cause it give us wisdom and overstanding, men fight against it because when we smoke it we deal with peace".

The closing track, "Rome", is another of the highlights of this set and another of Horace's highest-ranking roots classics: a powerful, poignant repatriation lament (yet generalisable to a critique of the whole of industrialised society), with the man's vocals at their sweetest and most yearning, dreaming of a utopia "where the air is fresh and clean, far from all these polluted cities". Understated guitar and melancholy melodica add to the tune's anthemic status, and let the album close on a fittingly elegiac note.

While the vocal set has a noticeable tension between the deeper, heavier roots tracks with live horns and the lighter, happier tunes with a very strong NY synth sound, "In The Light Dub", mixed by Prince Jammy, in fact comes across as a much more cohesive set, with Jammy's (soon to become King) bass-heavy mixing seeking out the unifying rather than the dividing elements of the individual songs. Much of the top end is stripped away, while judicially applied doses of echo and reverb, in a seamless updating of the classic Tubby's style, retain the sweetness of the arrangements while adding thunderous resonance. The result is that an album that could seem rather "bitty" with the vocals alone becomes much more of a fully coherent whole with the addition of the dubs.

Particular highlights include the especially masterful use of reverb for dread ambience in "Government Dub", "Dub The Light"'s transformation from "light" to "heavy" by means of the same reverberating power, and the all-out bass assault of "I&I" (the dub to "If I"), surely one of the heaviest, most uncompromising "classic style" dubs of all time; however, even a relatively dull track like "Hey There Woman" is turned into something arguably more satisfying than the original, and the whole set is probably one of the few dub albums to stand not just as an accompaniment to its vocal counterpart but as a fully satisfying work in its own right.

While a slight departure from much of the rest of their output, this is yet another essential release of classic 70s roots from Blood & Fire Records, and a very good intro both to the works of Horace Andy as a whole (although purists might argue it should be second to his Studio One output and/or his mid-70s work for Bunny Lee) and to the emerging New York roots scene of the late 70s (which later evolved into the Wackies and later digital sounds). Exercise a little caution for a few of the "lighter" vocal tracks if you like it dark, but purchase without hesitation for several uncontrovertible, transcendently heavy roots classics.

Various - Trojan Dancehall Roots Box Set

2007-06-24T19:15:00.000-07:00

Various Artists
Trojan Dancehall Roots Box Set (Trojan CD TJETD243)

This Trojan box set is somewhat better packaged than some of the earlier ones (altho still in the same cheap cardboard box), with slightly more informative sleeve notes and somewhat more track information (unlike, for example, the Roots or Rastafari box sets, this one credits producers), and only one mis-titled track. It also has a somewhat tighter focus, with tracks chosen, as the title suggests, from the period when roots was beginning to evolve into dancehall, but focusing on rootsy lyrical themes.

The artists included range from veteran roots harmony trios, such as The Viceroys, The Mighty Diamonds and Israel Vibration, to well-established solo singers such as Barry Brown, Cornell Campbell and the ubiquitous Johnnies Clarke and Osbourne, newer-at-the-time dancehall singers such as Little John and Tristan Palmer, and DJs represented by Prince Far I and Charlie Chaplin. Producer-wise, most of the big names of the era are represented, including Junjo Lawes, Linval Thompson, King Jammy, Jah Thomas, Bunny Lee, Winston "Niney" Holness, Roy Cousins, Tapper Zukie and others. Despite a few obvious omissions (no Michael Prophet or Barrington Levy for example), the set is a fairly good representation of its era.

Starting with the established roots acts, the Viceroys represent with 3 Linval Thompson produced tunes, "We Must Unite", "They Can't Stop Us Now" and "I'm Toiling On", all messages of determination for unity voiced in their typical understated style; not tunes that instantly grab the listener, but ones which prove to be solidly crafted roots. The Wailing Souls tunes here are also Linval's productions: "Face The Devil" has a "folky" vocal style over interesting syndrums, but relatively little strong song structure, while "Mr Big More", a more developed tune, is a mellow yet moving condemnation of the rich and powerful storing up wealth while "the masses cry every day", off-key piano perfectly enhancing its plaintive yet determined mood.

The Mighty Diamonds' Tappa Zukie produced "Morgan The Pirate" is one of the strongest tunes on the set, with a bass-heavy steppers riddim and impassioned cultural lyric about the "forgotten" black heroes of Jamaican history, in extended version with an uncredited DJ (possibly Tappa himself) tearing it up in live sound system style and extending the history lesson into an analysis of capitalism from buccaneers and slave traders right down to record label "pirates". Utterly essential. The Diamonds' other two tunes here, "Leaders of Black Country" and "Bad Boy", are less heavy but still strong, the first calling down politicians to take notice of poverty and violence, while the latter, very reminiscent of earlier Wailing Souls tunes, likewise addresses gun-toting youths.

Israel Vibration's Junjo-produced tunes showcased here have the same mellow yet dignified and deeply moving roots vibe as their earlier Tommy Cowan-produced material, from the steely righteousness of "Jah Jah Rock", with its piano and organ riffs and Biblical lyric, to the much lighter yet equally devotional "Praises Unto Jah"; however, their real gem here is "Jah Is The Way", simply one of the most moving things they (and therefore any reggae act) recorded, the trio showing their unparalleled ability to turn a sternly monotheistic lyric into an incredibly poignant message of humanity and hope. "We living in poverty, too much gravity, can't get to move irie, the system is too clever, but it won't be for ever... Jah is by my side, he will provide". Powerful indeed.

So far everything has been fairly straightforward roots, hardly deserving of the "dancehall" tag. The solo singers here have somewhat more of an early dancehall style: Barry Brown, for example, contributes "Lead Us Jah Jah", with its stepping riddim and funky horn riff, "Living As A Brother", with its trademark Linval/Scientist dubby mixing and reality lyric, and "Mr CID", on a cut of the "Big Big Girl" riddim with militant double-drumming, which uses a curious effect of the vocal suddenly moving from the left to the right audio channel, all in his trademark energetic, rough yet melodic voice which typified the raw, inventive vibe of the early 80s.

Mikey Brooks's "One Heart" would be a nicely brooding roots anthem if it wasn't marred by a homophobic and sexually conservative lyric; however, unlike so many later tunes, it's just about possible to dismiss those aspects as peripheral to its central anti-Babylonian message. His "Money Is Not All" is, however, fully right-on and righteous, chanting down the financial system to rousing horns, while "Living My Culture", like the others self-produced, celebrates those who struggle for consciousness.

Dennis Brown is also represented by self-produced tunes, of which "Unite Brotherman" is an uptempo, joyful call to end fighting in typical slick-voiced style, while "Little Village" is one of Dennis's most powerful and impassioned roots anthems, a vision of a utopian village community in contrast to "the selfish mentality facing reality these days", that his conviction makes sound plausible; it's also presented in extended version with an extra 2 minutes of dub. Gregory Isaacs is also present and correct with the Sly & Robbie produced "Slave Driver", a fairly straight steppers re-cut of the Wailers classic, and "Motherless Children", whose hard-hitting poverty lyric delivered in deceptively mellow style combined with a syndrum-propelled riddim is reminiscent of his "Mr Isaacs" album.

Sugar Minott contributes "We Are Going (Back Home)", a cutting repatriation lyric over a funky Niney-produced version of the classic "Java" riddim ("Leaders of the world, you think you're progressing, but I know you're depressing"), and the pious "I Want To Know (Only Jah Jah)", while Cornell Campbell is best represented by the moving sufferers tune "The Judgement Come", with its poignant, lilting off-key piano and typically mannered, aching vocal recalling the early roots era; "Right now we a suffer, what next is to come?". His "Fight Against Corruption", on a minimal Bunny Lee recut of "Beat Down Babylon", is relatively lacklustre, but "Got To Tell The People", while also fairly lightweight, nicely showcases the other, more celebratory, side of his soaring voice.

Earl Sixteen, better known perhaps for his material voiced for Augustus Pablo, is represented here by 2 Roy Cousins produced tunes, the slightly Barry Brown-styled "Jah Is The Master", which uses the riddim of the Royals' "Path I Have Taken", and "Crisis", another faith-in-tribulation lyric over a powerful, uptempo piano and organ fuelled riddim, with heavy, dubby percussive echo, which is also used for Charlie Chaplin's DJ cut "One Of A Kind", on which he again praises Jah and extols unity in ebullient, "metronome" style. Chaplin's "Walk With Jah", also a Cousins production, has a much mellower and more typically early dancehall feel, reminiscent of U Brown or Jah Thomas productions (and also seems to feature an uncredited DJ, possibly Clint Eastwood, in combination).

The only other DJ on this compilation is Prince Far I, whose tunes here are all self-produced, and feature typically abstract and fractured bass-heavy riddims and the Prince's inimitable, unmistakeable gruff and almost hallucinatory talking/chanting style. "Working For My Saviour" has Far I intoning warnings to "pick your choice" between heaven and hell, while "What You Gonna Do On The Judgement Day" is similarly apocalyptic yet eccentric, with the preacher conflating musical and eschatological allegiances, asking "Are you gonna rock and roll the same old way, or do the funky or reggae?". Most striking of all, however, is "Every Time I Hear The Word", with Far I's vocal style almost approaching that of a dub poet like LKJ or Mutaburuka, and Nyabinghi style slow, heavy drumbeats accompanied by a jazzy trumpet solo floating somewhere in the background; probably as far from "dancehall" as anything from Jamaica got during that era.

Of other roots-era singers, Leroy Smart is here represented by his jaunty and playful-sounding (despite its lyrics) self-production "Too Much Pressure", and Johnny Osbourne by two King Jammy-produced tunes, the similarly light and bouncy "Can't Leave Jah" and the funky, righteous "Live Right" (given greater urgency by its fevered harmonica playing, probably by Osbourne himself), and the fairly forgettable Junjo-produced ganja tune "Bring The Sensi Come" (one of 3 rather incongruous-feeling herb tunes seemingly tacked on at the end of the compilation). Linval Thompson, as a singer, however, is not; the tune credited to him as "Jah Loves Us All" is, in fact, "Jah Love Is With I" by Johnny Clarke. It is, however, a nice steppers tune in typical later Clarke style.

Only a few vocalists featured on this compilation, then, actually started out as new artists in the dancehall era. Don Carlos was a veteran singer with earlier incarnations of the Wailing Souls and Black Uhuru, but rose to fame as a solo artist in the early dancehall style. His "Tribulation" is a justified killer, with its anthemic melody and message of overcoming struggles through self-consciousness and determination, and his instantly recognisable voice (halfway between Michael Rose and Cornell Campbell) over a solid and nicely mixed Bunny Lee riddim. "Sweet Africa" is a playful rockers tribute to music, sensi and the idealised motherland, while "Natty Dread Have Him Credential" is a laid-back celebration of the fame and recognition achieved by the reggae movement.

Anthony Johnson, another exponent of the nasal "Waterhouse" style of dancehall singing which achieved prominence in the early 80s, provides the effectively brooding warning "you've got to be sure of Jah Jah loving" in "Jah Love (Know Yourself Mankind)", but is rather less effective on the perhaps overly happy-sounding tribute to fallen heroes "Follow Them Footsteps", which in fact treads ground that is already over-trodden. His ganja tune "What Kind Of Herb" is also perhaps somewhat cliched, but does at least have a suitably smoky feel and a vocal with conviction. The similarly-styled Little John rides typically mellow and bass-focused Junjo riddims on the police-teasing "Mr Babylon" and the faith-inspired "Jah Guide I", the latter, a cut to Barrington Levy's "Sister Carol", having particularly nice echo- and effects-laden mixing which almost overshadows its vocal.

Tristan Palmer is possibly the least accomplished vocalist featured here, with his very obviously off-key singing style. However, he manages to overcome lack of proficiency with charm, and contributes strong tunes. "Peace And Love In The Ghetto", while some might call it irritating, is undeniably catchy and has a joyful, irrepressible horn melody, while "Time So Hard" shows him to be capable of a more serious style, with a sufferer's testimony lyric over a tough horns-fuelled Jah Thomas cut of the "Letter To Zion" riddim (much later borrowed for Morgan Heritage's magnificent "Crystal Ball"); "Got To Praise Jah Jah" is, however, a somewhat maudlin and forgettable, though still pleasant, devotional song. The final tune of the box set is weed anthem "Sensi Man" by relative unknown Bobby Melody, a somewhat more memorable cut to the same riddim as "Bring The Sensi Come"

All in all, this set is varied yet cohesive, and is a decent, if necessarily incomplete, snapshot of the more cultural material of the early dancehall era. Several of the tracks on it are available on other Trojan compilations (somewhat inevitably given Trojan's seeming obsession with recycling, re-recycling and re-re-recycling the same material as many times as possible), but this one is good value for money and a worthwhile introduction to this period of music for any interested roots fan who does not already own many of these tracks. Recommended alongside Roots Records' "The Lion Roars", Pressure Sounds' "When The Dances Were Changing" and Greensleeves' "Biggest Dancehall Anthems 1979-82".

Various - The Lion Roars

2007-06-24T19:13:00.000-07:00

Various Artists
The Lion Roars (Roots Records, RJMCD101)

The Lion Roars" is a collection of productions from the early dancehall era by U Brown and Jah Thomas, both of whom are/were better known as deejays, but also created a substantial and influential body of work as producers, taking their place in the evolution of sound system reggae from roots to dancehall alongside the likes of Junjo Lawes, Linval Thompson, Channel One and Prince/King Jammy. The sound on this compilation is broadly similar to that of the Pressure Sounds compilations "When The Dances Were Changing" and "The Crowning Of Prince Jammy" and the Greensleeves compilation "The Biggest Dancehall Anthems 1977-79", in fact many of the tunes on it using the same riddims as those on the latter (which mostly consists of Junjo productions).

Barry Brown's "Movements of Jah" kicks off with a high tempo recut of the classic "No No No" riddim, with Barry wailing in typical righteously charged style about the well-worn but always fresh subject of triumph over sufferation through the power of a vengeful creator God. Anthony Johnson's well known sound system favourite "Gunshot" is reminiscent of Michael Prophet's "Gunman", with a similar combination of serious anti-gun lyrics combined with a sweetened delivery over a bouncy, jaunty major chord riddim. Early B's "History of Jamaica" is a typically witty, fast-paced recitation of patriotic facts over a classic minimalistic early-80s style drum and bass with the odd echo effect.

The mood is taken downtempo for Steve Knight's mellow love song "Love You Endlessly", a fairly generic lyric enlivened by upful guitar and a punchy horn riff, and Al Campbell's "Words Of My Mouth", another update of a vocal he cut several times for various producers (sometimes under other titles such as "Wicked Feel It Now"). These fairly unassuming tunes, however, are vastly overshadowed by Junior Keating's sublime "Conquering Lion", one of the most powerful and moving repatriation roots tunes of its era - deeply dread and hands-in-the-air devotional in its message of hope in the face of sufferation, and reminiscent in sound of Studio One roots at its best - simply one of the heaviest late roots era tunes around.

The next few tunes are more typical early 80s dancehall fare, with Jah Thomas's own "Dance On The Corner" an enjoyable but generic deejay cut of "Real Rock", while "African Jump" by Bongo Herman is an echoey, percussive instru/dub in the vein of much Scientist and Roy Cousins material. "There's Much More To Live" by Vincent Taylor (lead singer of The Revealers) has a dark, rootsy riddim reminiscent of early Jammys productions, tempered by Taylor's meditative vocal and some backing/harmony vocals harking back to the 70s, while in contrast "Leave The Badness Alone" by the relatively unknown Singie Singie has a much later feel than most of the material on this comp, being strongly reminiscent of the post-Sleng Teng style epitomised by Pressure Sounds' "Firehouse Revolution" release (review soon come!), with a sing-jay style vocal similar to the likes of Red Rose or King Kong, fast, skippy drum machine riddim and percussive cut-up vocal samples.

"Palaving Spree" by Ranking Toyan is another solid loverman deejay tune in typical Toyan style, while Carlton Livingston's "Ram Jam Session" joyfully advertises the dancehall over a slow but bouncy version of the "Answer" riddim. "Steal Away Girl" by Sugar Minott is another good vibes lovers tune, while "Baby I Love You" by Delroy Wilson is a sweet complaint of lost love, but over a similarly mellow and bouncy riddim ensuring the mood remains "nice" rather than turning tragic, and Johnny Osbourne's "Take Me To A Rub A Dub Session" returns to the theme of extolling the niceness of the dancehall-ruling and people-pleasing sound.

Dickie Ranking's "Too Much Badness" is another strong anti-violence lyric using the same deceptively minimal riddim as Yellowman's "Mr Chin", nicely embellished by plenty of echo and satisfying percussion floating in the background, while hornsmen Bobby Ellis and Deadly Headley provide a playful yet meditative instrumental to U Brown's (oddly not included) "Weather Balloon", aptly entitled "Blow Your Balloon", and nicely showcasing the "light", yet satisfying brass arrangements (taking over from the more sombre traditional roots sound) that exemplified the early dancehall era. The selection closes with Brown's self-produced "Jah Is My Father", a half-sung reiteration and celebration of monotheistic faith that manages to be witty rather than preachy in the best unpretentious 80s "reality" deejay style.

The problem that many of these tunes have is that, while undeniably nice and showcasing nicely the raw yet light, playful and humorous yet still musically solid and stripped-down, bass-led early dancehall style, they are so typical of it that they tend towards the generic, with nothing to really distinguish Jah Thomas's and U Brown's production styles from one another or from any of their major contemporaries - thus, the tunes which stand out by virtue of slightly differing in style or having particularly strong messages in "word sound power", such as "Conquering Lion", "Movements Of Jah", "Gunshot" and "Leave The Badness Alone", are instant stand outs whereas the rest somewhat blend into each other. However, this compilation contains enough outright killers and has consistent enough quality among the non-stand-out tracks to still be definitely recommended for anyone into the roots-to-dancehall period of music, and is complemented by extremely nice artwork and comprehensive sleeve notes (although they don't include, slightly annoyingly to me, original release dates for each track (which are presumably all taken from 7")), making the apparently new Roots Records reissue label one to watch out for...

Sylford Walker & Welton Irie - Lamb's Bread International

2007-06-24T19:11:00.000-07:00

Sylford Walker & Welton Irie
Lamb's Bread International ( Blood & Fire BAFCD033)

Re-released in 2000 by Blood & Fire Records, this is the original "Lamb's Bread" album by Sylford Walker plus corresponding DJ cuts by Welton Irie, all produced by Glen Brown and released as singles between 1978 and 1982, and it's classic late 70s style, just-pre-dancehall-era roots music with tough horns, heavy basslines and powerful vocals to rank alongside anything from Lee Perry, Bunny Lee or Yabby You of the same period. Lyrically it's a mixture of some deeply dread reality reasoning and the slightly strange and random, with first class DJing by Welton Irie adding commentary both deep and humorous which riffs on the original vocals, snippets of which are preserved throughout the dub tracks that he toasts over, making this one IMO one of Blood & Fire's most solid releases.

The opening cut "Give Thanks & Praise" on the Dirty Harry riddim is oddly cut short at only 2 min 11, but Welton's version "Rolling Stone" is full single length, and emphasises the heavy heavy "Dirty Harry" bassline. "Lamb's Bread" is a righteous herb defence tune, with Welton continuing the theme telling of the "little dread by the name of Fred", ghetto reality tale of imprisonment for selling herb. There follow 4 cuts on the truly mighty "Cleanliness Is Godliness" riddim, a crazy, supercharged steppers with an irresistibly catchy horn riff - simultaneously as wacky as anything from the Ark and as apocalyptically heavy as anything from Yabby You - the former aspect being emphasised on the frankly odd "Cleanliness Is Godliness" itself (with Sylford singing about "bits of paper littering the ground", altho i guess you could work it vaguely into the environmental reasoning of several tracks on this album) and the mildly slack "Stone A Throw", and the latter on the magnificently dread "Babylonians" and "Jah Come", the latter with some of the dreadest lines of any Dj tune: "If New York should get a tidal wave/slave master would haffi let go every slave/and then we woulda know the good, the bad and the brave/and all grave digger woulda dig a lot a grave/say many are called but few chosen/cah some a dem a wolf in a sheep clothing" (shades of 9/11 and Hurricane Katrina)... "can't go to Zion with your carnal mind/your carnal mind you better leave that behind/can't go to Zion in a Land Rover/it a go lick and turn over"... straight to the American head!

"My Father's Home Land" is a typical, mellow repatriation tune, while the well known club steppers anthem "Deuteronomy" is a slightly odd recitation of books of the Old Testament, with its DJ version "Black Man Get Up Tan Up Pon Foot" another call to arms for repatriation. "Eternal Day" is another judgement lyric on a more downtempo riddim ("Forward The Good"), but the closing pair of tunes on the "Slaving" riddim, "Chant Down Babylon" and "Ghetto Man Corner" are the set's other true high point, with Sylford invoking the creative/destructive power of music-as-gnosis to literally knock down the walls of oppression and Welton again providing hardcore lyrical reasoning, effortlessly fusing testimony of ghetto living with environmental critique: "Long time I an I down here a suffer/cause in this land of wood and water/all I see is car and manslaughter/so nice up the ghettoman corner"... another blazing tune to match the likes of Yabby You's "King Pharoah's Plague" for both bass and horn musical power and social-ecologist lyrical eschatology...

All in all this is one of the heaviest late roots period albums out there, and enhanced immeasurably by the addition of the perfectly complementary DJ cuts to 6 of its original 8 tracks and the extended versions of the other 2, weighing in at over an hour of crucial music. No lover of bass-heavy, politically conscious late 70s roots should be without this... to quote the title track, "Dis ya one yah never do no one no wrong!"

Ranking Joe - Zion High

2007-06-24T19:10:00.000-07:00

Ranking Joe
Zion High (with Black Uhuru, Dennis Brown)
Blood & Fire BAFCD043

This release is a kind of a companion piece to Blood & Fire's earlier Dennis Brown CD "Promised Land", consisting mainly of Ranking Joe's versions to the same riddims, with a few other Dennis Brown produced tracks thrown in. As such it perfectly represents Joe's massively influential "bong-diddley" DJ style at the moment when heavy sound system roots was just evolving into the beginnings of dancehall.

The CD opens with "Zion High", a version of Dennis's "Home Sweet Home", followed by the dub of the same tune. Ranking Joe takes a simple repatriation tune and transforms it into the first of several of his trademark mind-boggling lyrical workouts, effortlessly freestyling so many rhymes in one breath that it leaves even the listener breathless. The dub is minimal but showcases Brown's strength as a producer as well as legendary vocalist. "Fire" is likewise a version of "Well Without Water" from the same album, Joe gleefully throwing nonsense rhymes into the mix while testifying of the fate of Babylon while losing none of his impact due to the amazing power of this, like so much roots music, to speak of death and destruction while imparting an unshakeable feeling of righteous joy, even delight at the fall of the downpressor and ultimate victory of those who survive and strive for freedom.

The mood is continued with "Bubbling Fountain", an impassioned Dennis Brown vocal not previously released on any album, which does not disappoint with its uptempo bubbling riddim, wild jazzy horns and of course Dennis's impassioned vocal. "Love Jah" its version again showcases Joe's unstoppable mic skills (despite its relatively unedifying Haile Selassie praising lyric). The mood is lightened on "Round The World", a track not corresponding to any identified vocal, with its mellow rockers vibe and soaring saxophone.

"Rent Man" and "Wood For My Fire" are two heavy Black Uhuru tracks, with BU as always sounding like no one else. "Rent Man" passionately chants down parasitical landlords: "You won't get no money for this bad living...", while Joe reclaims the right to live free from exploitation with dread conviction: "Natty dread a the owner fi him yard", a message with heavy resonance in this time when communities like St Agnes Place are being brutally evicted by the forces of Babylon. "Wood For My Fire" (whose bassline is very similar to the Wailing Souls' "Bredda Gravilicous") is likewise a passionate testimony of survival through poverty brought about by economic brutality: "The sun should be shining, but it don't shine no more/Because of wicked men and people/Who make Jah children eat from the rubbish bag...", while Joe's version "Sufferers Skank" is one of his heaviest, chatting pure reality... tunes to rock the squat party and the protest camp! Between them is "Carpenter", a joyful tribute to the struggles of all working class people whose labour contributes to positive livity (again, i'm not sure what the original vocal is, tho it's not Dennis Brown...)

Finishing off the album are two tunes already released on the "Promised Land" CD, "A Cup Of Tea" and "Slave Driver", and their versions (i'm not sure if the vocals are actually the same versions as on "Promised Land" or alternate versions - the track times are slightly different, but they don't sound particularly distinct from the "Promised Land" versions...), preaching different parts of the same message, of mutual aid in its simplest and earthiest form (even if the killing and eating of fish is morally questionable, the resonance of food as community stands up to any analysis well enough!), and of defamation and judgement by fire to all perpetrators of human exploitation, combined with a heartfelt testimony to African diaspora history over a rumbling steppers reworking of the Marley-written anti-capitalist anthem.

This set is essential and needs to be purchased alongside its sister release "The Promised Land" (which is BAFCD039). Together they capture a crucial moment in the evolution of both the musical (from 70s rockers and steppers to darker, "bubbling" 80s righteous dancehall) and lyrical (from more otherworldly/cultural/spiritual to earthy, immediate ghetto-political) consciousness of reggae music. More fire!

Various - If Deejay Was Your Trade

2007-06-24T19:07:00.000-07:00

Various Artists
If Deejay Was Your Trade: The Dreads At King Tubby's 1974-1977 ( Blood & Fire, BAFCD001)

This was the first release on the seminal Blood & Fire label, and laid the groundwork for many of their other releases, including full-CD compilations of several of the artists featured on this set. It's a compilation of tracks by various old school DJs over mostly Bunny Lee riddims at King Tubby's studio, and showcases the versatility of the original DJ style.

First up, appropriately for a tune based on such a cornerstone of reggae, is Big Joe's "In The Ghetto", over a deadly, thunderous version of Bunny Lee's cut of "Satta Massagana" (i believe the vocal is from Johnny Clarke). Joe chats solidarity in the face of sufferation in a blistering celebration of sound system culture. Next is I Roy's equally heavy "War and Friction", a heartfelt anti-violence plea over Yabby You and Tommy McCook's meditatively dread "Death Trap" instrumental, with dark clashing cymbals and snippets of McCook's trumpet sounding almost like a melodica: crucial!

Little Joe's "Tradition Skank" (i'm not sure if this is the same Little Joe who later became Ranking Joe) is a repatriation lyric over a joyful recut of Burning Spear's "Tradition", while Tappa Zukie's "Jah Is I Guiding Star" is a version of the Horace Andy tune of the same name, taking a distinctly darker tone with his biblical-meets-blaxploitation lyrics reminiscent of The Last Poets ("automatic people with remote control" deriving, possibly via Big Youth, from "Mean Machine"'s refrain of "automatic push button, remote control") and typical strained, almost gasping delivery.

Most of the remainder of the tunes are less memorable and arguably not so heavy as those first 4, but still all feature nicely dubbed examples of Bunny Lee's hit formula of riddims, and varied lyrics ranging from the boastful to the biblical to playful interpretations of proverbs and nonsense or nursery rhymes. "The Barber Feel It" and "Bury The Barber", continue the long and surreal saga of mid 70s tunes attacking barbers for cutting off dreadlocks and spinning out extended stories of victory over them (also to be seen on many other tunes, such as "I Shot The Barber" on Dr Alimantado's "Best Dressed Chicken In Town" album), while Jah Stitch's "Greedy Girl" arguably lowers the tone slightly with its retread of the possibly misogynistic, or at least cynical, "Shine Eye Gal" lyric over Horace Andy's "Don't Try To Use Me".

The album is finished off with the 70s DJ scene's two "Princes", Prince Jazzbo, who hits back in his battle lyrics against I Roy by accusing him, rather surreally if not misogynistically, of being a "gal boy" and "not sure if you are a man or a woman" (this strange accusation of transgenderism accompanied by half-deranged laughter), then rather more consciously chatting herb lyrics and ghetto memories over a very mellow, head-nodding Treasure Isle recut riddim, and the indestructibly dread Prince Far I, who bookends the album with a track as heavy as the one that started it, another version of "Deck of Cards" (retitled "Shuffle & Deal") over a hallucinatory dread riddim with powerful tension-building piano and guitar snippets (possibly produced by Linval Thompson rather than Bunny Lee).

The packaging is slightly crude compared to later Blood & Fire releases (tho still way ahead of most reggae reissue labels) and certain information may not be perfect (all tracks are credited as Bunny Lee productions, despite the I Roy track being a well known Yabby You riddim), but this is still a nice and easily recommended collection of original deejay style. These guys could rip the mic long before hip hop culture had been dreamed of...

Augustus Pablo - Classic Rockers

2007-06-24T19:04:00.000-07:00

Augustus Pablo
Classic Rockers (Island RRCD 52)

This collection brings together a somewhat mixed bag of Augustus Pablo productions (including his own instrumental and other people's vocal tunes) from the late 70s and early 80s (with, confusingly, some late 80s/90s copyright credits, but these are obviously false from the artists and style of the tunes). It gets off to a good start with Jacob Miller's justifiably famous "Baby I Love You So", whose relatively slight lovers lyric is massively overshadowed by its massive roots riddim and inspired melodica backing. Its dub, "King Tubby Meets The Rockers Uptown" (which gave its title to Pablo's most famous dub/instrumental album), is even heavier, a masterpiece of Tubby's style reverb, echo and haunting chopped-up bits of vocal and melodica solo - one of the definitive classic 70s dub tracks.

"Isn't It Time To See" by the group Tetrack (often mis-credited as "T.E. Track") is another strong roots tune following the same vocal-over-melodica formula, with a heavy sufferers lyric complemented perfectly by Pablo's impassioned backing. "Isn't it time to see... that you can't run away from reality". The next track, "Jah In The Hills", is Pablo in full transcendent solo style, his inimitably haunting and urgent sound showcased nicely by both his soaring melodica and the warm, deep bass and dubbed-out percussion characteristic of his productions.

"Can't Keep A Good Man Down", a cover of a Dennis Brown tune by The Immortals, has similarly nice production, but the somewhat staid and formulaic vocal fails to do the lyric justice: possibly an example of a lyric and/or melody not entirely suited to the Pablo rockers style. Paul Blackman's "Earth Wind And Fire" (nothing to do with the funk band) is, however, an undisputed, if somewhat understated, classic - an almost ecstatic vocal with a typically spiritual message floating above a deep downtempo bassline counterpointed by piano chords and then dubbed into echo oblivion.

Leroy Sibbles's "Love Don't Come Easy" is a recut of a song he originally recorded at Studio 1 with the Heptones, and is mellow and likeable but fairly unremarkable, picking up somewhat when the melodica comes in; however, more truly heavy roots soon follows...

Earl Sixteen's "Changing World" is another highlight, his impassioned vocal sounding both pleading and, in the great roots fashion that Pablo was such a master of, simultaneously celebratory and foreboding of apocalyptic revelation. "It's a new day dawning, and it's a new feeling", for real. Junior Delgado keeps up the mood with "Blackman's Heart", his strident yet emotion-laden voice, perfectly suited to this plea for justice and freedom, building to a magnificent, almost-yelling crescendo along with Pablo's uptempo melodica backing.

Hugh Mundell completes a trinity of transcendent roots tunes with "Jah Says The Time Has Now Come", on which Pablo swaps melodica for his other speciality, piano, with which he conjures up a dark, swirling righteous mood; the "Blessed Youth" is on top form lyrically, both declaring the time for revolutionary unity and chanting vengeance down on "all who have their hands stained with blood". All three of these tunes typify Pablo's deep roots approach at the start of the transition to the dancehall era.

Two Delroy Williams tunes and their dubs follow: firstly "You Never Know", a lovers lyric which, along with its perhaps overly simple and synth-reliant backing, lacks conviction in comparison to the previous uncompromising works of righteousness. Its dub also adds little besides echo, making it a strange choice for inclusion on this compilation. "Stop The Fighting" is somewhat better, if not reaching the heights of some of the other tunes here, with a very uptempo (for Pablo) riddim and a strong anti-violence lyric: its dub, however, is also fairly unremarkable (the melodica master seemingly choosing instead to play synth keyboards on this brace of productions).

The set closes with two more melodica instrumentals, both in the "Far East" style inspired by Pablo's affinity for Chinese and Japanese music, although very different in mood. The almost childish simplicity of "Suki Yaki" comes across as sweetly eccentric rather than lazy, and its mood is one of Pablo's most uncomplicatedly joyful, while "Eastern Promise" is a much darker and more complex tune, with plenty of righteous urgency but still an improvisatory, playful feel.

This selection could have done with leaving out the fairly uninspired lovers tracks to fit in some more of Pablo's deeply spiritual rootsier productions (for instance, Sister Frica's truly wild and out-there "One In The Spirit", or some more of his works with Junior Delgado or Hugh Mundell): however, there are enough heavy slices of rockers vibes here for it to deserve its title. Its biggest problem, however, is that it's on Island, meaning that on an average home hi-fi it's almost impossible to get the bass beyond barely audible without turning the overall volume up to distortion levels (although this CD isn't as bad for this as some earlier Island reissues). As an introduction, however, it's decent, but leaves the discerning listener wanting more...

Various - Champion Sound

2007-06-24T19:02:00.000-07:00

Various Artists
Champion Sound (Virgin France, 2001)

This Virgin CD has to be one of the odder reggae compilations out there: all the tunes on it are authentic rather than cheesy reggae-pop, yet it seems to have no coherent focus at all in terms of era, lyrical content or production style, ranging from roots and lovers to dancehall and hip-hop/reggae hybrids and from 1969 to 2000...

It opens with Buju Banton's semi-acoustic "Untold Stories", which would probably be a better choice as a closing track. Buju's gruff vocal possibly sits somewhat at odds with the folky guitar vibe and hard-hitting yet elegiac lyric of ghetto life, but the tune is an undisputed classic (despite disappointing many people who picked up his "Til Shiloh" album expecting more of the same, and got a mostly mediocre dancehall album, admittedly with a couple of dancehall classics, but with nothing else remotely resembling this track).

Johnny Clarke's "Come Back To Me" is a 1983 Ariwa tune, and typical of that label with its lovers lyric combined with a hard, dubby UK riddim. It segues nicely into Barrington Levy's very heavy Linval Thompson produced "Poor Man Style" from the same year, with its heavy piano riff and anthemic poverty lyric delivered in Barrington's unmistakeable voice. "No matter what they say, we've got to make it..." Deep bass and nice Scientist style echo make this tune essential for any connoisseur of early 80s dancehall roots.

KC White's "No No No", another tune with a heavy piano riff (something of a theme on this set, in fact about the only discernible theme) is a rootsy Gussie Clarke produced version of Dawn Penn's Studio One(?) classic, in typical 70s rockers style.

U-Roy's "I Got To Tell You Goodbye" is a good example of his late 70s DJ style, with him joyfully chatting and scatting his way over a dub-enhanced version of a previously-mellow lovers tune, reverb and snatches of vocal winding their way through his toasting in typically satisfying style. His Tappa Zukie produced combination tune with Beres Hammond, "Putting Up A Resistance" (supposedly from 1994 but sounding much older), is similar, with Hugh easily overshadowing Beres's impassioned but melodically weak vocal.

Capleton's "Danger Zone" is a nice 2000 style piece of menacing dancehall roots, the Prophet managing in typical style to make a gruff, unmelodic singjay style into something righteously and almost transcendently charged with emotion, over a robotic-feeling update of the riddim of Welton Irie's "Working Class". Sizzla continues the vibe with "Whether Or Not", a more melodic yet equally spiritually charged singjay tune on a powerful, meditative Xterminator riddim. Both tunes are essential examples of the Bobo Dread vibe when it was still righteous and untainted by accusations of slackness and misogyny.

Whitey Don's "Murderer" is from an era of reggae (the early 90s) that i know very little about, but it would fit in easily with early 80s selections, with a righteous lyric condemning crack dealers as "vampires sucking the blood of the sufferers", a nice Steely & Clevie riddim with spooky piano and brooding trombone, and Whitey's vocal style reminiscent of both Eek-A-Mouse and Barrington Levy, only a slight hip hop influence making it feel somewhat newer.

It's followed by a much more obviously hip hop influenced track, Royal Fam feat. Mighty Jarrett's "Acid", with its brooding beat and almost G-Funk style string sample. It's credited as having come out in 2000 on Wu Tang's label, and Brooklyn gets a mention, so perhaps it's a JA/US collaboration.

The next 3 tracks are all covers of soul/funk tunes dating from 1974: Ken Boothe's "Is It Because I'm Black" is a dark, menacing and passionately charged version of ?'s classic, aided by a fiery yet majestic horn arrangement and a sizzling (unfortunately uncredited) trumpet solo. Bunny Rugs's "Be Thankful" is apparently a pre-Black Ark Lee Perry production, though having relatively few of his eccentric signature touches: it's a relatively straight re-tread of the original, with a nice head-nodding funk vibe. In contrast, Al Brown (and Skin Flesh & Bones)'s "Here I Am Baby" is a much more radical reinvention, with a wild, propulsive speeded-up version of the Al Green tune with added horn and drunken organ riffs rendering it a dancefloor killer.

Peter Tosh's "You Can't Fool Me Again" (with its bizarre subtitle "Straight To Rag-Jah-Rabbit Head") is the earliest tune included, from 1969; its vocal verses interrupted with rewinds and portions of piano instrumental add an offbeat charm to its (typically Tosh) forcefully militant anti-Church lyric.

Sugar Minott's "Crazy Soundboy", while undated, sounds early 80s, with a typical soundboy battle lyric and joyful horn riffs over a riddim cheekily adapted from a Bing Crosby children's song about an ant (only in reggae does this kind of thing work...), a very nice addition to reggae's canon of playful adaptations. Continuing the vibe is Yami Bolo's magnificent "When A Man's In Love", one of the greatest cuts to Winston Riley's classic Stalag riddim, and one of Yami's first recordings (from 1985, when he was only 15), his infectious scat vocal clearly a massive inspiration for 90s jungle tunes and the raw excitement in his voice making the sound reminiscent of a rammed live dancehall session. Definitely one of the highlights of the compilation.

Garnett Silk's "Complaint" is another wicked 90s tune, with an otherwise unprepossessing abstract digital beat transformed by his soaring and impassioned vocal, rendering the whole greater than the sum of its parts. This solo Garnett version is IMO superior to the Buju/Garnett duet version to be found on Buju's "Til Shiloh" album.

The remaining 3 tunes are all straight dancehall, in contrast to the various esoteric and rootsy vibes previously displayed. Wayne Wonder's "Keep Them Coming" nicely showcases his voice, but doesn't say much lyrically, while Mr Easy's "Everyday" is a nice uptempo weed tune with an almost techno-influenced riddim, but the pick of the 3 is probably Sean Paul & Mr Vegas's "Hot Gal Today", a wickedly humorous, if arguably somewhat sexist, duet with a semi-operatic scat chorus, militant percussion and electro-style synth riff on a riddim possibly loosely based on "Revolution", but heavy whatever its provenance.

If this review seems fragmented, it's because the compilation is; its randomness is perplexing and there appears to be no rhyme or reason to its track selection. However, it contains enough classic cuts, albeit from widely different vibes and eras, to be well worth purchasing, if only for its tracks to be ripped and re-compiled in more appropriate contexts...

Black Uhuru - Black Sounds Of Freedom

2007-06-24T19:00:00.000-07:00

Black Uhuru
Black Sounds of Freedom (Greensleeves GREWCD23)

Black Uhuru have a justified reputation as one of the darkest and most uncompromising of the internationally successful roots groups of the late 70s and early 80s. They went through several different vocal line-ups, but most of their most crucial works were produced with lead singer and prime lyricist Michael Rose, a man whose very personal blend of spiritual militancy and dread paranoia gave the classic Uhuru a unique and unmistakeable, almost gothic and industrial vibe, creating (aided by the inimitable drum and bass duo of Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare, who were essentially part of the band) some both rock-audience-friendly and truly deep and dark roots.

"Love Crisis" was their first full-length album, recorded for Prince Jammy in 1977 with the vocal line-up of Rose, Duckie Simpson and Errol Nelson. After the group achieved international popularity with their Island albums such as "Red" and "Sinsemilla", Jammy remixed the album and re-released it in 1981 as "Black Sounds Of Freedom", by which title it is more widely known. This CD reissue from Greensleeves collects both versions of the album, along with DJ cuts to 3 of the tunes by U-Black.

The original version of the album opens with "Crisis For Love", which despite its lyrics is surprisingly cheerful and upbeat, more resembling a mellow Wailing Souls or Israel Vibration track than the typical Black Uhuru sound. The mood soon gets sombre again, however, with the moving, elegiac feel of the anti-war classic "Satan Army Band", a powerful lament showing Rose can do "understated" vocally as well as he can "strident" (although its ambience is somewhat broken by the rather puzzling lyric mentioning a "hot cross bun").

"Tonight Is The Night To Unite" is one of the tunes on this set most typical of what would become the familiar and unmistakeable Black Uhuru sound, with Rose's trademark scats and vocal interpolations getting their first proper airing, on a prescient lyric of determination in the face of suffering. "Eden Out Deh" (presumably a mis-spelling of its intended title, as the lyrics refer to "heathen", not "Eden") continues the militant theme: despite the enemies everywhere, "our revolutionary spirit has come a long long way". Sly & Robbie's rhythm section (a massive, if often uncredited, influence on electro, industrial and similar movements) ensures the dread mood is kept up.

On "Sorry For The Man" Rose turns his hand to relationship matters, but of course keeps things dark in tone with his pitying condemnation of an ex-lover: whether you regard the lyric as misogynistic or just angsty, it's a long way from standard "lovers rock". "I Love King Selassie" is probably Uhuru's best-known early hit, a devotional song to the Ethiopian ruler which (in one of the great paradoxes of the Rastafarian movement), despite the irrationality of its own basic premise, produces some great attacks on religion and superstition: "Useless praying to the spirits, for the spirit is within the flesh of I and I". Sly's metronomic drumming is particularly impressive here.

"Natural Mystic" is a nice cover of a tune whose lyric, in Rose's hands, sounds like it was written for Black Uhuru; he also admirably refuses to attempt to imitate Marley vocally as too many artists do when covering his songs. The horn section of the original is replaced by a nice piece of organ courtesy of Winston Wright.

"Hard Ground", one of the standout tracks of the album, has one of the darkest, most powerful sufferers lyrics in the whole of Jamaican music; a tale of homelessness and hopelessness that even dares to question the faith in God that infuses Black Uhuru's (and so many reggae artists') entire body of work: "All my life I've only known misery - it seems as if Jah Jah really has forsaken me". Guitar, organ and piano enhance the mood, and Rose gives one of his most characteristically doom-laden vocal performances: a stunning, uncompromisingly dread tune that easily cements Black Uhuru's reputation as the darkest and most daring band in roots reggae.

"African Love", a song first recorded by UK band The African Brothers, but significantly lyrically retooled by Rose and Simpson (to include typically Uhuru references to Satan and revolution), is another effective transformation of an existing song into the Uhuru style; without knowing the African Brothers version, it would be hard to tell it was not an original. The closing "Willow Tree" is a partial adaptation of Rose's earlier "Born Free" (recorded for Yabby You), a plea for an end to ghetto violence that shows how Rose can make even the words "peace and love" sound foreboding of doom.

The remixed version of the album (presented first on this CD) is not in fact vastly different from the original: the track order is changed so that it begins with the big hit "I Love King Selassie", and the general feel is slightly slicker and less raw, but the biggest change is the overdubbing of Johnny Osbourne's harmonica, which, while not as intrusive as, for example, the rock guitar overdubs on the remixed version of The Wailers' "Catch A Fire", clearly sounds like it was not part of the original recording, and changes the mood of some tracks slightly, adding urgency but removing some of the depth and seriousness; there is little to choose really between the two versions, but IMO the original "Love Crisis" is slightly superior.

U-Black, a toaster with a somewhat U Roy influenced style, contributes versions to 3 of the tracks from (presumably the later version of) the album, "King Of All Time" ("I Love King Selassie"), "Crocodile Style" ("Hard Ground") and "Love You Girl" ("Sorry For The Man"), which are fairly unremarkable but nice additions for any selector wishing to extend the riddims, "Crocodile Style" with its dubby echo and ebullient lyric condemning hypocrites in politics, music and love being probably the best of the bunch.

Overall, while the relatively small difference between the two versions of the album makes this CD feel rather repetitive, it is still an essential purchase for allowing the listener to decide hir own preference of the available versions of one of the strongest and deepest late 70s roots albums, and making both easily available in good sound quality for the first time. None more Black.

Barrington Levy - Englishman/Robin Hood

2007-06-24T18:57:00.000-07:00

Barrington Levy
Englishman/Robin Hood (Greensleeves CD 509)

"Englishman" and "Robin Hood" were originally 2 albums recorded for Junjo Lawes in 1979 and 1981, and this Greensleeves reissue combines both on one CD. The packaging is minimal to say the least, with absolutely no sleeve notes or information beyond band credits, and looking like it was badly photocopied, but the sound quality of the CD is fine (far better than many), and the value for money of the package cannot be faulted. (Greensleeves has apparently reissued "Englishman" again as a CD to itself with some bonus tracks, so this 2-for-1 issue may now have been deleted.)

"Englishman" is the rootsier of the 2 albums lyrically, but "Robin Hood" probably has the edge on it in terms of production, with a more fully developed Roots Radics sound. Both albums, however, showcase a typically Levy mixture of roots and lovers material in a pre-digital dancehall style, and as such fit almost seamlessly together.

"Englishman" opens with its title track, one of its more uptempo tunes, and an affirmation of unity between nationalities which is also a celebration of Barrington's international popularity , on a tough rockers riddim enhanced by Ansel Collins's tense organ playing.

"If You Give To Me" and "Sister Carol" are nice but unremarkable lovers tunes which likewise have that warm, organic Radics rub-a-dub feel, while "Don't Fuss Nor Fight" is a plea for non-violence in the dance which is also a deeply laid-back celebration of "sweet reggae music, what the people them want". "Look Girl" gets even more laid-back, with only some sharp syndrums to counter the overwhelming mellowness.

The mood soon changes to one of roots determination, however, with "Look Youthman" with its tougher, semi-steppers riddim and righteous lyrics warning the youths while exalting the Creator. However, the real roots highlight of the album is the haunting "Send A Moses", with Barrington's trademark yearning vocal stretched out over a slow, plaintive riddim to powerful and moving effect, offset nicely by bluesy guitar and echoing cymbals.

"Black Heart Man" (no relation to the Bunny Wailer song and album of the same name) keeps up the mood, with Chinna Smith's guitar again employed to poignant effect over Levy's impassioned defence of Rastafari against false demonisation as child abductors and abusers. "Money Makes Friends", another attack on hypocrites, is voiced over what sounds like a curiously slowed-down cut of "Real Rock". "Bend Your Back" is, again, nice but unremarkable, dealing with the perennial dancehall topic of popular dance moves.

"Robin Hood" is massively dominated by its title track, a truly awesome dancehall roots killer with a deeply dubby, anthemic riddim (taken from another Barrington tune, "Warm and Sunny Day", which was produced by Linval Thompson, and in fact retaining its "day" backing vocal), and Levy at his most impassioned chanting down petty gangsters who rob the poor instead of redistributing wealth like "Robin Hood, who steal from the rich and build the poor more". A powerful, staccato horn riff and inspired, echoing mixing by Scientist lift this tune easily into the ranks of the undisputed classic.

The rest of the "Robin Hood" album shares the horns (which are unfortunately absent from "Englishman"), but fails to reach the same heights of lyrics or arrangements, being dominated by lovers tunes; however, Barrington's varied and inventive lyrics manage to lift such material above the banality of much of its kind, and the riddims are nice throughout. "Rock and Come In" has a horn arrangement somewhat similar to "Stalag", while "Love Sister Carol" is a much-versioned tune with a jaunty, joyful trumpet riff.

"Gonna Tell Your Girlfriend", while dealing lyrically with jealousy and infidelity, has a steely bass and vengeful horns suited to a deep roots tune, and the anthemic tone continues on "You Come To Ask Me What Is Love", with Levy pondering the nature of love and concluding "love is happiness", while once again Scientist finishes the tune with a nice helping of echo. "Why Did You Leave Me" is more minimal, without horns but with very dubby mixing, showcasing percussion and bass.

"Many Changes In Life" centres on Barrington's often-returned-to "when I was a youth... now I am a man" lyric, echoing also the changes in Jamaica due to the economic crisis, a searing bluesy steel guitar again enhancing the mood despite being low in the mix. "Na Broke No Fight Over No Woman" has a similar dark and uncertain mood, with Levy's voice floating hauntingly over the mix, despite rather dismissive lyrics.

"When Friday Come" is a sardonic reality lyric, a tale of working all week and getting no pay, yet with an almost jaunty tone, while "Like How You Kiss And Caress Me" returns to a mellow lovers mood, yet with enough authority in its heavily echoing drumbeats to close the album.

Overall, while lyrically this is a very mixed bag, the mood of the whole CD is cohesive, tho nothing else on it reaches quite the killer status of "Robin Hood". The latter album is noticeably more impressively mixed than the earlier, showing the development of Junjo's and the Roots Radics' sound, but both nicely capture the period when roots was transforming into early dancehall. This is a worthwhile purchase if still possible to track down in its 2-for-1 edition...

Babylon: The Original Soundtrack

2007-06-24T18:53:00.000-07:00

Dennis Bovell/Various
Babylon: The Original Soundtrack (EMI/Chrysalis)

The 1980 film "Babylon", directed by Franco Rosso and starring Aswad's Brinsley Forde, was a seminal work of black and working-class British cinema, and one of if not the best film about reggae sound system culture. The release of its soundtrack was also a landmark in the history of UK-produced reggae, and is a mixture of tracks featured in the film and original (mostly instrumental) tracks created by producer Dennis Bovell for it.

The LP opens with 3 Yabby You tracks: firstly, the familiar but inexhaustible "Deliver Me From My Enemies", a piano-led deep roots classic which can also be found on both the Blood & Fire compilation "Jesus Dread" and the album of the same name. Michael Prophet's "Turn Me Loose", which to my knowledge is not available on any other LP or CD, is a relatively laid-back (but still dread) tune with prominent trumpet and the Prophet pleading convincingly for freedom from the economic system. "Free Africa" is in fact the dub of that tune (the vocal can be found on "Deliver Me From My Enemies"), and is one of Yabby's dreadest late 70s productions, with its deep bass and forceful yet elegiac horn riff. "I am not preaching racial discrimination, I am only seeking human rights".

I-Roy's "Whap'n Bap'n", a Bovell production from a somewhat experimental funk-reggae album by the DJ originator, has Roy calling out political leaders over current and enduring crises in a sometimes half-singing style over warm yet punchy staccato horns: it is telling how many of the countries he mentions are still sites of imperialist conflict. So far, impeccable dread credentials; however, Cassandra's "Thank You For The Many Things You've Done" is a weak point in the album, being a somewhat lacklustre lovers tune (although representative of a very popular trend in the UK at the time, presumably hence its inclusion here).

The dread vibe picks up rapidly again with Aswad's two outstanding tunes here, however. "Hey Jah Children" is a pulsing, percussion-heavy and echo-laden work of real innovation, with a sound which incredibly strongly foreshadows the UK and European digi-dub vibes of the 1990s, as well as the work of JA digital producers such as Digital B or Xterminator, showing how massively influential and ahead of the game the often overlooked 70s and 80s UK roots scene was. "Warrior Charge", while nearer to the typical sound of its time, is rightly a classic and perennially revisited instrumental, with trademark blazing syndrums and one of the all-time great horn riffs.

The remaining 3 tracks on the original LP are Dennis Bovell's original instrumentals made specifically for scenes in the film, and represent a fusion of reggae and ambient film music similar to that achieved in funk and soul by the likes of Isaac Hayes with "Shaft" and Curtis Mayfield with "Superfly". "Beefy's Tune" has a jaunty rhythm and a somehow very British vibe, perhaps recalling, with its joyous trombone, the traditional Northern English brass band, yet still retaining just enough of the sense of dark, urban drama. "Manhunter" goes for a classic film noir soundtrack vibe, with James Danton's sensual jazz saxophone solo recalling the likes of John Coltrane as well as of Cymande, similarly jazzy piano and bass masterfully completing the effect. "Jazterpiece" is, as suggested by its name, another jazz-reggae fusion, with call-and-response trumpet and sax over a skanking rockers rhythm alternating with improvised percussive breakdowns.

The CD reissue has 7 more tracks by Bovell and/or his Dub Band as bonus tracks, including alternate versions of "Beefy's Tune" and "Jazterpiece". "School Skanking" is another soundtracky but upbeat instrumental, with Julio Finn's bluesy harmonica taking the lead. "Living in Babylon" and "Runnin' Away" are vocal tracks, both credited to Bovell himself, although the lead vocal doesn't sound like the same man on both of them, leaving the identity of one or the other vocalist a mystery; "Living in Babylon" sardonically describes life in a Britain full of cold war paranoia and hostile to any non-white inhabitants, and serves as a fitting coda to the film, while "Runnin' Away" is a jaunty, light-hearted, almost 60s-style number with a tongue-in-cheek optimism.

"Chief Inspector" is another horn-led instrumental, with an edgy, dubby vibe and harmonica and guitar complementing the impassioned lead trumpet. "B Flat Reggae Concerto" is a very mellow, synth-led piece with a slightly mock-classical vibe in its imitation of a string section. The "reggae version" of "Jazterpiece" is essentially the "jazz" version with the wilder percussion solos removed, while the long version of "Beefy's Tune" again differs fairly little from the shorter version, but nicely rounds off the album with its somewhat more leisurely and extended take on the groove.

Overall, this CD release is something of a mixed bag, but definitely worth getting, and still holds together as an album without requiring the listener to be familiar with the film. While the instrumentals dominating the latter two thirds do blur into one another somewhat if listened to all in one go, and the JA tunes at the beginning in consequence seem rather randomly tacked on, everything on this CD is quality music, whether you are a fan primarily of film soundtracks or of reggae.