Archive for the Reggae Category
John Holt “1000 Volts Of Holt” (Trojan)
One really doesn’t know what to make of a scene whose greatest composers often had their biggest hits covering other peoples’ songs. But that was the state of the reggae scene in the first half of the ’70s. Island-fying pop hits has a long tradition in Jamaica, dating to the […]
The Slackers “Redlight” (Pirates Press Records)
Long out-of-print, this classic sophomore album by one of the greatest ska bands ever has been given the proper 20th anniversary treatment. This is a must-have for any Slackers fan, regardless of whether you own the original or not. Having been remastered for vinyl, and pressed on 180gram vinyl, “Redlight” […]
Deadbeat “Roots & Wire” (BLKRTZ)
Deadbeat offers up a limited vinyl reissue of one of his most critically acclaimed albums, Roots And Wire, originally released on Wagon Repair in 2008. New mixes and mastering. From Resident Advisor: “Roots And Wire brings Deadbeat’s Scott Monteith project full circle. [Roots And Wire] is something of a return […]
Barry Brown “I’m Still Waiting” (Radiation Roots)
Radiation Roots present a reissue of Barry Brown’s I’m Still Waiting, originally released in 1983. Roots reggae star Barry Brown has a readily identifiable vocal style that has long made him among the most preferred of many roots reggae fans. Drawing largely from the blueprint provided by Horace Andy, but […]
Jackie Mittoo “Keyboard King” (Radiation Roots)
Radiation Roots present a reissue of Jackie Mittoo’s The Keyboard King, originally released in 1976. Jackie Mittoo’s contribution to reggae music is immeasurable. Of mixed Indian and African-Jamaican heritage, the man born Donat Roy Mittoo was a gifted musician that played piano in The Skatalites at the age of 16. […]
Wayne Smith “Youthman Skanking” (Black Joy)
Singer Wayne Smith earned himself a prominent place in the history of Jamaican popular music with his 1985 dancehall scorcher “Under Mi Sleng Teng”. Born on December 5, 1965, Wayne Smith and his five brothers and sisters grew up in Waterhouse, Kingston JA. He sang at school and at the […]
Michael Ras “Promised Land Sounds” (Dug Out)
Dug Out present Ras Michael’s Promised Land Sounds, originally released in 1980. This is the untrammeled counterpart to Dadawah, six years later in 1980, fresh from the Black Ark: free, rawly spiritual trance-music; a full-force nyabinghi freak-out. The drummers are headlong and rollicking, thunderous and explosive. Even more so than […]
Augustus Pablo “Original Rocks” (Greensleeves Records)
Original Rockers is a solid introduction to Augustus Pablo’s haunting melodica playing, and includes brief flashes of his dub inspiration as well on “Tubby’s Dub Song” and “Rockers Dub.” As usual, the lineup is superb with Robbie Shakespeare, Aston and Carlton “Carlie” Barrett, Earl “Chinna” Smith and Bobby Ellis, among […]
Mad Professor “Beyond The Realms Of Dub; Dub Me Crazy Vol. 2” LP (Ariwa)
“On this, the second installment in the Dub Me Crazy series, Mad Professor opens simply by saying, “Tune into Dub Me Crazy Pt. 2,” just before plunging headlong into ten tracks of space age dub that are sure to twist your brain up nice and tight. After all, that’s the […]
Big Youth “Screaming Target” LP (Sunspot)
“Achieving his first success on wax with “S 90 Skank” for producer Keith Hudson in 1972, Big Youth recorded Screaming Target, his debut full-length, one year later for Gussie Clarke. That album, along with a handful of 45s from the period, was largely responsible for bringing the DJ art form […]