Pessimistic as it sounds, there's not much in life you can really depend on. Luckily Soul Jazz and its series of Studio One releases have never let us down and we think it's pretty safe to say that they never will. How could they as they get to dip in the richest of vaults mining the sounds of Studio One in Jamaica. This time out it's the second in the series of dub's best offerings from the '60s and '70s. With Studio One's house band Sound Dimension, Marcia Griffiths, Soul Vendors, The Gladiators and more you know you can't go wrong. Thank you Soul Jazz and your always such right-on selections from the stellar vaults of Studio One. We could say more, but why bother, this music speaks for itself, just listen to the sound samples...
Volume ten, if anyone's keeping count, in Soul Jazz's homage to Coxon Dodd and his Studio One recording studio / label / school / cultural institution. We already heard Studio One Soul, and we know how much Jamaican music was influenced initially from sounds up north in the states. Dodd himself used to make regular forays up to the US to pick up the newest, hottest singles to play on his sound system early in his career. So why not put together a collection tracing funk through Jamaica's most influential music stable? Studio One Funk is a little different from its Soul counterpart in that there's much more original material here, less covers, than the previous collection. Studio One Funk does have its share of cool versions of American funk tunes including a great instrumental reworking of the theme from "Shaft" by our beloved Cedric Im Brooks, Alton Ellis doing "It's A Shame", Booker T. & The MGs' "Melting Pot" is given a twist by the Underground Vegetables (no doubt just a creative moniker for whatever the studio group happened to be that day) and "Funky Broadway" done here by Delroy Wilson. Lloyd Wilson's "Reggae Feet", while not technically a cover, is about as close a James Brown impersonation you can expect from Jamaica!
We can never ever get enough of the sweet sweet side of Studio One. Groups is another collection from their deep vaults, this time focusing on the harmony filled groups that helped make the label famous, like The Heptones, Bob Marley & The Wailers, The Maytals as well as some of their lesser known but equally great groups like The Ethiopians and Royals and The Bassies. these groups were integral to the evolution of Jamaican music and reggae in all its forms (roots, ska, dub, rocksteady). Studio One's Clement Dodd launched so many groups/singers careers, as everyone from Bob Marley to Lee Perry to Prince Buster worked at Studio One at one time or another. Marley, in fact had the job of listening to all the new American 45's that came their way to suggest songs that he thought should be covered. These songs show the close connection that Studio One had to American doo-wop and soul for sure. Not a loser in the bunch, really nice!
Another in an amazing string of great Studio One collections compiled by the seemingly infallible Soul Jazz label. The title of this one says it all. These are the heavy hitters in Studio One's rich history. Harkening back to the classic 60's and 70's Jamaican sound, a glorious golden musical era, which included rocksteady, ska, roots, and lovers rock. Classic and rare tracks are collected from the likes of Alton Ellis, Ken Booth, John Holt, Delroy Wilson, and an amazing 10 minute Dylan cover by Freddie McGregor, and of course so much more. Much like its female counterpart, The Women of Studio One, which came out a couple years ago and STILL stands as one of our favorite collections, Studio One Kings has that same impeccable lineup, working as an album as much as a collection, perfect from start to finish and not at all just a bunch of random good songs. A wonderful combination of breezy confidence and deep deep passion. With spring in full bloom and summer within arms reach we can't think of a better ways to soak in the sun then with the kings of Studio One.
Okay everybody, open up those stockings! Here's one helluva great stuffer or if you love, but have yet to dive into, the music from Jamaica's finest years (from Jamaica's finest studio) it's also a great gift for one's self. Purchased as a slipcased box set, each disc comes to only $12 each. While numerous talent has come and gone through this small island, no other figure has had such a long lasting and spectacular career as Coxsone Dodd and his Studio One recording facility/label. In fact more stars have passed through his doors than any other in Jamaica. People used to crowd the front lawn of the tiny recording studio everyday for a chance to audition for Mr Dodd. The five discs in the collection are broken up by theme: Rockers, Soul, DJ's, Roots & Scorcher.
The first, Rockers, is an all around best of, an excellent collection covering rocksteady on up to dancehall. Studio One Soul, as the title implies, consists entirely of soul tracks cut by Studio One. The covers of classic soul songs, recorded in the 60's and 70's, are quite a bit different than the American originals.
Studio One Roots is possibly the best in the series. As we wrote of it when we listed it back in November of 2001: "Not only are there some great tracks on here, but there are plenty of rare cuts as well. And although Dodd may not have been known as much for his roots reggae productions, he certainly has a few in his vault that can stand alongside the best. From the very beginning of this album with the Cyclones & Count Ossie's ball busting instrumental "Meditation" you know you've got a great comp in your hands. Featuring a barking and growling Hammond B3 backed by pounding nyabhinghi drumming and deep bass, it's a shame the cut is only three minutes long. There are plenty of great tracks on here -- both instrumental and vocal -- including crooner Alton Ellis' haunting and bizarre "Blackish White" in which an impassioned Ellis tests the range of his tenor, and Lennie Hibbert's jazz influenced "More Creation" with its dreamy vibraphone solo."
Studio One DJ's is another great collection. Yet again, let's excerpt from our review of May, 2002: "Unlike the common DJ of repute who was content to merely play records, Jamaican DJ's have always been of a mind to persistently interject their own thoughts, off the cuff remarks, vocal sound effects over what they played. Such was the heavy competition between Sound Systems in Jamaica, that merely having the freshest cuts would win an audience. A charismatic master of ceremonies was crucial drawing crowds. Out of this developed the Jamaican DJ: U Roy, I Roy, Big Youth, Dennis Alcapone, Count Machuki, Prince Jazzbo et al. Coxsone Dodd, having already been the owner of one of the biggest sound systems in Jamaica by the end of the 50's, continued in the capacity of producer to become the institution he is today with vaults of the most popularly versioned rhythms in Jamaica. Studio One DJ's takes a look at not only some of the most successful DJ's to work with Coxsone, but also some great obscure one's that you may never have heard. You won't find either U or I Roy on this collection, but that shouldn't dissuade you (we can set you up with great discs of either) as their's no shortage of awesome tracks on here from the sparse interjections of Count Machuki to the non-stop-almost-out-of-breath toasting and cocka-doodle-dooing of Dennis Alcapone, to the ever so gruff and foreboding chanting of Prince Far I, there's an impressive variety of artistry represented here."
Last, but not least, there's the Studio One Scorcher collection of instrumentals which we listed in October of 2002: "Usually, when one thinks of the concept of the instrumental in conjunction with the island of Jamaica, it's dub and the mounds of reverb + delay that accompany it that come to mind. But even before and after King Tubby reigned supreme with his custom modified mixing board and effects, the instrumental for instrumental's sake was already huge on the island including reworkings of classics with solos in place of vocals and entirely new rhythm tracks that -- for lack of any vocal that fit it -- became instrumentals. That the previous four Studio One collections celebrating the career of Coxsone Dodd have been so damn great shouldn't be too surprising considering Dodd's huge contribution to the wealth of music on the island. But taking into account that even the rarest of tracks on these collections are still heads above many of his competitor's greatest productions is a sign that the man had ears nothing short of 24 karat status. So it is with this fifth volume of tracks culled from Studio One's glorious past; from ska to rock-steady and on through reggae. Among the greats here are the Skatalites' rare and treasured "Coconut Rock" from the mid 60's, an amazing disco remix (one of Dodd's earliest) of "Cleopatra" dubbed "Shockers Rock" by Tommy McCook & the Skatalites that extends to almost 8 minutes and stuffed to the gills with organ solos, a laid back and soulfull version of "Walls of Jericho" courtesy of keyboardist Jackie Mittoo & guitarist Ernest Ranglin, a truly bizarre twangy southern soul "Bugaloo" by Jackie Mittoo's Soul Brothers, and a couple of heavy buru drumming backed cuts "Money Generator" and "Black Up" featuring the mellow jazz saxophone of Karl Bryan and his Afrokats with Count Ossie. There's really not a dud on the album, and even if you might be familiar with some of the rhythm tracks, you'll be impressed by these workings of them."
Five great collections at one great price!
From Soul Jazz, the label that brought us the 100% through 400% Dynamite comps and the Jackie Mittoo "Keyboard King At Studio One" comes this collection of tracks culled from the Studio One archives. Started by Coxsone Dodd in the mid 1950's, Studio One is the single most important record label in Jamaica. From the Skatalites to Bob Marley to Burning Spear -- just about anyone who's anyone in the Jamaican music biz in the day worked with Coxsone Dodd and Studio One. The tracks on this compilation, like Soul Jazz's successful "Dynamite" series, are an excellent mix of classic and obscure cuts from the archives -- ska, rocksteady, reggae and dancehall are all represented here. Most notably exceptional track is Dawn Penn's haunting and devastatingly sad "No, No, No".
On the heels of their unsuccessful "500% Dynamite" compilation, comes the third installment of Soul Jazz's "Studio One" series of themed anthologies culled from Coxsone Dodd's highly influential studio. As a collection "Studio One Roots" is perhaps the best
Fanciers of vintage reggae and dub can't go too wrong with a Studio One comp. The late Coxsone Dodd's label recorded the best of 'em, so it hasn't been hard for Soul Jazz to come up with some pretty excellent comps of stuff culled from the Studio One vaults. And the original Studio One Roots collection they put out was itself indeed pretty fine. So Roots 2 seems like it would have to be good, and it is! The 19 tracks (seven of them previously unreleased!) include cuts from such artists as Cedric Brooks, Tommy McCook, Joe Higgs & Ken Boothe, Zion All Stars, Zoot Sims, Willie Williams, Jackie Bernard, Prince Francis, Devon Russell, Winston Matthews, Joseph Hill, The Saints, Larry Marshall, The Gladiators, Al Campbell, and several others. Lots of soulful, laidback, positive rasta vibes here! The most downtempo and moodiest are our faves, especially the reggae-jazz instrumentals from Brooks and McCook. But there's some gorgeous vocal tracks on here as well, such Winston Matthew's take on Bob Marley's "Sun Is Shining".
There are not many things in this world you can count on, so it's so damn comforting to know that every time Soul Jazz puts together a compilation from the vaults of Studio One the results are going to be golden! Volume 3 in the Studio One Roots series has been blazing us with its warmth. Wow, did they know how to capture raw and soul melting melodies inside Clement Dodd's studio. What's also so telling about this and all of the Studio One compilations is how strong quality control was inside Dodd's studio. There just doesn't seem to be any duds or lackluster performances. Anyone with an affinity for roots reggae will find much to love on this collection but we also really think people who have never thought of themselves as big reggae-heads should check this out as it really is the cream of the crop, and what often gets overlooked in this heyday of Studio One recordings is how great the songwriting is. The duel influence of American doo-wop and soul with the African tradition of Burru rhythms made for a sound oozing with conviction and sensuality. Another stellar collection from the goldmine of Studio One.
Every time we get a new Soul Jazz collection from the Studio One vaults we keep thinking ok this one is finally gonna be a dud, but that never seems to happen! This time out it's classic '70s era Studio-One with a grip of rare tracks from the likes of Willie Williams, Cornell Campbell, The Ethiopian, Horace Andy, Jennifer Lara, and a whole lot more. Liner notes by music historian Chris Salewicz do a really nice job giving the music a context in the political and musical climate of Jamaica during the '70s. Yet more rock solid proof documenting just how rich and deep those Studio One vaults really are.
Thankfully it doesn't seem like the Studio One vault has been tapped out yet. Soul Jazz has been releasing collections from the vaults of Studio One for years now and have managed to expose the wealth of musical richness contained in those deep vaults. This is volume two in the Scorcher series which focuses on the great instrumental tracks which were the very heart of Studio One, from rock steady to dub explorations, every single track here is amazing! Not a dud in the bunch. Even so there are some definite standout moments along the way that will make you wanna keep listening to this record over and over and over. As the sun's been shining in SF as of late this is pretty much the perfect collection to be blasting, as the the warmth in these scorchers mixed with the sun in the sky pretty much equals blissed out perfection! We sell a copy or two pretty much every time we play this. Highly recommended!
Usually, when one thinks of the concept of the instrumental in conjunction with the island of Jamaica, it's dub and the mounds of reverb + delay that accompany it that come to mind. But even before and after King Tubby reigned supreme with his custom modified mixing board and effects, the instrumental for instrumental's sake was already huge on the island including reworkings of classics with solos in place of vocals and entirely new rhythm tracks that -- for lack of any vocal that fit it -- became instrumentals. That the previous four Studio One collections celebrating the career of Coxsone Dodd have been so damn great shouldn't be too surprising considering Dodd's huge contribution to the wealth of music on the island. But taking into account that even the rarest of tracks on these collections are still heads above many of his competitor's greatest productions is a sign that the man had ears nothing short of 24 karat status. So it is with this fifth volume of tracks culled from Studio One's glorious past; from ska to rock-steady and on through reggae. Among the greats here are the Skatalites' rare and treasured "Coconut Rock" from the mid 60's, an amazing disco remix (one of Dodd's earliest) of "Cleopatra" dubbed "Shockers Rock" by Tommy McCook & the Skatalites that extends to almost 8 minutes and stuffed to the gills with organ solos, a laid back and soulfull version of "Walls of Jericho" courtesy of keyboardist Jackie Mittoo & guitarist Ernest Ranglin, a truly bizarre twangy southern soul "Bugaloo" by Jackie Mittoo's Soul Brothers, and a couple of heavy buru drumming backed cuts "Money Generator" and "Black Up" featuring the mellow jazz saxophone of Karl Bryan and his Afrokats with Count Ossie. There's really not a dud on the album, and even if you might be familiar with some of the rhythm tracks, you'll be impressed by these workings of them. Highly recommended!
As a bonus, the CD includes yet another teaser video (completely different than the one included on the Studio One DJs CD) to the upcoming Studio One documentary DVD that Soul Jazz is releasing.
More classic discomixes a la "Nice Up The Dance".
Soul Jazz continues their tribute to Coxsone Dodd with a fifth Studio One collection, this time devoted to the ska era. While Dodd had a major influence in nearly every development in Jamaican music on up to dancehall, it is ska that was really where he played his most important role and it is also with ska that Jamaica really came into its own musically. Dodd already had an advantage over all competitors (no one but Duke Reid had the same financial might and brand recognition) with his popular sound system and ability to press his own vinyl, but when he put together a stable of Jamaica's top young musicians -- thereafter known as The Skatalites -- he pretty much sealed his place at the top. With the immeasurable talents of Jamaica's equivalent of Booker T. & the M.G.s behind him, Dodd cultivated a roster of vocalists who would eventually become legends on their own in Jamaica and internationally: Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Delroy Wilson, The Ethiopians, Toots & The Maytals and much more. On Studio One Ska, Soul Jazz puts together some of the most compelling vocal and instrumental tracks alike to be recorded at Dodd's studio between 1962 and 1967.
The newest collection from the Soul Jazz label's new "Studio One" series collects 18 tracks of American soul as interpreted by Jamaican artists and released during the sixties and seventies on the Studio One label. Much like Trojan's "Soulful Reggae" three cd box set which came out last year, "Studio One Soul" demonstrates not only just how much Jamaican artists looked towards the
If there were any doubt how deep and rich the vaults of Studio One were, Soul Jazz has shown that it's pretty much a bottomless well of amazingly rich sounds. This time it's the second in their Studio One Soul series, which shows the influence of American soul & funk on the roots of Reggae. The way that the sounds of folks like Curtis Mayfield, Al Green and early Roberta Flack influenced the music coming out of Jamaica, played itself out so nicely in the delivery from artists in Studio One. The mixture of classic soul melody and roots reggae instrumentation made for a sound that perfectly incorporated two so very important movements in black music in this century. Hearing Jerry Jones tackle the Eugene McDaniel's penned "Compared to What" or The Heptones taking on Curtis Mayfield's "Choice of Color" doesn't sound as much like an homage or cover as it does a solidarity of soul and spirit that makes so much sense and sounds so totally wonderful.
It's finally here! You've seen the teasers on the previous two Soul Jazz Studio One releases, now's your chance to have the whole kit n' kaboodle for relative little pocket change. 4 hours, yes four friggin' hours of video for your pleasure. The meat of the footage is an extended interview (over two and a half hours) with Coxsone Dodd in his Kingston studio and hanging out in Kingston at some of the old dancehall locations surrounded by adoring fans and Studio One stable staples. Interspersed throughout are additional brief interviews with King Stitt, Alton Ellis, Ken Booth, Studio One engineer Sylvan Morris, Sister Ignacious of the Alpha Boys School (who produced some of the island's greatest musicians) and many other old timers from Studio One's glory days recounting the label's illustrious history. As bonus features to this documentary are some interviews with Alton Ellis, Norma & Courtney Dodd, Ken Boothe, King Stitt, Dennis Alcapone and more. But wait, there's more! And it's not a collection of steak knives. Soul Jazz has also thrown in a best of Studio One collection (LP or CD, your choice) that seriously kicks ass and a 100 page book filled with archival pictures and bios. Considering the huge role Studio One / Coxsone Dodd had in shaping Jamaican music through the sixties and seventies (not to mention the lasting effect the treasure of Studio One rhythms continue to have on the island's music) this document is an excellent source of historical info.
I can't close this up without expressing one bone to pick with the creators of this film. You'll notice when you pop this puppy on your DVD player (by the way, the discs we've got are region free NTSC) is a horrible video title generated frame that surrounds the picture -- kind of like the trademark frame that surrounds all the Soul Jazz Studio One releases. No, this doesn't go away ever during the film and no, you can't get rid of it if you want to. It really sucks and I can only suspect the most nefarious of reasons that Soul Jazz would include it throughout the entire film. Shame on them for that. Chances are, like us, you'll mentally crop that frame out soon enough. This thing is just too damned good to let a stupid frame ruin it! Can I also say that it makes an excellent stocking stuffer? (the CD version anyway, the LP you might have to have a big ass sock to fit it.)
Soul Jazz has been doing a great job of digging into the studio one vaults, unearthing some amazing, classic reggae and dub sounds but one thing that had been lacking were the ladies! Luckily they had the good sense to do some more exploring and find these 16 tracks by women from Studio One spanning the mid 60's to the beginning of the 80's. It's so nice to hear a feminine touch to the classic studio one sound. Their is a hazy sweetness that drips from this collection. When Dela Humphrey sings of a "Dream Land" you just might find yourself with an outbreak of goose bumps like we did. What's so nice about this collection is how it shows the blend and merging of motown, doo-wop and the classic studio one sound. The Soulettes and Jerry Jones would be just as comfortable in the soul section of AQ as they are in reggae. The Tonettes show off their production chops with a dub track that gets nice and loopy. Jennifer Lara makes the most appearances on the comp (3 times) with a sound that's oh so rich and reminiscent of early Burning Spear. Once again a great job by Soul Jazz, this is another essential collection!
This is the one. If you've never gotten a Studio One compilation or you have, but have been wondering which one to get next, the answer is right here. Soul Jazz pretty has pretty much selected the best, warmest and most memorable cuts by amazing reggae artists from Studio One spanning 1963-1980. We've been playing this almost non-stop in the store, as this really does represent some of the best music ever made. Studio One rivals Motown for being responsible for so much amazing and timeless music. All our favorites are here: Horace Andy, Marcia Griffith, The Heptones, Prince Jazzbo, as well as some stunning tracks by a few folks who had somehow slipped under our radar like Super & Sleepy, Michigan & Smiley, and Doreen Schaffer. It's got everything we love about the Studio One sound, from the super dubbed out, to song sizzling with sensual warmth. Every single track on this kills. This is a no brainer, an absolute must have.
There's a LOT of great Trojan vintage reggae comps out there, with a variety of concepts. Their triple cd box series alone has dozens of titles, each one focusing exclusively on everything from ganja-themed songs to Beatles covers to X-rated reggae. Really, there's so many that we can't stock 'em all, or there'd be nothing in our reggae/dub section but Trojan comps! But we do try to get some of the cooler comps in now and then, and spaghetti western inspired reggae is certainly pretty neat (right up there with all that Kung-Fu reggae, of which there is also a Trojan comp devoted, previously reviewed). So, this collection, released last year, includes tracks from 1968-1972 by such artists as The Upsetters, The Crystalites, King Stitt, Lloyd Charmers, The Destroyers, Hippy Boys and others doing songs named for either favorite spaghetti westerns or spaghetti western stars -- "A Fistful Of Dollars", "Return Of Django", "Lee Van Cleef", "Franco Nero", "Clint Eastwood", "The Bad", etc. etc. The heavily echoed song intros/skits are usually where you get the specific spaghetti western inspired content, as the songs themselves are fairly bouncy and groovy and wouldn't be mistaken for a moody Morricone score (though his famed The Good The Bad And The Ugly theme does get appropriated a few times). No, it's good ol' upbeat instrumental reggae grooves throughout. But there's plenty of gritty drama in those intros -- The Crystalites even manage a whole trilogy of tracks chronicling the rise and fall of a gunslinger called The Undertaker. Like Kung-Fu movies, these Italian westerns were popular in Jamaica at the time for the same reasons they're cult favorites today: the desperate violence and stylish visuals. So it makes sense that reggae producers would want to use 'em to sell songs. The liner notes to this comp discuss the phenomenon and explain to what films and characters each track is making reference, illustrated by reproductions of some representative film posters.
A few years back MoWax resurfaced on our radar with the Now Thing compilation of popular dancehall rhythms. People seemed to dig that collection enough, especially on vinyl, so when we saw this new(ish) collection of rhythms from the trusty Greensleeves label, who are responsible -- for better or worse -- for the endless stream of rhythm albums (the kind that feature the same rhythm with toasting from 20 different artists) we thought it'd be a good thing to snatch up. And surely it is. The Biggest Rhythms is just that: 18 unadulterated ragga dancehall tracks sans vocals of the 'best' rhythms from the 46 odd collections. While not credited as a producer on any of the tracks, Andre Gray of Ward 21 has his name attached to several rhythms nonetheless -- and we know there's a few Ward 21 fans out there. Rhythms included here are: Diwali, Mad Ants, Clappas, Bollywood, Egyptian, Coolie Dance, Amharic, Masterpiece, Bad Company, Sign, Good To Go, Krazy, 20 Cent, Jumbie, Knockout, Bun Bun, Martial Arts, and C-4. Those waiting for a vinyl edition of this shouldn't hold up: according to Greensleeves, this is CD only.
With the fires just now settling over the fervor for the reissues "Flesh of My Skin, Blood of My Blood" and "Playing It Cool & Playing It Right" from Keith Hudson's final years, it's just about the perfect time for Trojan to release this 55 track retrospective of Hudson productions from his lengthy, successful and controversial career. Laid out chronologically and spanning the years 1969 to 1975, The Hudson Affair shows the broad resume of a brilliant producer. This is the man who gave both U Roy and Dennis Alcapone their big breaks. The man who snuck a Honda S90 motorcycle into a recording studio so that he could record it revving up for a track he cut with Big Youth (included here), who took as many musical cues from US funk and soul as he did from what his fellow Jamaican producers were doing. As varied as all his tracks are through his long career, there's a brooding, rootsy and intensely personal thread that runs throughout; from the oldest to the latest. One look no further than his "Satan Side Version (aka Kiss 14)" with Augustus Pablo to hear this. Paralleling Pablo's minor key melodica musings are some of the most brutal and crunchy organ poundings ever committed to tape. It sounds like someone trying to smash the keyboard. Definitely a must for all those who enjoyed the Basic Replay reissues from last year, and also for anyone else who may have been scared off by Hudson's voicings on those albums. Most of the tracks here are voiced by others including: Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe, Delroy Wilson, Horace Andy, I Roy, Johnny Clarke, the afformentioned U Roy & Dennis Alcapone among others. Includes several pages of liner notes by Dave Hendley.
Moll-Selekta brings us its second collection of Bunny Lee productions, this time a compilation of roots reggae tracks dating from 1973-79. The Mighty Striker Shoots At Hits is a solid group of songs that balances classic hits from big names such as Horace Andy and Delroy Wlson with more obscure cuts such as Hortense Ellis covering her brother Alton's smash, "I'm Still In Love." Depending on your inclinations, the fact that this disc focuses on shorter, 7" sides rather than extended DJ and dub cuts may or may not be to the record's benefit. The concision of the tracks is refreshing and highlights the strength of the vocal performances and songwriting, but unfortunately means that the engineering prowess of frequent collaborators like King Tubby are largely underrepresented. That said, we're of the opinion that the heartbreaking beauty of tracks like Cornell Campbell's soulful "Give Me Love" benefit from the unadorned presentation they receive here.
What this disc does best is document the early stages of the transition from ska and rocksteady to the more Rastafarian-oriented themes of the Roots movement that would come to define Jamaican music's most celebrated era. Likewise, the vocal performances on display in these cuts show Bunny Lee's unparalleled ability to coax beautifully emotional deliveries out of his singers that are at once simple, sweet and massively evocative. While the collection is hardly perfect (as with so many other reggae compilations, the liner notes and packaging leave a lot to be desired) and definitely not recommended for those interested mostly in dubby tape echo workouts, it still serves as a fantastic introduction to the production skills of one of the most important figures in Reggae's mid-'70s rennaissance. For fans of lover's style roots ballads, classic rockers and sweet Jamaican soul, there is more than enough here to make this a highly recommended purchase!
Some of you may already be familiar with this series in its original form as three individual cds, or in a similar complete form as an LP box set. This is the first time that this collection has ever been presented in its entirety on cd. The good part is that you get all that music for a fraction of the cost of buying the individual cds, the bad part, as Windy puts it is "you don't get any of those beautiful tummy pictures" that graced the covers of the originals and the LP box. So if you want the cool cover art, spend the money and get the individual cds, but if you don't mind the plain Trojan helmet cover you're better served with this package. Now a word from our sponser: "In the late sixties and early seventies Trojan Records dominated the UK Reggae market. Between 1969 and 1974, the company released over thirty singles to breach the British pop charts and of these, almost half made the top ten, with two reaching the number on spot. But despite the success of Trojan's 45s, there were no such guarantees for its album releases. Jamaican music LPs had always been regarded as something of a luxury. But Trojan devised a simple, yet effective strategy to overcome such prejudices. In early 1969, they put together their first budget-priced compilation, made up of some of the most popular recordings recently on the UK Reggae scene." By 1973 Trojan had released 8 volumes in the series. This 3 cd set brings together 50 tracks from those eight volumes "and by so doing, highlights some of the best Reggae sounds of the late sixties and early seventies."
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
You know it had to happen. Like the x-mas album, the Beatles tribute is a requisite in every genre. In fact, as you may have guessed, this isn't the first reggae tribute to the fab four. It's just the most fucking definitive in its 3 disc, 50 track length. The biggest argument in Trojan's favor in sequencing this compilation is that the majority of tracks selected were recorded during the Beatles craze -- during the mid-sixties and early seventies -- which means the bulk of the tracks on here are from the ska and rocksteady eras. Suffice it to say, while many of us might enjoy one or two interesting covers, a three disc set -- running almost three hours in length -- will probably only appeal to a very select few.
Trojan's latest collection chronicles the advent of reggae recorded entirely "within the golden shores of Her Majesty's sceptred isle" (as the liner notes poetically dub it.) The box takes as its focus the brief, though fruitful period between 1968 and 1972 (so you won't find any Matumbi, Aswad, or Steel Pulse here.) Reggae producers and artists in the UK have always had to play second fiddle to their counterparts back in Jamaica. The initial efforts in the UK were merely in importing and repressing popular hits from back home. Eventually, the success of expatriate artists in the UK would not lie in merely competing with those back in Jamaica, but by tailoring their recordings to the well heeled white audiences who were being turned on to these exciting new sounds. What you end up getting to hear on these three discs is a metamorphosis from carbon copy rock-steady rip offs like "The Duke All Stars" to the most bizarre sugar coated Top Of The Pops attempts that are guaranteed to force a Moe Szyslak "WhaaaAAAH?!" out of your gulllet. The first disc is all pre 1970's material and tends to tow the line straight out of the Duke Reid and Coxsone Dodd songbooks for the most part. There's even a reggaefied version of the Skatalites' "Phoenix City" by The Family Circle. Disc two finds the production in the new decade halfway between Lee Perry -- with his penchant for out of tune wurlitzer organs -- and a taste of what was to come, typified in The Music Doctors Jamaican styled rendition of Mungo Jerry's (one) hit "In the Summertime". The third disc however, presents a no-holds-barred attack on the charts with the most over produced -- strings, strings, and more strings -- reggae versions of the day's popular R&B, soul and country hits. One the weirdest is Delroy Williams' (sounding more like Andy Williams) version of "Down In The Boondocks", replete with slide guitar. But this doesn't even compare to UK's biggest unit mover Dandy's "What Do You Want To Make Those Eyes At Me For", which pulls out all the stops with strings, Tijuana Brass-esque horns and back up singers galore. The set finishes nicely with a nice up arrangement of Tchaikovsky's "Piano Concerto No. 1" by The Neasden Connection. Damn weird and kinda cool, if nothing else you can drop some of these seventies tracks on your next party mix and baffle the shit out of your guests.
Though most commonly associated with Trinidad, calypso was also a big hit throughout the Caribbean and even the U.K. The style grew out of a melange of influences including shango, kumina and European song. While displaying a happy face melodically, the underlying messages of much of the earliest songs -- Caribbean slaves were often forced to perform for their masters -- were excoriating criticisms of the slave owners. The lyrical acrobatics continued through the style's development through the 20th century, with double entendres being a requisite part of any master vocalist's cache of tricks. The Jamaican form of calypso, and its outgrowth mento, increased steadily in popularity with working class Jamaicans despite the almost complete blackout of radio and label interest in the music. This box set contains some of the best in the business -- Lord Kitchener, Count Lasher, Lord Creator, The Mighty Sparrow (from Trinidad and considered the king of calypso) and more -- along with some greats that are more familiar names in the later ska and rocksteady genres such as: Tommy McCook & the Supersonics, Phyllis Dillon, Derrick Harriott, The Maytals and more. The third disc in the set is a collection of recordings from the U.K. calypso scene and, ironically enough, are also the oldest dated cuts, recorded between 1956 and 1958. The first two discs in this collection are of West Indies calypso and their tracks were recorded primarily between 1960 and 1968, with a few tracks taken from the early seventies.
Throughout the sixties the bulk of sales for Trojan records was through the release of singles. They eventually got the grand idea of releasing these singles together on budget priced compilations and thus widen their market in the U.K. The end result of these collections is what we now know as the "Tighten Up" series. In 1971, Trojan decided to continue in this vein, releasing the first of five "Club Reggae" compilations. Some of the biggest selling singles from 1970 through the end of 1972 were compiled on these five lps and are condensed onto the first two disks of this set. The third disk here is a collection of 16 tracks taken from the 20 tracks that Trojan had included as bonus tracks when they first issued the whole series as a collection in 1974. The series is thus a focused lens in time of Jamaican music at the inception of Reggae. There are many super tracks in this comp; lots of beautiful soul-laden reggae, plus some amazing covers, including an alternate version of the Maytals doing "Louie Louie" that's absolutely stunning, the Pioneers doing "Mother And Child Reunion", the Messengers cover "Cherrie Baby" and much more. On top of all this there are some wacked out instrumentals, including some with moog synth lead roles. Highly recommended.
It really doesn't sound like that good an idea. Reggae versions of country classics. But from the first few strains of Johnny Cash's "Ring Of Fire", as interpreted by the Skatalites, that instantly recognizable melody, the vocal line replaced by a trombone, the original's swing replaced by some Jamaican groove, it suddenly becomes clear that it's not such a bad idea at all, and as the compilation progresses, it begins to seem like a fantastic idea, and why the hell didn't anyone think of it sooner?! Jamaican bands were always covering and reinterpreting American music, rhythm and blues, funk and soul, and as we've discovered, country too, all it took was for Trojan to gather them all up. Trojan do their usual fantastic job, three discs worth of the best reggae country covers, with excellent liner notes, all tucked in a little cardboard box.
So many classics, "Tennessee Waltz", "Stand By Your Man", "Help Me Make It Through The Night", "Take Me Home Country Roads", "My Elusive Dreams", "Don't Take Your Guns To Town", "Will The Circle Be Unbroken", and more and more, performed by folks like Hortense Ellis, Max Romeo, Dennis Brown, John Holt, Toots & The Maytals and others. After a few listens to these reggae versions, the songs sound so perfect, and so classic, that gets hard to remember the originals, and even harder to imagine how the originals could have ever sounded better.
This isn't all that new, but we've been listening to it like crazy, so we figured lots of aQ customers would probably dig it as much as we do!
"Initially little more than record selectors for sound systems, deejays assumed a greater role following the exploits of Winston 'Count Matchuki' Cooper, who in the early fifties began embellishing records with smatterings of live and aural effects. Others swiftly followed suit and by the late fifties the practice was widespread, with the deejay's profile considerably raised as a result." By the late sixties many deejays were beginning to acheive popular success through releasing their own toasted versions of songs. This set contains some of the best and most influential deejay toastings ever committed to vinyl, including works by Big Youth, U Roy, Dennis Alcapone, King Stitt, Sir Lord Comic, I Roy and much more. "Like the farmer said to the potato, 'I'll plant you now and eat you later.'"
The consistently popular Trojan box sets are now being issued on LP at long last. The sets all appear to be identical to their cd counterparts in design and content, only being slightly more pricey.
"Initially little more than record selectors for sound systems, deejays assumed a greater role following the exploits of Winston 'Count Matchuki' Cooper, who in the early fifties began embellishing records with smatterings of live and aural effects. Others swiftly followed suit and by the late fifties the practice was widespread, with the deejay's profile considerably raised as a result." By the late sixties many deejays were beginning to acheive popular success through releasing their own toasted versions of songs. This set contains some of the best and most influential deejay toastings ever committed to vinyl, including works by Big Youth, U Roy, Dennis Alcapone, King Stitt, Sir Lord Comic, I Roy and much more. Like the farmer said to the potato, 'I'll plant you now and eat you later.'"
"In 1979, when the late producer Henry 'Junjo' Lawes took Barrington Levy into the studio, he probably had no idea he was launching a whole new style of Jamaican music. But the rhythms he created, along with the musicians who would go on to become the Roots Radics, inspired the Dancehall craze. Between then and 1985, when digital rhythms arrived, Dancehall reigned supreme. A whole new generation of mainly young singers launched their careers, and several new producers rose to prominence. Channel One continued as the studio of choice for recording rhythm tracks, with King Tubby's being used for voicing and mixing. This box presents fifty examples of the genre, giving a varied overview of the music." --Chris Pete (from the liner notes.)
In the late sixties the trend among producers to release b-side "versions" of songs, stripped of vocals, was intended to allow for DJ's to "toast" over the tracks with improvised vocals of their own and the end result is what we know today as Dancehall. The side effect to this practice was the inadvertent creation of what we also now know, love and embrace as Dub. Starting with King Tubby in the mid seventies, several studio engineers began showing off their talents by creating versions released strictly as instrumentals with added effects and instrumental solos to fill up the b-sides of singles. This box set serves to sample the pioneers of that era from the mid seventies on up to the early eighties, featuring dubs by King Tubby, Scientist, Lee Perry, Prince Jammy, Errol Thompson & Sylvian Morris of tracks by Sly & The Revolutionaries, Roots Radics Band, Upsetters, Gregory Isaacs, Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators, and much more.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
Not much needs to be said here; a follow up to the popular and high selling Trojan Dub Box Set. Three more cds and 50 more tracks (what is it with Trojan and the number 50?) of some of the best dub in the Trojan catalog from the early seventies to the early eighties and, it probably doesn't need to be said, no overlapping songs from the previous set. They're all here: The Upsetters, Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators, Sly & The Revolutionaries, King Tubby, Prince Jammy, Augustus Pablo, Scientist and much more.
The consistently popular Trojan box sets are now being issued on LP at long last. The sets all appear to be identical to their cd counterparts in design and content, only being slightly more pricey.
In the late sixties the trend among producers to release b-side "versions" of songs, stripped of vocals, was intended to allow for DJ's to "toast" over the tracks with improvised vocals of their own and the end result is what we know today as Dancehall. The side effect to this practice was the inadvertent creation of what we also now know, love and embrace as Dub. Starting with King Tubby in the mid seventies, several studio engineers began showing off their talents by creating versions released strictly as instrumentals with added effects and instrumental solos to fill up the b-sides of singles. This box set serves to sample the pioneers of that era from the mid seventies on up to the early eighties, featuring dubs by King Tubby, Scientist, Lee Perry, Prince Jammy, Errol Thompson & Sylvian Morris of tracks by Sly & The Revolutionaries, Roots Radics Band, Upsetters, Gregory Isaacs, Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators, and much more.
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
And the winner is!... Yep, it's the winning suggestion in Trojan's box set concept competition (and you thought we were joking!) We knew it had to happen. It's just amazing that Trojan needed to have the idea pitched to them, what with all the barrel scraping concept collections they've been churning out. In keeping with tradition, Trojan has stuck with their usual 50 tracks limit in pulling together these stoney gems from 1970 to 1985. Features the usual suspects: King Stitt, Bob Marley (how could they leave out "Kaya"?), The Upsetters, Max Romeo, Big Youth, Horace Andy, Johnny Clarke, Tappa Zukie, Cornel Campbell, Linval Thompson, Ranking Dread, Dillinger, Barrington Levy and much more. Also included are the usual three sides of liner notes on the cd sleeves waxing on the celebrated herb's place in Jamaican history.
Instrumental releases have been popular among the Jamaican record buying public since the very dawn of the island's recording industry -- from the Jamaican blues of the late fifties through to the music of today. And at no other time were non-vocal records more in demand than during the sixties and early seventies, a time when Jamaicans rocked to the sounds of ska, rocksteady, and reggae. It is upon these exciting, formative years that this collection focuses, highlighting the work of some of the great virtuosos and instrumental groups from this hugely creative period. Throughout this time, few were more influential than trombonist Don Drummond and saxophonists Tommy McCook & Roland Alphonso. All three of whom were major figures in their own right, but also founding members of the Skatalites, who dominated the local scene until Don Drummond murdered his girlfriend in 1965! Fascinating stories, amazing music, highly recommended.
Though this collection probably won't appeal to everyone, aww, what the heck does anyway? Seriously though... Trojan delves a little deeper still into the archives of Jamaican music history with this newest collection of sides. This is basically where it all starts, the Jamaican music industry as we know it anyhow. Before there was any record industry of course, there were primarily sound men: Duke Reid, Coxsone Dodd, and to a lesser degree Prince Buster and many other highly competitive small operations. The fierce competition amongst them was well known, and success at importing the hottest American R&B singles was a sure way to give one's sound system an edge over the rest. It wasn't long before the most successful of these (Duke Reid firstly) started cutting their own imitations of American R&B using local musicians (the various members of the Skatalites got their start here under various names, depending on who was producing the track.) The tracks here were all recorded between 1960 & 1963 and vary between downright, straight up copies of American R&B and what would eventually become ska: basically a sped up R&B with a heavy accent on the off beat. Among those featured on this collection of classic Jamaican R&B (as well as some rare and even previously unreleased tracks) are some household names: Laurel Aitken, Derrick Herriott, and a 14 year old Jimmy Cliff (his first recording "Dearest Beverly" is included here.)
"All six artists featured on this set have rightly earned the title 'Superstar', scoring more hits than we have space to mention. As a resuls, we can only hope to provide a limited sampling here. Gregory Isaacs (a.k.a. the 'Cool Ruler'), began his career in 1968, before joining the Concords. Initial success didn't arrive until 1970, when he recorded 'Lonely Man' for Rupie Edwards. Delroy Wilson began singing professionally as a child, cutting his first records for Studio One. Over the next few years he was very successful, helping to usher in the Rock Steady era with 'Dancing Mood'. Alton Ellis has the distinction of being one of Jamaica's pioneer recording artists, cutting his first hit (Murial) in the late fifties. Pat Kelly entered the world of music as a member of The Techniques, who were recording for Treasure Isle at the time. John Holt's career began with a false start, launched with a couple of sides in the early sixties. After a short break from music he joined the Paragons, who became one of Jamaica's most successful vocal harmony groups later in the decade. Child prodigy Dennis Brown is another singer who first tasted fame whilst recording for Studio One. However, he really hit the big time after moving on to record for Derrick Harriott, scoring a number of superb recordings."
THIS IS CURRENTLY OUT OF PRINT OR OTHERWISE UNAVAILABLE TO US AT THE MOMENT, SO PLEASE DO NOT ORDER IT. SORRY.
SORRY.
From the vast archives of Jamaican music reposited in their care, Trojan now culls a collection devoted strictly to love songs. 50 original and cover tracks of crooning and pleading, devotion and dispair spanning from 1966 to 1974. Featuring Delroy Wilson, Marcia Griffiths (singing Jackie DeShannon's "Put A Little Love In Your Heart"), Alton Ellis, Derrick Harriott (performing the Chi-Lites' "Have You Seen Her"), Gregory Isaacs, Phyllis Dillon (The Shirelles' "A Thing Of The Past"), Al Brown (Al Green's "Here I Am Baby"), The Melodians, Toots & the Maytals, Horace Andy, The Paragons and much, much more.
Trojan records continues its English subculture series of box sets with a collection devoted to the phenomenon known as Mod. The fifty tracks collected here represent the most popularly played tracks in Mod clubs both during the style's heyday in the early
