Juno Recommends Reggae Classics April 2020

Review: For the second salvo in their "loud cut series", the Harlem Shuffle label has raided the vaults of Lee 'Scratch' Perry's legendary studio band, "The Upsetters". On the A-side you'll find "Popcorn" from 1970's "Eastwood Rides Again" album, a hard-edged, Ska-era rhythm & blues rump-shaker that sounds like a Jamaican take on James Brown. The flipside plays host to "Tight Spot", a dubbed-out reggae riddim over which tight saxophone riffs ascend impressively while deejay/singer/mic man attempts to get the dance going with some choice words and phrases. Like the A-side, it's a genuine dancefloor workout.

Review: Original copies of the original 1978 seven-inch of 12 Tribes Of Israel's debut single are not only hard to find, but also exceedingly expensive on the rare occasions they do come up for sale. This reissue then is well overdue. "Kill The Devil" is that rarest of things: an instrumental roots reggae workout that peppers a dancefloor-friendly groove with fluid piano, Hammond organ and jazz guitar solos. The flipside dub version - re-titled "Bury The Devil" - is also superb, with a stripped-back, reverb-drenched version of the track's killer groove rightly taking pride of place throughout.

Review: Dig This Way Records is back with a second sizzling 7" release, and this time it's a brand new collaboration with Italian-Jamaican label Tebel. It features Jonny De Ambassador and Abeng (Claudio SugarCube) as well as a serious group of musicians. "Country Boy" is well schooled in classic dub and ska, but comes with some slick contemporary flourishes in the form of production techniques and some groggy riffs. The vocals are lazy and louche, the drums cut deep and vibes are pure sunshine. The dub on the flip is even more roomy and horizontal for those lazy afternoons in the park.

Review: For those with major gaps in their ska, rocksteady and reggae collections, Treasure Isle's ongoing reissue series of seven-inch singles is a godsend. The Arthur 'Duke' Reid-founded label's latest must-have missive is a strong double-header. On side A you'll find "The Road Is Rough", a hazy and quietly soulful rocksteady gem from the prolific (and hugely successful) vocal group Justin Hinds and the Dominoes. The ear-pleasing musical backing on that number comes from Treasure Isle house band Tommy McCook and the Supersonics, an outfit that gets a chance to shine over on the flipside. Instrumental number "Look Away" is superb, with the band layering bittersweet horn lines and melancholic piano solos over a rock solid rocksteady riddim.

Review: Any true reggae head knows that some of the best compilations money can buy come from Kingston Sounds. Well-researched and tapping into forgotten corners of Jamaican music culture, they rarely miss a beat. So it goes on this sweet set of "Jamaican Love Songs", which runs the gamut from lilting rocksteady and lovers rock to classic roots and beyond. Forget the subtleties of the styles and let the songwriting and performance move you - it's not hard when you have a hit list like this. Max Romeo, Alton Ellis, Ken Boothe and John Holt are just some of the legends singing their hearts out across this crucial compilation.

Review: At the tail end of the 1960s, Treasure Isle producer Arthur 'Duke' Reid began to slowly move away from the ska and rocksteady sound with which he'd made his name. Reid embraced the emergent style of reggae, producing a string of local hit singles. 1970 compilation "Gay Jamaica Independence Time" gathered together some of these, adding a handful of previously unheard tracks to help sales. Here the sought-after set gets the reissue treatment courtesy of music on vinyl. There's much to admire amongst the 13 tracks on show, with highlights including the soulful shuffle of Hopeton Lewis's "Boom Sha Ka La", the Ethiopians socially conscious "Condition Bad A Yard", Alton Ellis's rhythm & blues influenced "Puping In" and the seductive "Catty" by Hugh Roy.

Review: Released in 1969 four years after the band split up (a break that resulted in the formation of two of Jamaican music's most storied studio 'house bands', Tommy Cook & The Supersonics and Rolando Alphonso and the Studio One Orchestra), "The Skatalite" gathers together some of the most potent and best known "sides" recorded by The Skatalites with producer Arthur 'Duke' Reid. Here reissued by Music On Vinyl, it's as strong a collection of early/peak-era Ska music as you're likely to find. In it you can hear the influences from rhythm and blues and jazz that went into forming the Ska sound, as well as the progression towards a more "skanking" sound that would lay the foundations of rocksteady and ultimately reggae.