Reggae

Various Artists – The Observer Roots Albums Collection

Posted on by jbass508

Various Artists – The Observer Roots Albums Collection

Doctor Bird Records

2CD/DL

Out now

2CD set featuring the productions of Niney The Observer, made up of two Freddie McGregor albums, The Ethiopians’ comeback set Slave Call and a collection of single sides entitled Reggae Mix Up. Ian Canty writes…

Much like the recent Gold Connection set of Lloyd Charmers’ work, The Observer Roots Albums Collection continues Doctor Bird’s ongoing Niney The Observer series. This time we have The Ethiopians’ Slave Call joined by a pair of key Freddie McGregor albums, plus a compilation set in Reggae Mix Up. But, as the collection’s title bears out, unlike the aforementioned R&B-themed Charmers’ set, most of what is contained is set firmly in the Roots Reggae camp.

The Observer Roots Album Collection begins with the ten offerings of the 1977 Slave Call LP by The Ethiopians. The group had enjoyed considerable success during the Rocksteady era, in particularly with their monster hit 45 Train To Skaville. Later Everything Crash found them moving towards the Original Reggae sound and after that they had many successes in Jamaica, something that was tragically curtailed when founder member Stephen Taylor was killed in a car accident in 1975. Band kingpin Leonard Dillion understandably retreated from performing for a time until Slave Call, cut with a new line up of The Ethiopians. This was a record that embraced Dillion’s growing Rastafarian beliefs and the Nyabinghi drum sound that was something of a musical trademark of the faith.

As we come to the first track on the LP Ethiopian National Anthem, the Rasta connection is made clear, with Nyabinghi percussion taking up the main musical thrust of the piece that is buttressed by bass and choral voices. The album’s title track fleshes out the musical palette towards an appealing Reggae sound, with purposely flat horn parps and Leonard’s soulful delivery ratcheting things up a notch. Guilty Conscience comes with all the energy and charm that informed the band’s best work and succeeds in bringing it all bang up to date, with the following Hurry On proving conclusively that it wasn’t a fluke. They both make for a easy transition from The Ethiopians’ late 60s recordings by drawing on their core strengths and then serving them up with a large helping of pure Roots attitude.

Nuh Follow Babylon utilises echo to neat effect and even at the most Dread point in their career, The Ethiopians could not resist reworking their most well-known tune for a new audience. Train To Skaville makes the jump into the 70s well enough and then a louche Culture moves with a stately, loping stride. Obeah Book is in a more strident Roots style, but next the Rasta twist on The Beatles’ Let It Be doesn’t work quite as well. Thankfully a brass-boosted I Love Jah ends what is a very creditable collection on a high note.

The second part of disc one is Mix Up, which collects fourteen Niney-produced single sides from Roots’ halcyon days of 1977 and 1978. It’s virtually a role call of top names, with The Heptones, Gregory Isaacs, Junior Delgado, Johnny Clarke, Ken Boothe and Delroy Wilson all putting in an appearance, but a few lesser known acts show up too.

We start off with a catchy Black Is The Highest Culture by Glasford Manning’s The Jewels and The Heptones’ nippy Through The Fire (I Come). The latter return on this disc for the effortlessly cool Move On and a jolly Book Of Rules. They also team up with Don “Tabby Diamond” Shaw for Well Hot aka Red Hot, a tune that comes with a solid hook and the organ glide is very pleasing too.

Niney’s smarts behind the boards and the playing of his crack studio players The Observers pay dividends here, he even revisits his breakthrough hit Blood And Fire with aplomb. Warrior by Johnny Clarke is pretty much everything one could wish for from a Dread Roots number, with a chiding Mr Know It All by Gregory Isaacs coming with some smart Dub touches. After a brilliantly performed Left With A Broken Heart by Ken Boothe and Niney & The Morwells’ impressive LP title track, it is left to Reggae George Davey (or Daley) to sign off disc one with an easy-going Trodding Along.

This leaves a lot for disc two to live up to, but luckily enough Freddie McGregor was well up to the task. The former child prodigy rose to prominence as Roots music was on the up and his 1979 platter Mr McGregor starts this part of the set. His Rasta ideals were of course informing his musical path, but by applying a measured and sunny approach the uncommitted could also enjoy it. We begin here with the sultry and stylish sufferers’ lament We Got Love, the ideal opening gambit and the Niney/Freddie-written Walls Of Jericho also cuts a real Roots Reggae dash.

Freddie’s emotive delivery is spot on for the entire album, a cool and catchy version of Little Roy’s Jah Can Count On I being joined by the winning Pop charm of Why Did You Do It? and an attractive but more Roots Zion Chant. A slow and sinuous rhythm powers Rastaman Camp, with a jaunty Do Good again demonstrating the Reggae/Pop appeal McGregor would eventually turn into international hits. Mr McGregor ends appropriately with Rasta Have Faith, a hovering organ-led sound.

For the second Fred LP presented on this disc, Showcase from 1981, a different approach is taken in that Niney’s extended Dub sections pad out the relatively low number of offerings aboard. An endearing take on the UK trend for romantic Reggae, Lovers Rock JA Style/Lovers Version, sets the tone marvellously. The lilting The Overseer/Overseer Version follows and Niney and his musicians apply just the right touch, something which is also the case on a bright Love One Another and Chant It Down/Chant It Version, the latter being possibly one of Freddie’s very best Roots numbers. Sitting In The Park/In The Park Version, a cover of Billy Stewart’s song, is a lovely note for the album to sign off on.

Despite containing the two LPs, there is still room for a couple of FM bonuses in the form of Follow This Ya Sound and Roman Soldiers Of Babylon. Both of these hammer home what a great combo Freddie and Niney’s set up was at the height of Roots Reggae.

For me this is one of the most enjoyable Doctor Bird releases in some time. Slave Call represents a convincing 1970s return for The Ethiopians and the two Freddie McGregor albums are uniformly excellent, making the second disc thoroughly essential. To put the cherry on top of the cake, most of the bonus tracks included are also endowed with similarly high quality. Niney was in his element at the time of Roots, he just knew instinctive what was right and added to that, he had a set of inspired musicians on hand to achieve just the right results. Put that together with artists of the stature of The Ethiopians or Freddie McGregor, you got gold. If you want to knew why Roots dominated Kingston music in the 70s, ample proof is here.

More info and ordering facilities for Various Artists – The Observer Roots Albums Collection can be found by clicking here

Harold Butler – Gold Connection

Posted on by jbass508

Harold Butler – Gold Connection

Doctor Bird

CD/DL

Out now

2CD set of Lloyd Charmers productions, headed up by keyboardist Harold Butler’s 1978 Disco/Reggae LP. Also included is Dobby Dobson’s Sweet Dreams R&B album from the same year and a raft of bonuses. Ian Canty writes…

Gold Connection is another edition in Doctor Bird’s series focussing on the production work of Lloyd Charmers. We join proceedings during the latter part of the 1970s, when Roots was the dominant Kingston style. But what is put forward for our consideration here is mostly a world away from that. The R&B that was key to the development of the Sound Systems in Jamaica of the 50s informs Dobby Dobson’s Sweet Dreams and Harold Butler and Co strike out firmly towards the dancefloor on the album that gives the collection its name.

Logically enough this set leads off with nine numbers from Harold Butler’s Gold Connection album. They come over as a slightly MOR amalgam of Reggae and Disco, the latter of which was then at its height as a worldwide phenomenon. With fairly anonymous female vocals floating above some tight rhythmic moves, reflective piano and synth, LP opener Darling I Like It is typical of the fare on offer here. It isn’t really to my taste to be brutally honest, but to be fair some of the items on the LP work better than others.

A solid Roots pattern is overlaid on Do It Any Way and this helps it come over as a convincing dart towards the dancefloor and the Funk accoutrements are vital in making the lengthy title track pack a punch. K.C. And The Sunshine Band’s That’s The Way I Like It is covered faithfully, but the lazy vibe and upfront guitar of Ire Rocker provides more invention, although it appears to be built around the structure of The Floaters’ Float On hit single. On the whole Gold Connection I found a little underwhelming, but having said that closing missive Fly Robin Reggae is good fun and steadily works up a head of steam.

Charmers himself starts off the extras added to this disc under the alias of C.H.A.R.M. with a busy organ near-instrumental cut of Skin Tight. Under his own name he also provides the oddly named but entrancing L. Sucks and goes full-on Disco on Sing La La. Richard Ace was, much like Lloyd, a wiz on the old Joanna and a good singer too. He gets the chance here to show what he could do on cool 1976 single Supernatural Thing and the pure R&B of Stand Up And Be Counted.

My Last Date by Sister Stern is a Proto-Lovers Rock effort and Gathering finds long-running vocal group The Africans successfully making the leap towards a Roots/Jamaican Folk direction. This disc ends with Delroy Wilson’s fine Imagination 45 and Lloyd’s suggestive Tootsie Wootsie Lollipop (La La La), one that has a bit in common with a certain Serge Gainsbourg/Jane Birkin hit.

Highland Ralph “Dobby” Dobson features among the bonus material of disc one with a very soulful Just A Dream and Sweeter Than Honey’s lilting groove. 12 inch mixes of each track are among the bonus items on disc two, including some nice Dub touches applied to the extended sections. Both highlight his velvety voice and on disc two of this set his 1978 Sweet Dreams album takes centre stage. This collection is very much a nostalgic look back to the R&B sound Dobson first made an impact with in the late 1950s as part of vocal group The Twilights. This was of course totally out of step with the Roots Reggae that was state of the art in Jamaica at the time, but the first track Whispering Bells yields a cheerful and fresh sense of momentum that is lovely to witness.

On Oh Gee the listener can discern how the Jump Boogie rhythm transitioned into Ska and a slower Win Your Love For Me is skilfully and touchingly delivered. Sweet Dreams the song is finely judged and the musicians really show their stuff on a heartfelt Don’t Believe Him, Donna. Dobby ends Sweet Dreams with a decent take of the much-covered The Great Pretender.

We finish off here with another eight bonus items. Lloyd Charmers’ fast moving Disco 12 inch cut of Stay shapes up as a further tilt at the dancefloors, with Richard Ace’s Wish You Were Mine finding him deep in a mellow R&B mode. Supernatural Thing 12″ briefly restores a tough Reggae beat, but Stale Mate and You’ll Always Be On My Mind are performed back in an easy-going Soul fashion. An instrumental version of Lloyd’s aforementioned Stay ends this set.

Anyone picking up this as a Doctor Bird release and expecting Reggae will be disappointed, but as far as I was concerned Sweet Dreams represented a pleasing change of pace and well-deserving of a fresh hearing. The Gold Connection album is a little more niche though, Reggae crossed with Disco that doesn’t really add up to more than the sum of its parts. Having said that, some lively bonus selections bolster disc one and offer something worthwhile. In summary this set is more an interesting period piece that shows a 1970s Jamaica away from the hip sound of Kingston, than a couple of great long players put together. However there is enough here of to divert the confirmed Lloyd Charmers fan and it is easily accessible for anyone who digs R&B as well as Reggae.

Get Harold Butler – Gold Connection by clicking here

Various Artists – Niney The Observer Presents Jah Fire

Posted on by jbass508

Various Artists – Niney The Observer Presents Jah Fire

Doctor Bird Records

2CD/DL

Out now

New 2CD compilation of Niney productions from the halcyon days of Roots Reggae 1976-77, featuring Big Youth, Gregory Isaacs, Junior Delgado and many more DJs and singers. Ian Canty writes…

Following on from the recent Doctor Bird collections charting Niney The Observer’s work earlier in the 1970s, Jah Fire focusses on the time when Roots and Dub were the standard settings in Reggae circles. Winston Holness aka George Boswell had made waves in 1970 with Blood & Fire, but had actually started his production career back in the 60s when employed at first as a studio engineer. After working in the latter capacity in short order for Bunny Lee and Joe Gibbs, he struck out on his own with dawning of the new decade.

If the 1950s to the mid-60s had largely been a battle between heavy hitters Duke Reid and Coxsone Dodd with Prince Buster hovering around the fringes, the change from Ska to Rocksteady saw the Kingston production scene explode with fresh talent. Niney was at the forefront of this new wave and met each successive step forward by successfully adapting his style to it. Arguably by the time Roots rose to prominence, the producer was at the height of his powers.

Cool Ruler Gregory Isaacs’ poised and accomplished sound Rock On gives Jah Fire an ideal introduction and also a view into to the state of the art of Reggae in the mid-1970s. His dread smash Slave Master crops up later on this disc, confirming his vocal prowess. By this stage Niney was already well versed in the JA custom of getting the most out of a successful rhythm and next Christine Joy White takes Isaacs’ backing track and shapes it into the prime proto-Lovers Rock item On A Saturday Night.

I’m In Love by Horace Andy has an irrepressible bounce and a neat organ glide helps Cornel Campbell’s bright I Heart Is Clean make waves. Clint Eastwood aka Robert Brammer was in the early years of a long-running DJ career at the time he toasted on the talk-over cut of that rhythm Gate Number, but it is a good effort that shows the kind of promise that would stand him in good stead in the future. It’s always pleasing to hear Junior Delgado’s relaxed vocal stylings and here it is allied to full brass and a swinging vibe on I Am Still Thinking. Niney himself ducks under the pseudonym The Messiah for a baleful I Soon Know.

I Roy’s playful intro to Point Blank (Observer Style) is a joy and his Zion Trip also hits the right note, whereas Big Youth’s 6 Dead Nineteen Gone To Jail reveals itself as the perfect expression of “Heavy Manners” Jamaica voiced above Dennis’ Brown’s My Time. The more obscure Rockstones cut a classic Roots offering in Oh Jah Man and Wally “Field Marshall Buckers” Bucker lays down a fair DJ cut called Ambric on the Slave Master rhythm.

The anti-Police oppression number Flat Foot Hunting by Dillinger is a impressive demonstration of his verbose talents, with Glasford Manning helming The Jewels on One Lick. This band are also included on disc two for the ace Jah I single mix. Big Youth again shows up well on Four Sevens, which addresses Rasta ideology with regard to 1977 in a similar way to Culture’s Two Sevens Clash and Inner Circle’s Jacob Miller goes solo on the ice-cool Roots cut Moses. A very pleasing first disc ends with Bobby Ellis & The Observers’ Mento-tinged instrumental Doreth.

Jah Fire’s Disc two gets underway with a stylish Weeping by Junior Byles and I Roy’s DJ cut Water Rate follows. Horace Andy returns to voice Materialist with his trademark peerless high vocalising and also shows up well on Them Never Tell I. Leroy Smart’s languid Jah Is My Light has Niney applying a trebly and inventive touch on the boards and Hubert “Jah” Ford’s sole DJ recording for The Observer Hold Not Thy Peace Oh Jah may perhaps not be the best example of toasting ever, but it keyed right into the Roots attitude. Little Bop, who was otherwise known as George Clarke, talks his way through the Dub washes of Natty Dread Come Over after another Junior Byles prime cut in Can You Feel It.

Camp Road Skanking finds I Roy rhyming over Junior Delgado’s Up Camp Park, it comes over that he’s right at the top of the DJ tree with his contributions to this set. The talented Tyrone Taylor, who as the liner notes point out recorded a Johnny Rotten favourite in Sufferation which is also on this disc, scores with a sharp Pop Reggae number called I Got A Feeling. Zimbabwe by Niney’s studio act The Soul Syndicate is the kind of instrumental that could have emerged from Kingston at any time from the late 1960s. As a direct contrast I Roy’s Jamaican Girl brings us quickly up to date sound-wise afterwards.

The Rockstones’ Burn Me Out thrusts the old-time Reggae vocal group form right into the modern day, with Niney’s own title track finding him dealing in a Funky Reggae delight that is hot dancefloor fodder. US vocalist Dhalma shines on her tune Jah Jah I and Roll River Jordan is well up to the quality of the other I Roy pearls on this disc. A final offering here by Junior Byles King Of Babylon (One Love) confirms him as a star of this set and also makes one sad that mental health problems stopped him reaching his full potential. Niney dons The Messiah alias again for the solid Roots tune Confusion In A Babylon and I Roy signs this set off with Native Land, where he toasts a rumination on the “Monday’s Child” nursery rhyme over a Dub of the previous tune.

Although there have been a lot of comps of his production work put out by Doctor Bird over the last year or so, to me it makes pretty sound sense to put Niney’s single sides from 1976-77 together like they have been on Jah Fire. This was a key period for Roots Reggae and what is contained here demonstrates that Niney had his finger firmly on the pulse. The Junior Byles and I Roy contributions in particular make it worthwhile, but even some of the lesser known names shine and truly passable items are few and far between.

You can track down Various Artists – Niney The Observer Presents Jah Fire by clicking here

Niney The Observer Presents Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner – The Observer Singles 1973 – 1975

Posted on by jbass508

Niney The Observer Presents Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner – The Observer Singles 1973 – 1975

Doctor Bird Records

2CD/DL

Released 15 March 2024

2CD set compiling the production work Winston “Niney” Holness released on his Observer label’s 7 inch 45s from 1973 to 1975. Among the artists featured artists are U-Roy, Horace Andy, Junior Byles and Delroy Wilson. Ian Canty writes…

Niney The Observer had firmly established himself among the elite of Jamaican production by the time this new set Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner documents, after making his breakthrough with the Blood & Fire single in 1971. On his work he could draw on some of the island’s great vocal talents and backed them up with the instrumental nous of Tommy McCook, Chinna Smith, Val Bennett and others luminaries. His star was definitely on the rise at the same time the Roots influence came to prominence, which means some of his best work is here.

A silky gem in Ken Boothe’s Silver Words sets Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner going nicely. This compilation picks up the story from where the previous entry in The Observer Singles series Lightning & Thunder (read here) left off. On that collection, the fact that Niney liked to get the most out of a successful rhythm was made overt. This is soon underlined by Rasta No Born Ya by Sang Hugh, which is immediately followed by its thudding version The Bold One credited to Niney’s studio band The Observers. Hugh returns soon afterwards for No Portion A Gal, this time set at a swaying Rocksteady tempo.

Keyboard whizz Winston Wright supplies deep tones on a fast-moving Salt & Pepper, with Hubert Lee spinning out Hey Little Girl over a reassuringly knotty beat. Have Some Mercy, a touching R&B-tinged offering, lets Delroy Wilson show the touching vulnerability he could naturally evoke in his singing and next Different Fashion starts off as its mirror image, before becoming a smartly subtle Dub. Later Delroy offers a neat stepper in Half Way Up The Stairs and his easy going cover of Soul standard Sugar Pie (I Can’t Help Myself) swings on the back of some fine brass.

Niney himself cuts a dash with Hail I and Theophilus Beckford’s nephew Keeling does well on the coolly-voiced, self-penned Let Your Love Come (Tumbling Down On Me). Astley Bennett, which may have been a pseudonym for Roy Shirley, gives us the dread Children Of The Ghetto that The Observers Dub up in organ instro style next. He also has the other side of that single, a well-accomplished Leggo The Wrong, featured on disc two. Durable vocal trio The Mediators dig deep into the Roots sound for King Rasta and The Observers chip in via a great sound in New Style.

A chance to toast on Dennis Brown’s hit Westbound Train is DJ legend Big Youth’s cue for an ebullient Wild Goose Chase and its flipside/part 2 Ride On Ride On is also present. Again stressing Niney’s knack for repurposing of a popular rhythm, Ansel Collins’ keyboard skills are pressed into service on another version of it straight after titled Inbound Train, sax maestro Tommy McCook reuses it for for a One Train Load Of Collie and U Roy does a further talkover cut Train From The West. This disc concludes with Niney’s hypnotic scat singing gem Pressure Locks.

Over on disc two of Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner, Niney breaks the ice himself with dread duo Ital Correction and Selassie Ship. Then Clifton Howell and Albert Bailey aka Earth & Stone yield a class Roots goodie in the guise of Babylonian and The Reggae Crusaders, a short-lived band formed by Dennis Brown and Niney under his George Boswell alias, post the smart duet sound Bring The Couchie Come. The sturdy Blood & Fire was clearly an indestructible rhythm and comes in handy again for Big Youth’s pair Fire Bunn and Mr Finnigan here.

David “Natty Chase The Barber” Jahson’s For I is an odd but pleasing combination of Roots with 60s style Ska and prolific vocalist Roman Stewart, who got his start during the latter stages of the Rocksteady era, demonstrates his clear-voiced smarts on a Pop Reggae nugget called In The Morning. Delroy Wilson returns for the chiding False Rasta and the smooth and satisfying title track comes from a pre-Black Uhuru Michael Rose, who also features with a cool Clap The Ba Ba aka Clap The Barber.

The laidback African Train by Errol “Flabba” Holt is a treat and the stars keep coming with Max Romeo and Junior Byles showing up and showing out on an elegant Push De Broom and the sorrowful Bur O Boy respectively. Horace Andy ably demonstrates his singing skills on a very danceable Nice & Easy, which is accompanied by The Observers’ Dub Nice Version and Junior Delgado’s dread credentials are clearly evident on the classic Every Natty Wants To Go Home. Glasford/Glassford Manning, who also sang with The Jewels, scores with the very catchy Prophecy Call and Tommy McCook’s epic brass rhythm Zorro end up this set.

Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner does a creditable job in following up the previous Observer Singles set Lightning & Thunder. By 1975 the first experiments with 12 inch Reggae singles weren’t far off, but in the early part of the decade the 7″ format still ruled. Niney would be ready for that development, because as Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner proves time and again, he was at the cutting edge of Reggae from 1973 to 1975.

Lay your hands on Niney The Observer Presents Dreadlocks Coming To Dinner – The Observer Singles 1973 – 1975 by clicking here

Dadawah – Peace & Love Wadadasow

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Dadawah – Peace & Love Wadadasow

Doctor Bird Records

2CD/DL

Released 15 March 2024

Reissue of Ras Michael’s Lloyd Charmers-produced Rasta-themed Nyabinghi drum oddity from 1974, along with a bonus disc gleaned from Charmers’ Dub plates cut in the mid-70s. Ian Canty writes…

Say what you like about Lloyd Charmers’ productions, but he certainly was not afraid to experiment. By 1974 he had carved out an enviable reputation on the Kington music scene, both as a performer as well as behind the boards and emboldened by his success, he sought out Nyabinghi drum expert Ras Michael to try and capture the ultimate Rastafarian statement on record. With musicians the calibre of Lloyd Parks and Willie Lindo also along for the ride and the famed Federal studio the venue for this project, Peace & Love Wadadasow was an ambitious attempt to document pure Rasta vibrations.

Ras Michael aka Michael George Henry had recorded previously for Coxsone Dodd back in 1967, but would come into his own here as the Roots/Rasta connection took off. Peace & Love Wadadasow is far from a typical Doctor Bird release. This album consists of four lengthy, hypnotic and highly meditative tracks with the occasional passing resemblance to the Reggae music of the time through some heavy bass work. There is also an obvious debt to traditional Jamaican Folk stylings.

The Nyabinghi drums are key though and if I was trying for a comparison, perhaps some African Head Charge’s work would be the closest sound to what is presented here, with maybe a little of the atmosphere of the “Freak Out” albums of the late 1960s. Run Come Rally’s almost Psychedelic trippy feel is deep and echoing and next Seventy Two Nations takes up the devotional baton for the most part, until in its second half it becomes suddenly a touch more more strident near to the end.

On the second side of the original vinyl LP, Zion Land then takes us on a slow-motion tour of JA, this time with more of a song structure and a lilting, hymn-like feel. Lastly Know How You Stand has some crossover with the DJ-Toasting style by way of an upfront, echo-laden vocal and brings Peace & Love Wadadasow full circle as this revisits Run Come Rally. I think it is good that the compilers didn’t try to jam bonuses on the end of this disc, as it needs to be appreciated in its own right as something extraordinary.

Although linked by starting off with Dadawah’s brass and drum pearl Burning Drums, the second disc of this set collects some of Lloyd Charmers’ more regular Dub offerings from around the same timeframe as Peace & Love Wadadasow. One of Lloyd’s familiar “school room piano” efforts, a jolly Mother Mary, follows and bass supremo Boris Gardiner gets the credit on a spacey Brand New Version, cut on his cover of You Make Me Feel Brand New.

Question Sign has Charmers and his band stripping back the music to leave just the simple but effective bassline, flying cymbals and scat singing. Ken Boothe’s When Will I See You Again, aka Now You Can See Me Again, retains a fair amount of the original vocal despite being termed an instrumental and the R&B cover I’m A Changed Man by B.B. Seaton is retooled similarly Dubwise.

Ken Boothe was recording for Lloyd successfully at the time and it stands to reason that his archive provides a fair bit of the source material here. For Charmers he recorded a classy take of the Pluto Shervington number Let Go, which gets a sparkly semi-instrumental Dub workout attributed to C.H.A.R.M. and his I’m Falling In Love With You has the vocal almost totally removed and instead highlights an intriguing guitar sound.

It also must be said that the bit where the female vocals cut in on Last Date by The Connection is masterfully managed by Lloyd and brings home his natural aptitude for Dub production. The Connection also are represented by Just A Dream Version and Natural Thing later on this disc, with the former being rendered on a Slim Smith rhythm and the latter a radically restructured version of a Richard Ace cut.

Long Dub by Charmers Dub Lovers is a neat combo of glistening guitar and baleful horns, with the same act being attributed the elastic bass runs of Dub Slave. Delroy Wilson’s I’m Still Waiting becomes a natty Dub Waiting, his My Cecilia is transformed into the bare bones of a self-explanatory My Rhythm and I Don’t Want To See You Cry is redone as Dub Don’t Cry by The Casanovas (presumably another Charmers alias). Devoted Skank by Willie Lindo & The Charmers Dub Band signs things off here, with the aforementioned guitarist’s laidback work dominating the mix.

Dadawah’s Peace & Love Wadadasow is certainly novel and offers an unique listening experience quite different from most of Doctor Bird’s output. I relished this, probably a result of my already developed Psych/Dub leanings. But in 2024 it comes across as something really cool and out of the norm, even when taking into account Rasta’s deep links to Dub and Reggae. The second disc underlines the fact that while Lloyd Charmers might not be one of the first names one that springs to mind when considering 70s Dub, he should be. He keeps his Dub interesting all the way through by not merely dropping down to bass and drum, but by also skilfully using the other instruments and voices in a tasteful and wholly satisfying manner. A spellbinding collection on the whole.

You can find out more about Dadawah – Peace & Love Wadadasow here

Niney The Observer Presents Lightning & Thunder!

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Niney The Observer Presents Lightning & Thunder!

Doctor Bird Records

2CD/DL

Released 9 February 2024

New 2CD set collecting Winston “Niney” Holness productions from The Observer series of 45s cut from 1969 to 1972, key years in the development of Reggae. Ian Canty writes…

Just as the Reggae beat was rising to prominence, Winston Holness left his role as a sound engineer with Joe Gibbs to become a producer in his own right. After losing his thumb he had been bestowed with the nickname Niney and the fresh sound and fresh start worked for him like a dream. After toying with the handle The Destroyer he became Niney The Observer, which was an echo of/tribute to Lee Perry’s Upsetter title.

The novice producer made his bow in 1969 on the Destroyer label and the stylish set of productions that followed meant that Niney swiftly became a name to watch on Kingston’s music scene. In particular 1970’s popular 45 Blood And Fire was a big step forward for him, scoring a big hit in Jamaica and cementing his status. It’s this early stage in his career that is documented by Lightning & Thunder!.

A solid Skinhead Reggae stomper in the form of organ instro Pepper Seed by guitarist Ranny Williams & The Spokes coaxes the set into motion. The ghostly tones of Music Police by The Sound Dimension, also known as The Soul Vendors, represents a cool follow up and Skanky by Leroy “Horsemouth” Wallace has the famous drummer featured on a piece that is rendered in a DJ style. Niney’s own track Cocaine Doctor is equipped with a sturdy Reggae rhythm, before we return to toasting sounds with Bawling For Mercy by Dennis Alcapone & Lizzy. The pair return on this disc, skilfully jousting on a fiery Mr. Brown’s Coffin.

Apollo Rocket allows Lloyd Willis a showcase for his wah wah guitar skills alongside rudimentary piano and Omega by Niney is a further cut on the same rhythm. Then comes the mighty Blood & Fire, which retains its apocalyptic impact all these years on. It was a theme Niney returned to on title track Lightning & Thunder, Mud & Water and Brimstone & Fire, all of which are included. A neat sound in Message To The Ungodly draws us finally away from the rhythm and Niney is credited along with legendary vocal group The Heptones on a version of the Curtis Mayfield song Keep On Pushing.

Veteran vocalist Eric Monty Morris crops up with Strong Man Medley and Tommy McCook puts his tenor sax skills to good use on Psalms 9 To Keep In Mind, also on the Blood & Fire template. You’re going to have to care for that rhythm a lot to get the best out of this first disc, as it is pressed into service yet again on The Observers’ Chapter 10, but the Funk-flecked toast ace Observing The Ave. offers something a little different. This is immediately followed by a version called Everyday Music (Everyday People) and the disc is concluded by spiritual sound Pick Your Cards by Niney and The Coming Of Jah. The latter is a sharp and steady skank where the great Max Romeo makes a telling contribution.

The catchy sound of The Road To Zion from 1971 starts the second disc of this set. The old Gospel standard Down By The Riverside gets redone Rasta style as Hiding By The Riverside, with an instrumental Dub called The Red Sea following on. Dennis Alcapone is back with DJ cut Rebel Ride and Niney pairs up again with Max Romeo for the languid ganja hymn Ally & Ailaloo. The latter gets a whooping nine versions on the rhythm to accompany it. Reggaematic by Niney & The Observers and the obscure Captain Jack Morgan’s Pop A Water are both in a cool DJ style that makes them the best of these variations on the theme. Also the high-pitched voice on Ital Buddy by The Virgins is certainly novel.

A ribald Wet Panty has Niney & The Observers has a hoarse, hollering vocal set to a mid-tempo beat and Max Romeo is also featured his own with the pleasingly knotty sound of Rasta Band Wagon, which Niney & The Observers re-tread slightly slowed down as When Jah Speaks. Beg In The Gutter and also In The Gutter are drawn from the same source, but Max’s Time Hard aka Promises reveals itself as a brassy treat. Synth squelches mark out Honey Baby, which is a Soul/Reggae hybrid that resembles Dave Barker’s work. Forward Pipe aka Chalk Farm Special is its instrumental take and This features more of Ken Elliott’s electronic swirls, presumably laid down at the studio off the Northern Line. This rounds off this set.

Lightning & Thunder! has an extensive reuse of rhythms that can tend to make stretches of this set come over as a little samey. Issuing variations on a successful theme was already an old Kingston standby by 1969/70/71. But the way Niney highlighted small changes and opened up sounds overlooked elsewhere appears to prefigure the Dub explosion that was still some way off.

The old guard of Coxsone Dodd and Duke Reid found themselves in competition with a host of new producers with their own ideas about what was good for the dance and Niney was at the forefront of this new breed of studio boffins. His stock was firmly on the rise in the timeframe documented by Lightning & Thunder! and highly enjoyable proof of his unique work is here in detail.

Find out more about Niney The Observer Presents Lightning & Thunder! here

Marcia Griffiths & Willie Lindo – Sweet Bitter Love/Far And Distant

Posted on by jbass508

Marcia Griffiths & Willie Lindo – Sweet Bitter Love/Far And Distant

Doctor Birds Records

2CD/DL

Released 9 February 2024

Reissue of two albums originally released in 1974 that were both produced by Lloyd Charmers, with Marcia Griffith’s debut LP being embellished by a set of alternate mixes included on disc two. Ian Canty writes…

Recently Doctor Bird have highlighted the works of Lloyd Charmers, both as a performer and producer. The combination of Sweet Bitter Love/Far And Distant provides some more proof of his aptitude in the studio environment. By 1974 he was concentrating on production more and having an artist of the calibre of Marcia Griffiths to call on is a good indication of his standing on the Jamaican music scene.

Marcia had just come off the back of an internationally successful pairing with Bob Andy and was looking to capitalise on this in her solo career. Although 1969’s boom year for Jamaican acts on the world stage was well in the rear view mirror by this point in time, there was still a substantial audience for well performed Pop tunes with touches of Reggae and Soul. Sweet Bitter Love fits snuggly into that category, as Marcia versions some tried and trusted material to a sympathetic but subtly skanking backing, while also aiming for straight Rhythm & Blues offerings on the second half of the LP.

This long player ensues with the sound of The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face, an Ewan MacColl number which lends itself well to a Reggae treatment. Play Me, which also appears at the end of this LP in a different form, impresses and There’s No Me Without You continues the strong start of this collection. An easy-going I Just Don’t Wanna Be Lonely is good fun and Curtis Mayfield’s Gypsy Man shows how well his songwriting held up when covered by Reggae artists.

Van McCoy’s title track is given a luscious Kingston rhythm, but the second half of the album makes a clear move away from Reggae to try something more Soul-based. The moody R&B of Al Green’s Here I Am (Come And Take Me) is the first to eschew Reggae entirely and the following cut of David Gates’ Everything I Own, a UK smash hit of Ken Boothe in the same year, is more Funk than anything else.

Green Grasshopper is an excellent effort, but the return of a cheery, lilting Play Me, this time with Marcia in duet with Charmers, resolves the Sweet Bitter Love LP with a trip to what brought Marcia to the dance in the first place. It is a record of two halves certainly and how well you are disposed to Soul/R&B is going to determine how much you enjoy the second side. I much prefer the Reggae numbers to be honest, but there is no doubt Marcia could sing a shopping list and make it sound great.

Sweet Bitter Love is on the whole decent showing. But also in 1974 Marcia Griffiths’ career would take a major change of direction when she became part of The I Threes, playing a key role in Bob Marley’s rise to prominence.

Willie Lindo’s Far And Distant collection follows on straight away on disc one. Guitarist Lindo figured in crack session outfits like The Revolutionaries and Joe Gibbs’ Professionals, so he certainly was a player of note. With Lloyd Parks as well as Charmers himself in the backing band, Far And Distant showcases Lindo’s six string prowess from the off with a very cool instrumental in Drum Song. The Beatles’ Norwegian Wood is used as the template for the “Reggae Shadows” sound of Darker Shade Of Black and a fairly MOR Midnight Train To Georgia has Lindo’s guitar taking over the vocal part surprisingly well.

Chopper is pretty mellow too, but does include some choice playing from Lindo and Charmers Mood credits the producer by having his keyboard tones melding perfectly with the guitar atop a sinuous beat. The warm backing to the similarly titled Mystic Mood makes for a joyful piece, one where Willie gets a chance to be a little more expansive in his playing on the long, slow fade out. The sunny feel of Breezing and a solid skank outing Holly Holly close out Far And Distant, a curio for sure, but I found it a charming one. There is one bonus appended to the end of disc one, Midnight (And You) which grants Lindo and his guitar another opportunity in the spotlight and features some (wordless) vocals for the only time on his selections here.

On disc two we return to Marcia Griffiths’ Sweet Bitter Love for 10 alternate mixes of the LP’s tracks, rejigged into a different order. They’re on the whole not massively different from the original takes, but good to have and Marcia’s vocals are of course top quality. Everything I Own sounds Northern Soul-ready in this form and after a little studio talk Green Grasshopper shines in a simpler treatment, until it finally squelches to an end that reveals why it wasn’t used. Two single versions of Sweet Bitter Love and Play Me draw this section to a close.

This set is rounded off by a dip into Lloyd Charmers’ 45 productions from around 1974 with a variety of artists. Marcia’s singing partner Bob bookends these ten single tracks with a rousing Fire Burning to start with and an alternate take of the same song to finish. The suitably spooky intro to The Bone Yard Belly Dancers’ Bone Yard Skank previews a smart trombone instro and B.B. Seaton’s Changed Man comes across as a loveable vocal number. B.B. also contribute the very creditable Been Such A Long Time too.

Bassman Boris Gardiner appears well on the way to the sound of his UK number one I Want To Wake Up With You on a romantic You Make Me Feel Brand New, while DJ Big Youth is caught on ebullient form on Johnny Reggae. Errol Thomas’ Hear Thy Children Cry reveals itself as a touching sufferers anthem and Lloyd Charmers gets in the act himself with a piano drift through Marvin Gaye’s Let’s Get It On.

Sweet Bitter Love/Far And Distant is an odd combination of two contrasting LPs, with the only thing really in common being Lloyd Charmers’ input. The variety of material on Marcia’s album showed there was one eye firmly on the international market in its production. She performs assuredly throughout, the playing is top notch and the alternate mixes show the work in progress well. But I think Willie Lindo’s cultured guitar instrumentals will be more pleasing for the Reggae fan. Added to that, the grab bag of single tracks that end this collection have a few aces in their ranks too. All of this reveals the industry and imagination of Lloyd and his roster of talents, even during one of Reggae’s leaner periods.

Track down Marcia Griffiths & Willie Lindo – Sweet Bitter Love/Far And Distant by clicking here

Lloyd Charmers – Reggae Is Tight & Reggae Charm

Posted on by jbass508

Lloyd Charmers – Reggae Is Tight & Reggae Charm

Doctor Bird Records

2CD/DL

Released 12 January 2024

Reissue of a pair of instrumental albums cut by singer/producer/musician Lloyd Charmers and issued by Trojan on their TTL imprint during the original Reggae boom, plus a host of bonus tracks. Ian Canty writes…

Lloyd Tyrell, better-known as Lloyd Charmers, had established himself as a force in the Jamaican music first as a performer, with his work as part of the popular vocal group The Uniques bringing him to prominence. But by the end of the 1960s, he was issuing solo material and also became known for his abilities in the fields of arrangement and production.

Although he was initially known as a vocalist, the first three long players he cut early in his solo career called more upon his keyboard talents. This set focuses on Reggae Is Tight and Reggae Charm, with material from the House In Session collection, where Lloyd was backed by The Hippy Boys, figuring among the bonus tracks.

5 to 5 sets Reggae Is Tight in motion with a chanted, insistent vocal line rendered atop a solid Skinhead Reggae organ rhythm and Follow This Sound, an instrumental take of The Uniques’ Watch The Sound that gives Charmers a chance to indulge in some flowing piano, comes next. Golden Moon takes oldie Blue Moon and moulds it into a Reggae-fied organ instro and Psychedelic Reggae makes ample use of echo effects. Crimson And Clover is an odd choice, being Tommy James & The Shondells’ cover, but it is interestingly realised, with Rat Trap coming hot on its heels with some rampant organ swirls.

The Whitfield/Holland Soul tune Everybody Needs Love has Lloyd’s keys right upfront. Likewise the title track Reggae Is Tight is Booker T’s Time Is Tight is given a Blue Beat backing with appealing results. The LP ends with Stronger, which comes welded to a solid beat that is just made for the dancefloor. The whole of Reggae Is Tight is excellent, filled with just the kind of thing that sound-tracked a thousand 1969 Skinhead love stories.

A flute leads Freedom Sounds, the first of 16 bonus items on this disc. After Dark has a loveable strut about it and (Get) In The Spirit is a real ace, a lovely knotty rhythm bolstered by a sharp toasting vocal. Paul Simon’s Sound Of Silence gets covered in a breezy, slightly queasy, manner, with the satisfying, slower tempo of Ducky Lucky coming next.

Soul Of England feels like it is pitched firmly towards the UK’s new young Skinhead fans, with a cod-Cockney vocal being added to the R&B Reggae of the tune. There’s a lovely organ glide to Cooyah and Shang I, one from House In Session, features some neat Boogie Woogie piano work from Charmers and intermittent DJ interjections. Cat Nip, otherwise known as Yes Sah, is a sunny number from the same source and the melody of Extension 303 skips along marvellously.

Harris Seaton’s There’s A Fire becomes Fire, Fire, where the singing becomes a ghostly whisper and after Burt Bacharach’s Walk On By gets an unlikely and frankly ill-fitting rejig, a fast moving Memphis Underground ends a disc replete with the correct materials to keep the dance going on all night long.

The Reggae Charm LP, where Charmers teamed up with Bryon Lee & The Dragonaires, emerged in 1970 and sets forth in a very relaxed mode. Lloyd’s piano is the dominant feature, something that is made plain by the stately sound of Dr No Go, a recut of a tune originally recorded with Sonia Pottinger. A twinkling Try To Remember and a version of Gospel number Oh Happy Day continue the sedate proceedings, but then an off-key stab at Honey I Miss You isn’t really a good candidate for a Reggae instrumental do-over.

Lloyd is on firmer ground with Desmond Dekker’s Israelites, with If I Only Had Time coming equipped with a sturdy dance rhythm. Mama Look, cut to a Monkey Man backing track, scores well and Pat Kelly’s How Long is expertly reworked too. Reggae Charm comes to a climax with Tribute To the Dragon aka Soul At Large, another number that saw the light of day on House In Session.

Overlooking the occasional foray into Les Dawson territory, Reggae Charm is an endearing and different platter. Like disc one, there are raft of bonus efforts appended to the LP. Who Done It aka I Did It, with warm organ and a vocal toast, opens up this section with a driving sound and Reggae-A Bye Bye then highlights the guitar. This acts as a good contrast to what has gone before on this disc, with Dollars And Cents unusually taking the subject of 007 James Bond in the voiceover and then splicing it to various unrelated film theme tunes.

It is an agreeably daft fun item though and along with the baby talk of Ensure aka Baby Huey at least shows Charmers was always ready to experiment. Sounds Familiar appears that it could have come from Reggae Charm at first, but later highlights chimes instead of piano. The Charmers are credited with Colour Him Father Version II and Cloud Burst is a very cool and brassy DJ cut.

Vengance cops Lee Perry style, replicating his method of daffy voices grafted onto a breezy rhythm and Ready Talk has a spoken word intro that again employs a British accent. The school room piano of Reggae Charm returns on Cool And Easy, with the disc ending with the smart skank of Ishan Cup aka Hi-Shan.

Reggae Is Tight gets the balance right for me between tasteful piano work and steady rhythms and as a result I preferred it to Reggae Charm, where the piano is pushed right forward and once or twice this stifles the action rather than enhances it. Having said that, there are a few gems among the bonus material and there’s no doubt that this a worthwhile and enjoyable release. Lloyd Charmers was a truly creative force in Reggae, one that liked to tinker with a pretty tight format and we can enjoy the results here.

Pick up Lloyd Charmers – Reggae Is Tight & Reggae Charm by clicking here

Dennis Brown & Al Campbell – The Exit/Hold Your Corner

Posted on by jbass508

Dennis Brown & Al Campbell – The Exit/Hold Your Corner

Doctor Birds Records

CD/DL

Released 12 January 2024

Two albums produced by Prince (now King) Jammy, with Campbell’s being previously unreleased. Space is even found for four bonus cuts from Leroy Smart and The Mighty Rudo taken from the Jammy archive. Ian Canty writes…

By 1986 Lloyd “Prince Jammy” James was a fixture of the Kingston music scene. Jammy had successfully moved out from the shadow of his mentor and friend King Tubby in the late 1970s and since then had become one of Jamaica’s premier producers. A year earlier he had even spearheaded the digital revolution method with his Wayne Smith production Under Me Sleng Teng. Meanwhile, Dennis Brown had crossed over to the mainstream with A&M in the early part of the 80s. But it never seemed the right fit for him and as he always kept his ear to the ground in Kingston, he was well aware of the current trends and developments taking place in the capital.

The Dancehall sound attracted him back to his roots and subsequently he recorded for some of the island’s main producers including Joe Gibbs, before cutting a number of Jamaican hit singles for Jammy. Given these successes, an album was on the cards and nine track collection The Exit (retitled History for its US issue) soon emerged. Dennis is unsurprisingly in fine voice here, meeting the challenge of the new technology head-on by imbuing it with his own individual charm, busy brio and joyful performing style.

Too Late kicks things off with Den holding court upon a full and lively rhythmic mix. Jammy’s expert touch with the digital sound is immediately made clear too. We Should Make Love follows and drifts appealingly towards a more spiritual direction, firmly backing up Brown’s Rasta credentials. This number is proof that Roots and Dancehall could easily be squared in the right hands. The skipping beat of History gives it good momentum, with Dennis teasing out the lyric in a soulful way and a slightly more reflective Up Full One lilts away effectively as well.

Side two of the original vinyl opened with Tracks Of Life, where Den’s voice hovers above a strident electro rhythm pattern. Material Girl was a hit in Jamaica as a single, so it was a natural to be included on the album and although it does come over a bit gimmicky, you can’t deny the craft of Jammy with the modern sound. Title track The Exit comes next and the synth handclaps here are a bit on the heavy side. Even so, Brown’s excellent voice carries the tune. The odd pattern of Dance All Night is at least unique and a hugely likeable I’ll Be Waiting There finishes up a long player of thoroughly modern (at the time) Reggae which still comes across as a pleasing, listenable platter today.

Moving onto the second section of this disc, the prolific Al Campbell had emerged with vocal group The Thrillers, who recorded for Coxone Dodd during the Boss/Skinhead Reggae era. Between then and the unreleased Prince Jammy album Hold Your Corner, he had worked for a variety of Kingston producers like Phil Pratt and Striker Lee as a solo singer and provided backing vocals on many sessions.

Buss Them Shut, the opening cut of the projected Hold Your Corner collection, provides a suitably dread introduction to Al’s work with Jammy. Campbell’s relaxed delivery fits the song and instrumentation perfectly. Stop You Fussing And Fighting may be a bit “on the nose” where Reggae song titles are concerned, but the energy the performance is given forms it into something very agreeable, with an easy-going Equalise It following on.

Al thrives on the archetypal Dancehall of Hot Love, before Big Wheel veers far more towards commercial Pop Reggae. Can’t We Test We Again follows in a similar manner and Kiss Me, Kill Me takes the pace down further to a sedate but good-natured stomp. The exotic Power Struggle takes things up a notch though, a fine and sunny sound, with the jaunty Hold Your Corner setting forth next with real purpose. A cool item in the form of Carbon Copy signs off Al’s long player.

Hold Your Corner has some good moments and is very listenable. As to why it has remained in the can, well, whilst it is well performed and produced perhaps it is a little short on memorable material. It does sag a little in the middle after a strong start too. Still, a lot worse has made it to the shops and it certainly doesn’t really let the side down after Dennis’ album.

To round off the CD we have two tracks apiece from The Mighty Rudo and the rather better-known Leroy Smart. Smart’s velvety-voiced and exuberant Crucial Lover and She Only Want Something both pass muster. For his part Rudo offers a Dancehall masterclass in She Done With It and his second offering I Love You is a Synth/Reggae beaut.

What we have here is a Dennis Brown album that shows his mastery of Dancehall, plus a fair Al Campbell one and some wizard bonuses. Jammy was of course overseeing things and as he played a crucial part in the development of digital recording techniques in Reggae, he had the sound down to perfection. Overall this is a satisfying example of state of the art Reggae from the middle of the 1980s.

Get a copy of Dennis Brown & Al Campbell – The Exit/Hold Your Corner here

Dandy – Rock Steady With Dandy

Posted on by jbass508

Dandy – Rock Steady With Dandy

Doctor Bird Records

CD/DL

Out now

2CD set headed up by Dandy’s 1967 debut album. It is accompanied by many bonus tracks including Rudy A Message To You, later famously covered by The Specials. Ian Canty writes…

It is difficult to overstate the importance of Robert Livingstone Thompson aka Dandy to Reggae in the UK. Along with Laurel Aitken, he was pivotal in the development of Ska, Rocksteady and the original Reggae beat in Britain. Dandy had arrived from Kingston in the late 1950s as a teenager, but was in his twenties before he cut his first record, albeit unknowingly. This was because producer Sonny Roberts released Dandy’s demos of In The Valley and I’m In Love without telling the singer about it beforehand.

Later Allan Crawford proposed a duo with a partner who in the end to not come up to snuff. In an effort to salvage the project, Dandy double-tracking his own voice so this would seem to be a pairing of two singers called Sugar And Dandy. One of these waxings, the What A Life single, was so successful that he had to hire Roy Smith to help with promotional appearances, who was later replaced by Tito Simon.

Meanwhile R&B records, headed by the married couple Rita and Benny Isens, had been licencing hit tunes from some of the key Kingston producers including Duke Reid and Coxsone Dodd. But they also put out recordings by ex-pat artists based in Blighty, which is where Dandy comes in. He began working with the the company in 1966 with R&B/Ska of The Fight 45, which crops up as a bonus track on the first disc of this set. The single was issued on Ska Beat, another Rita and Benny imprint. But this was just at the point though where the hectic Ska beat was being replaced by the cooler, more sedate Rocksteady pace. Hence Dandy’s 12 track debut collection Rock Steady With…, which kicks off this new set.

Wrapped inside a cool sleeve design, Rock Steady With Dandy begins with Keep Them Fretting. This number emerges with the wedding march, before easing itself into a steady, languid tempo. It very much sets the tone for the rest of the LP, with a clean sound having the guitar skank upfront. Dandy was a prolific songsmith, but the second track is a version of the Howard Biggs/Joe Thomas oldie Got You On My Mind. This take is a sweet treatment, but Thompson’s own work is more interesting for me. Jazz-flecked instrumental Soul Power prefaces Sock It To Me, which is taken at the same pace as its forerunner, but crucially gives Dandy the chance to shine on what is a fine Rocksteady offering.

People Do Rocksteady was covered by the wonderful Bodysnatchers as Let’s Do Rocksteady at the height of Two Tone, underlining Dandy’s influence down the years. A cover of The Cascades’ hit Rhythm In the Rain has some rather OTT thunder effects, but that is part of the charm, with next Rude With Me being heralded by the sound of hilarity. A fresh and light Play It Cool and a wry anti-Rude Boy number You’re No Hustler (You’re A Scuffler) finish up an endearing and danceable selection.

The eight bonus tracks appended to this disc commence with the speedy Ska of The Operation/A Little More Ska, a 1966 single released on Dice. Do You Know, the flip of The Fight, is in straight R&B style and One Scotch, One Bourbon, One Beer also owes a lot to that sound. Rudy, A Message To You would become probably Dandy’s best known song, after it was a big hit for The Specials 12 years later in 1979. And yes, that is Rico on trombone on the original as well as the cover. Till Death Do Us Part, a heady toasting tune, ends this disc.

The second disc has more of Dandy’s work for R&B Records various imprints during the Rocksteady years. My Time Now benefits from strong brass work and is set at typical RS tempo, with guitar and flute instrumental East Of Suez following in its wake. We Are Still Rude has firm roots in Prince Buster’s recordings circa-Judge Dread, but still manages to entertain and This Music Got Soul is packed with plenty of pure R&B punch. A cover In The Mood perhaps skirts naffness, but a lively That’s How Strong My Love Is gets things back on track.

With the slightly queasy strings of Trouble In The Town, we are back to Dandy’s self-penned material, but an amusing take of The Coasters’ Charlie Brown and Blues classic Ain’t That A Shame shows his adeptness with others’ material. Thompson’s own Do It Right Now is set to Ain’t That A Shame’s rhythm pattern and the cool skank of Propagandist
displays Dandy’s distinctive feel for Rock Steady perfectly. The Giant March is again is the sing/DJ mode and Sweet Ride bungs a bit of exotic Mento into the mix.

A walking bass line and harmonica are highlighted on instrumental Up The Hill, with the lilting Tears On My Pillow being a Dandy original rather than another cover. Then the enjoyable, driving Mad Them, an assertive Back With A Bang Bang and Jungle Walk combine to give this set a fitting climax. To be honest the second disc has more weak moments than the first, but overall this is an admirable collection of UK Rock Steady that could easily compete with what was coming out of Jamaica at the time.

Five years after Rock Steady With Dandy was issued and just at the end of the original Reggae Boom, Thompson scored well-deserved hit singles with Suzanne Beware of the Devil and Big City. But before that he had already added another string to his bow by also becoming a successful producer, most notably with Red Red Wine by Tony Tribe. Not long after his own hit singles he opted to move away from making music, his place in UK Reggae history already assured. He did return to the studio for The Vault Is Open album in 2014 and was seen in good form in the 2019 Rudeboy documentary. Rock Steady With Dandy has been expanded here to become a vital document of UK Rocksteady and disc one in particular is full of vigour, charisma and talent.

Get a copy of Dandy – Rock Steady With Dandy here