Juno Recommends Reggae Classics July 2020

Review: The Lee "Scratch" Perry produced Revelation Time is often said to be a definitive record from the Jamaican canon and is widely regarded as the best album Max Romeo ever wrote. Initially it was only put out in Jamaica in 1975 then two years later in 1977 under the name Warning! Warning! A year after that, the rest of the world was treated with a release, again under a new name, this time Open The Iron Gate. Now it is served up under its original name with all 10 tracks hitting hard and making their mark.

Review: Get yourself onto a higher plane with this classic slice of higher regions roots from 1978. Walyn Rickets is now known as Pacey and back in 1978 when he lay this one down was a man in fine form. "Jah Is My Light" is a joyous ode to Jah, creation and the motherland with sunshine keys and rickety drums that are loose, organic, authentic. The version pulls things apart even more and reconstructs a wobbly dub that will rattle your joints loose. Timeless and warm, these two heaters are perfect material for the high summer.

Review: Barely a week goes by without a new release that has Lee "Scratch" Perry's name on it somewhere. This one from Rock A Shaka in Japan brings together all the best bits from the famous Black Arc studio and features big names like The Upsetters, Junior Murvin, The Silvertones, and Perry himself. There's a laidback air of sun kissed Caribbean grooves from top to bottom, with various Dubpate Mixes, full vocal versions and dubs adding up to a feel good collection of loved-up riddims that will slide their way into your affections.

Review: The Kingstonians were a relatively short-lived Jamaican band whose greatest work was produced by Derek Harriott between 1968 and '70. It was at the tail end of this period that they recorded their sole album, "Sufferer", an early reggae classic featuring a swathe of sought-after cuts. It's from that set that these two tracks are taken. For the record, both have appeared on 7" singles before, but are so hard to find that collectors are willing to spend up to 500 Euros to find original copies. A-side "Hold Down" is particularly potent, with the vocal trio's fuzzy vocals rising above a killer early reggae rhythm much in Hammond organ stabs, warm bass and clipped guitars. "Nice, Nice" meanwhile is a more up-tempo affair that gives a little more prominence to a typical early reggae guitar riff. Together the two tracks make for a suitably scintillating package.

Review: Lee Perry's studio band was famously known as The Upsetters but also recorded as Black Ark Players, named after his famous studio. This is their one and only album and it first landed in 1980 as another part in the infinite musical puzzle around Lee Perry. The previously hard to find record marks the end of one era and the start of another as it came right at the start of the demise fo the studio. It is built on a bedrock of heavy beats and bass, with spooky dub styles and spacey synth styles that add layers of intrigue that never let up.

Review: On their latest essential retrospective, Doctor Bird has gathered together the quartet of albums released by legendary Jamaican toaster Prince Far I on Trojan Records between 1979 and '83 (the year of his premature death) - three of which have never previously appeared on CD. On disc one you'll find "Free From Sin", a formidably dubbed-out affair partially recorded at Treasure Isle Studios, and the slightly more roots-reggae focused 1980 follow-up, "Jamaican Heroes". Disc two begins with the ten tracks first featured on 1981's "Voice of Thunder" - a loose, languid and laidback set recorded at Channel 1 studios - before moving on to his final Trojan album, "Musical Heroes". If you've yet to explore Prince Far I's vast catalogue, this is a great place to start.

Review: 17 North Parade continues to serve up reissues of Black Ark material following the Black Ark Players's one and only album. This time they look to the second volume of cuts recorded at the legendary Lee Scratch Perry studio in the 70s and 80s. In house band The Upsetters feature next to Perry himself as well as Silvertones and Coral Cole. Plenty of heavy bass undermines the tunes while some drift into summery, flute lead territory for the mind, and others get dark and dirty. The Inamans's cover of "how Deep Is Your Love" is a personal favourite here.

Review: Most reggae scholars agree that dub maestro Lee 'Scratch' Perry was at his musical best during the period he spent working at the Black Ark studio. Two of the last albums recorded at the studio before it burned down in 1979 were "Black Ark In Dub" volumes one and two, which were eventually released in 1980 and '81 respectively. Here they're gathered together on CD for the first time. Volume 1 (disc one) sees Perry offer up weighty, spooky and out-there dubs of backing tracks created by his regular studio band, the Black Ark Players. Disc two expands on the more vocal-focused - but no less dubbed-out - sequel, showcasing alternate takes and extended mixes of popular Perry-produced singles from the period. In a word: essential.