Dub / Reggae: An Idiot's Guide

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I need help.

The Sly & Robbie mix of "Fu-Gee-La" is amazing. Lee Perry gets ridiculous amounts of praise heaped on his immaculately stone shoulders. Yet, the only Jamaican music I know well is (duh) Bob Marley, and I had enough of that to last me through two collegiate tours of duty AND another high-school go around. So, where should I go? What should I do?

And is it fair to smack reggae & dub together like I did in the Subject Line? Or are they two tastes that just happened to taste great together?

Like I said, I need help.

― David Raposa, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

buy the following:

lee perry - arkology

the congos - heart of the congos

augustus pablo - king tubby meets rockers uptown

king tubby - dub gone crazy, foundation of dub

big youth - natty universal dread

junior murvin - police and theives

jimmy cliff - the harder they come

bunny wailer - black heart man

burning spear - marcus garvey/garvey's ghost

v/a - tougher than tough: the story of jamaican music

v/a - the 100% (200%, etc.) dynamite series

dub is a process. reggae is a music. (dub reggae = process music?) at least that's my take.

― jess, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I'd add some Linton Kwesi Johnson -- Dread Beat an' Blood, LKJ in Dub or the Independant Intavenshan anthology. Also some of the cheapo Trojan box sets. Um... drawing blank...

― Andy, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Also: Keith Hudson - Pick A Dub. Awesome lp.

― RW, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

But for a starting point (without spending hundreds of dollars on the above, all of which are good), you really can't go too far wrong with _Tougher Than Tough_, a kick-ass 4-CD survey that goes from proto-ska all the way up to dancehall and will at least give you some idea of what artists/styles/periods you'll want to explore more.

Beyond that, a personal semi-obscuro favorite of mine is Junior Byles' retrospective _Curlylocks_, on Heartbeat.

― Douglas Wolk, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

SEARCH along w/Jess's picks
Culture, Two Sevens Clash--my favorite reggae album proper, one of the best albums of all time, period; International Herb is also spectacular
Profile did a series of four Dancehall Stylee: Best of Reggae Dancehall comps that you can generally find used as a box set; the killers there are the first and fourth
Lee Perry, The Upsetter Collection, Some of the Best, Open the Gate--killer comps, all of which trash Arkology in form and concept and as music
Linton Kwesi Johnson, Indapendant Intavenshan and Tings an' Times--forward over the dub tracks, which really are distracting, and the former is his first three albums; the latter is from '91 and is endlessly playable
Buju Banton, 'Til Shiloh
Dub Chill Out--naff title but mighty good nevertheless; track 11, King Tubby's "Dark Destroyer Dub," is a moment of Zen perfection scored by guitar, bass, drums, organ
The Rough Guide to the Music of Jamaica and The Rough Guide to Reggae--nowhere near as essential as the Tougher Than Tough box, but pretty good overviews nevertheless, especially if you avoid the last couple tracks on each
Intensified! and More Intensified!--definitive mid-60s ska comps
Toots & the Maytals, Time Tough: The Anthology--Jamaica's greatest-ever singer on two solid CDs
The Power of the Trinity--superb comp of Jamaican harmony-trio groups
Augustus Pablo, Original Rockers--the wildest dub album ever; many of the same basic tracks as on King Tubby's Meets Rockers Uptown (my favorite Jamaican album of all time), but given even more disorienting treatments

And finally: a few months back I put together tracklists for Even Tougher Than Tough: Jamaican Classics 1962-95, my own self-styled sequel to the Island box mentioned above. (Tracklists are available here.) If anyone's got suggestions for improvement, let's have 'em.

― M. Matos, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

jess's list is all essential, dead-on correct. From that list, I'd start with The Harder They Come soundtrack or Tougher Than Tough if you can afford it. For some earlier rocksteady stuff, pick up a "Best of Desmond Dekker" or one of the Trojan or Tresure Isle comps.

― fritz, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I don't know about dub being just a process anymore. It has gone beyond being a verb. Sure, King Tubby's dubs were versions of original songs and "dubbing it up" could be words used to describe his process--the process of remixing, dropping out vocals, adding the trademark echoy delay, but with stuff like Twilight Circus, I'd say that "dub" becomes a type of music.

However, this being said, I think that you could say that everyone who likes dub likes reggae, and everyone who likes reggae would probably like dub, if they knew what it was.

Want some good stuff?

I agree with everything that has been said, but I'd also recommend:

If Deejay was your trade - Various (Blood and Fire) Mad Professor vs. Massive Attack - No Protection Horace Andy - In the Light and In the Light Dub Prince Alla - Only Love Can Conquer Sizzla - Reggae Max

Some of my favourites, not not exactly a comprehensive selection.

Pick up the Rough Guide 100 Essential Reggae CDS. It makes for great reading and is a lovely conversation starter.

― cybele, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

SOUND

― Brian MacDonald, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The Pressure Sounds comps are great too. I'd reccommend "Riding The Roots Chariot" and "Sounds and Pressure: Vol 1 to start.

― fritz, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Whatever happened to Dubstar?

― dave q, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Also search: King Tubby's collaborations with Harry Mudie. Great Tubby dub sound meets Mudie's funked out breaks. Check it: "King Tubby meets Harry Mudie's in dub Conference vol 1-3".

― turner, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I heard a very nice set of dancehall on the in-flight system coming back from Jamaica a few years ago, surprisingly enough, and wanted to buy some good samplers. What would people recommend in this area?

― nickn, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I've always wondered where Dubstar got the name...I'm mean, I like them and all, but Dubstar??

― cybele, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Oh, I do have the Rhino dancehall comp, and it has good moments but didn't really grab me the way the in-flight set did.

― nickn, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

This thread has been very strong so far on the late seventies (and bits later), though I'm surprised no-one's mentioned "Best Dressed Chicken In Town" yet.

There's lots of great earlier reggae too: I'm particularly fond of Clancy Eccles's productions, Amalgamated-era Joe Gibbs, a lot of Bunny Lee stuff and Winston 'Niney' Holness, probably the heaviest of the early reggae fellows.

A step back a little further to rocksteady can't do any harm, either: the golden age of Treasure Isle.

The other thing I think should be mentioned in this thread is Studio 1. The greatest body of work in Jamaican music bar none. You can never go wrong with the series of "Best of Studio 1" compilations which Heartbeat put out which span early reggae to roots stuff. LPs? I's start with "Bob Andy's Songbook", Cedric 'IM' Brooks's "Flash Forward", "The Wailing Souls" and "Bobby Bobylon" by Freddie Macgregor. But there's loads more to be found.

My other *real* thing at the moment is 70s Gregory Isaacs. More Gregory. Gregory, Horace Andy and Junior Byles are three of my top 10 voices ever.

― Tim, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

anyone want any reggae mixtapes? primarily RockSteady, Reggae, Roots, and Dub, but also some Ska and early 80s Dancehall. i have a lot of vinyl only stuff, e.g. loads of 7" represses, which doesn't often turn up on the CD comps.

'Reggae' as a specific style refers to stuff around 68-72 i guess, but is more commonly used to refer to all JA music

Books:
Lloyd Bradley - Bass Culture
Norman K Stoltzkoff (sp?) - Wake the Town and Tell the People [on dancehall]
David Katz - People Funny Boy [on Lee Scratch Perry]
Guy Kennaway - One People [fiction]

other good stuff/people:
Max Romeo - Revelation Time LP (reissued with bonus tracks as 'Open the Iron Gate')
Prince Far I
Gregory Isaacs - Night Nurse LP (essential!)
Sizzla - Bobo Ashanti

my brane is dead though at the moment - will think of more later

― m jemmeson, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Ah! Forgot to add Prince Far-I... "Under Heavy Manners" was the first reggae LP I ever truly loved.

The first version I had of that LP (which was a taped version of a Jamaican pressing on Joe Gibbs with the primarily yellow sleeve and a colour version of the photo) had a little reprise / dub of the last track on the second side. Just about 45 seconds of wild dubbing on "Under Heavy Manners". I've heard vinyl and CD reissues on Gibbs and never found another version with that little coda, and it upsets me a little. Anyone have any versions which do have the little end bit? (BTW, it's not the same as the various dub versions I have of the rhythm).

mj, do you have "Prophecy Reveal" by Bo Jangles? I know it was re- pressed a while back but I've never found it. Is it on the "Money In My Pocket" rhythm?

― Tim, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

almost forgot: VP put out two vols. of Dancehall 101 last year; both are superb

― M. Matos, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Just because someone mentioned books...

I work for a publishing company and we will be reissuing Beth Lesser's "King Jammy" - it is the definitive book on 80s dancehall. Beth is also a photographer--her work has appeared in the Rough Guide, among other publications.

Just for interest sake, is anyone on this thread (or any dub/reggae fans) intrigued?

― cybele, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

There are a few dancehall recommendations (most of which I still haven't followed up unfortunately) on this thread.

― Ian, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

count me in as intrigued - anything we can see on the web yet?

― fritz, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Film recommendations: The Harder They Come, Rockers, Heartland Reggae, Countryman & Dancehall Queen.

― fritz, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Prince Far I! Any of the 'Cry Tuff Dub Encounter' albs are wicked. Plus U Roy's 'Dread In A Babylon' is full of great songs and has the dubbingest front cover photo of all time!

― Andrew L, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

A few more roots classics: The Wailing Souls 'Wild Suspense', The Abyssinians 'Satta Massa Gana', Hugh Mundell 'Africa Must Be Free By 1983' + Dub version, The Gladiators 'TrenchTown Mix Up', Mighty Diamonds 'Go Seek Your Rights'. Also some Dennis Brown is essential - the recent Trojan anthology is a good place to start.

Bim Sherman's 'Miracle', while not exactly Reggae, is still utterly wonderful.

― Johnathan, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Lee Scratch Perry--Blackboard Jungle Dub

The first dub album? I forget, but one of them. One of the craziest too. Mad loping grooves, everything and the kitchen sink samples before there were samples.

Lee Scratch Perry--Super Ape

Primo mid-70s Scratch. Smooth, rootsical, deep, hypnotic...

― Ben Williams, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

It's inconceivable to imagine someone hearing Prince Far I's "Cry Tuff Dub Encounter Chapter 3" and not absolutely freaking out over dub, hard.

― Andy, Wednesday, 31 October 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

The Blood& Fire Sampler series is also a very good starting point for the novice. The second one is particularly good. A word of warning however: a glut of sub standard toss has ben reissued in the last few years and the reggae shelves in Tower records are so stuffed now that it's become difficult to differentiate between the good and crap. Any B&F stuff with Steve Barrow sleevenotes is usually a safe bet. Those mini Trojan box sets will also get you off the blocks into the right direction.

― David Gunnip, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Add Scientist 'Meets Space Invaders'. Forget Heart of the Congo's, overrated.

― Omar, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

My favourite Scientist LP is "Dub Landing", really very fine. Impossible to find, of course (in fact, even my copied copy is impossible to find since it's on a long term lend to a sometime contributor here). Why doesn't someone reissue that, eh?

― Tim, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Omar is sooo wrong over Heart of the Congos... mind you, unless you like shrill falsetto vocals it might not be a wise choice.

― m jemmeson, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Are there any labels to avoid - I'd heard the reggae CD market was flooded with shoddy product.

― Dr. C, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

hmmm - JA vinyl is notoriously poor quality, e.g. reground stuff, with badly photocopied sleeves. if you're buying 7"s try and listen to them first, because the mastering can be dreadful besides all the pops etc

there's also loads of dodgy Lee Perry and King Tubby stuff - i.e. CDs put out claiming to be produced by them, or, when they're not lying, they're doing it illegally, and not paying the copyright owner. if you stick to Blood and Fire, Pressure Sounds, On-U, Trojan etc at first you should avoid the real stinkers, although all these labels have been guilty of barrel-scraping with certain releases.

― m jemmeson, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

In answer to your original question, can we put reggae and dub together, sure we can, they are utterly, inextricably linked and it's often hard to draw a line between them. If you want to learn more about the origins of reggae and dub, read Bass Culture by Lloyd Bradley. If I were to pick one album to set you on your way I'd the Studio One Rockers compil on SOULJAZZ. It's got a bit of everything and doesn't contain a weak track.

― Daniel, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Addendum: Lee Perry is playing in New Haven this evening (with the Mad Professor). Should I go?

― David Raposa, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

hmmmm... Mad Professor is ok live, Lee Perry variable - he can be absolutely terrible. Reggae and dub aren't really 'live' musics, they're better on record or via DJ, IMO.

― m jemmeson, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

That is the push I needed to save myself $25. Much obliged.

― David Raposa, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

spend the money on reggae records - you won't regret it. live concerts are a nice way to see your heroes, but for a music which is all about skilful production and beautiful voices, live music venues don't really cut it. i think selective CD purchasing is more likely to turn someone on to reggae than a concert

― m jemmeson, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Then again, sometimes Mad Professor can be killer.

― cybele, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Nope. Mind made up. There's also the risk that my brand new company car could have an illicit rendevous with a cement brick. I like M's idea better - save the money, buy some discs, and acquaint myself with the music that way. I wouldn't mind going, but for TWENTY FIVE bucks?

― David Raposa, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

we've talked about this before, david i'm sure. NO show is worth $25 bucks. not even miles davis' corpse in a daishiki.

― jess, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Bullshit. I saw Lee Perry a few years ago with Mad Professor. He played for four hours, smoking giant spliffs that would have felled a lesser man in seconds the whole time. You have to see him just to see him prance around. (Great nude photo in Vanity Fair this month).

― Ben Williams, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Also, dub IS a live music. You can't get the true physical impact of the music without hearing it booming out of enormous bass bins. Just go and hear a really kickass sound system and be transported to another dimension. I don't know if Abu Shanti still plays in London, but he's great.

― Ben Williams, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Not to change the subject, but I think paying $32 to see Mission of Burma is pretty fair. Sort of. Maybe. Well, if they dedicate the set to me. And make "Einstein's Day" into "Raposa's Day". And change their name to Dave Is All Good. Yeah, then it'd be worth it.

But never mind me and my minor griping. Have I thanked you all for your recommendations yet? I haven't gone out and bought anything, mind you, but when I do, you'll be the 10th or 11th to know.

― David Raposa, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

weed smokers in tha hay-ouse!!!! :)

fuckin contrary: Towers of Dub is better than Yabby U

― Tracer Hand, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

To whoever said that dub needs to be experienced on a giant sound system: word.

You just can't get it loud enough at home. It's gotta be so heavy that you can feel the bass from your fingers through to your toes. I'd pay $25 for that--then again, I'm Canadian. Don't know whether I'd pay $25 US.

― cybele, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Live Dub soundsystems are the best way to hear dub, unless you've got a 200k rig in your front room, seeing Jah shaka live the physicality of the bass is sickening, especially mixed with some weed, perfect!

― jk, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

I saw Lee Perry recently and it was dross. Having said that, dub can work live. Dennis Bovell and the Dub Band, for example, with DB making special effects with his voice. Staggering.

― Daniel, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

People with serious knowledge have joined since the last time we covered this territory. I'm sure I'll be returning to this thread before my next trip to the record store. Nice work.

― Mark, Thursday, 1 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

yeah, i was talking about live reggae concerts, i.e. with a band, singers etc, which *usually* wouldn't be a great introduction to reggae.

dub sound-systems play a variety of *records*, and are a safer bet as an introduction (as well as getting the impact of the bass. Jah Shaka is very good, another big UK name is Aba Shanti. most JA sound systems will play dancehall.

― m jemmeson, Friday, 2 November 2001 01:00 (twenty-four years ago)

Skipping 1048 messages at this point... Click here if you want to load them all.

I will have to check that out. I swoon for that synth sound.

― il lavoro mi rovina la giornata (PBKR), Saturday, 2 March 2024 02:50 (two years ago)

More robo-reggae? Here you go

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WU2kjMMU0Sk

― bbq, Saturday, 2 March 2024 04:35 (two years ago)

Yes! Thank you!

Lol @ that Atari sound on track 2.

― il lavoro mi rovina la giornata (PBKR), Saturday, 2 March 2024 12:53 (two years ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sNzo2Jk77eU

― Josh in Chicago, Saturday, 2 March 2024 14:04 (two years ago)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vL2Ll454OnA

― bbq, Sunday, 3 March 2024 01:44 (one year ago)

chi ba wa wa

― budo jeru, Sunday, 3 March 2024 01:50 (one year ago)

three months pass...

lucked out on a cheap copy of this, what a sound:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JXlZfAdR-yA
Junior Reid - Thanks & Praise / Dub Praises

― Bernard Quidbins (NickB), Wednesday, 19 June 2024 07:27 (one year ago)

Pump that dub version straight into my veins! Damn.

― I would prefer not to. (Chinaski), Wednesday, 19 June 2024 08:22 (one year ago)

one month passes...

I just heard Gregory Isaacs' "Night Nurse" for the first time. It is amazing - give me more robo-reggae.

― il lavoro mi rovina la giornata (PBKR), Friday, March 1, 2024 5:44 PM (four months ago) bookmarkflaglink

night nurse is actually very driven by wally badarou's keyboards, he really shaped those songs. not dub but digging in on his discography puts 'night nurse' in a new kind of narrative context

― xheugy eddy (D-40), Tuesday, 30 July 2024 20:28 (one year ago)

I only have Echoes but I like it a lot. Is that pretty representative?

― Paul Ponzi, Tuesday, 30 July 2024 22:06 (one year ago)

four months pass...

https://www.mixcloud.com/abschied/christmas-in-jamaica/

― budo jeru, Saturday, December 23, 2023 9:51 PM (one year ago) bookmarkflaglink

dusting this off after a year!

― budo jeru, Tuesday, 24 December 2024 20:06 (one year ago)

So good!

― stirmonster, Tuesday, 24 December 2024 21:07 (one year ago)

two months pass...

That's from Roots Rock Reggae: http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0245397/
― rob, Thursday, March 6, 2014 8:47 PM (eleven years ago) bookmarkflaglink
it's on youtube!
― Daniel, Esq 2, Thursday, March 6, 2014 8:49 PM (eleven years ago) bookmarkflaglink

still true 11 years later. lee "scratch" perry scenes are 👌

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=H0UFSo7UaWA

― budo jeru, Wednesday, 19 March 2025 17:53 (eleven months ago)

dang, there's even footage of a jamaican pressing plant ...

― budo jeru, Wednesday, 19 March 2025 18:21 (eleven months ago)

mega chills seeing the gladiators recording those tracks

― Clock DVLA (NickB), Wednesday, 19 March 2025 21:37 (eleven months ago)

absolutely

― budo jeru, Wednesday, 19 March 2025 21:44 (eleven months ago)

coincidentally i was listening to super ape and return of same today so can’t wait to watch this.

― same felthig angle-eye sixon (Fizzles), Wednesday, 19 March 2025 22:34 (eleven months ago)

also that clip of joe higgs playing acoustic fucked me up

― budo jeru, Wednesday, 19 March 2025 22:37 (eleven months ago)

hey look, there i am, re-posted just upthread. memories.

― Daniel, Esq 2, Saturday, 22 March 2025 14:30 (eleven months ago)

I watched that Beats of the Heart / Roots Rock Reggae last night -thanks for posting. It was shown on Channel 4 in the UK in the mid 80s, on a late-night strand I'v forgotten the name of presented by Vivien Goldman and Charlie Gillett, I had a vague clue who they were at the time but not much. I taped it and absolutely rinsed the VHS, real pleasure watching it back and knowing every second. I don't think "Play On Mr Music" was released until it came out on a Japanese Black Ark comp a few years back; anyone know better?

― Tim, Saturday, 22 March 2025 16:13 (eleven months ago)

two weeks pass...

New edition of Solid Foundation, the David Katz oral history of Jamaican Music currently £2.99 on kindle.
Had the previous edition, but with nasty cramped print. Enjoying a lot more now.

― woof, Tuesday, 8 April 2025 21:04 (ten months ago)

oh awesome

― budo jeru, Tuesday, 8 April 2025 21:05 (ten months ago)

is it available in print?

― budo jeru, Tuesday, 8 April 2025 21:05 (ten months ago)

Yup - may actually buy that as well. Take my money Katz.

― woof, Tuesday, 8 April 2025 21:55 (ten months ago)

looks like the publisher doesn't ship to USA but i found a new copy on ABE for $25 and free shipping

― budo jeru, Tuesday, 8 April 2025 21:59 (ten months ago)

two months pass...

this was a nice dubbed-out rootsy find today....

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8tNDkTYVfkw
Al Campbell - Jah Shine On Me

― Reggaeton Sax (NickB), Saturday, 21 June 2025 20:54 (eight months ago)

one month passes...

I'm wondering if any of you can help me id the origin of this vocal line (not the riddim) from Tinga Stewart's "Key to Your Heart" (1983). You can hear it first at 0:16 ("gimme gimme gimme gimme the key to your heart"):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0XThGgJ5WAw

For me, hearing this immediately brought to mind Boogie Down Productions' "100 Guns" (1990), specifically the refrain heard here at 0:22 ("i got a hundred guns, two hundred clips, going to new york").

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1p62mSo8X2U

Doing some research on the BD track, it seems like he's interpolating this line from Carlton Livingston's "100 Weight of Collie Weed" (1983), heard at 0:15 here ("with a hundred weight of collie weed, coming from saint ann's"):

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxVPHLxqF5k

So my question is, the Stewart and Livingston tracks came out the same year, so what came first? Are they both interpolating an earlier vocal melody? Perhaps not even a Jamaican one, but maybe something from American soul music? The "your heart"/"New York"/"Saint Ann's" inflection in particular sounds oddly familiar but I can't tell if it's just the Boogie Down track that's been burned into my brain or if it's something else

― budo jeru, Saturday, 26 July 2025 15:07 (seven months ago)

this Cornell Campbell / Bunny Lee is from 1982:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ERdSaAm9zqA

I wouldn't claim that's the original though! who can ever say with reggae

― rob, Saturday, 26 July 2025 16:28 (seven months ago)

hmm indeed. good find, though! cornell campbell can do no wrong imo

― budo jeru, Saturday, 26 July 2025 19:00 (seven months ago)

The melody line sounds very Gregory-ish to me but the closest I can think of without going through a bunch of old records is “Happy Anniversary” and it’s close but not it. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=luRxFygGF-M

― Tim, Saturday, 26 July 2025 19:38 (seven months ago)

heard this in the wild yesterday. the legacy continues

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X4yDzAMOGqI
Ja Rule - New York (Official Music Video) ft. Fat Joe, Jadakiss

― budo jeru, Friday, 1 August 2025 16:44 (seven months ago)

Umm

― Jordan s/t (Jordan), Friday, 1 August 2025 17:23 (seven months ago)

five months pass...

I’m making a playlist of pub music from the bass continuum (yeah yeah), which obviously starts and ends with reggae/dub.

“River Niger” by Sly Dunbar is such an anthem it’s an obvious choice no? Was inspired to look up the lyrics for a good old singalong but I can’t find them anywhere? (I think I’ve got the chorus down at least. ROOTS ROCK REGGAE. ROOTS ROCK REGGAE.)

― recovering internet addict/shitposter (viborg), Thursday, 15 January 2026 07:13 (one month ago)

heard this for the first time the other day, so heavy and so good (and uh, timely title i guess?)

Jackie Mittoo - Ayatollah

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovdsWF8E2y0

― donna rouge, Friday, 16 January 2026 01:31 (one month ago)

excellent

― budo jeru, Friday, 16 January 2026 01:37 (one month ago)

two weeks pass...

been listening to a lot of reggae music in this moment, finding a lot of strength and solace in it. some of it spurred on by some excellent recommendations over on rob's album exchange poll. here's some tunes i've been spinning on repeat, thought others might want to share some too

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n4E1Va3GHRk
Ethiopians - Never Get Burned

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2kld_9seMiQ
Abyssinians - Forward Unto Zion

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jqw4SqW9V2w
Lopez Walker - Send Another Moses

― budo jeru, Friday, 30 January 2026 23:31 (one month ago)

Abyssinians tune is the newest one to me, discovered it today in fact. obsessed with how pristine it sounds, it has a kind of quiet, crystalline power. brings to mind some of Willie Mitchell's mid-'70s productions maybe

― budo jeru, Friday, 30 January 2026 23:38 (one month ago)

been listening to a lot of reggae music in this moment, finding a lot of strength and solace in it.

otm <3

I love that Ethiopians tune. tbh one of my favourite bands ever, though I don't tend to think of them in those terms they were pivotal for me getting into reggae when I was 18. And they are, unfortunately, timely. I blasted "Hong Kong Flu" a lot at home during the early Covid times lol. Everything crash, things a get bad to worse...

I've struggled with the Abyssinians album that song is from in the past — my ears were trained on the dusty Studio One sound, so that pristine quality always turned me off. But with those expectations eroded over time, I'm listening now and this is very lovely, thanks for posting it!

I post about it on ilx a lot but "Send Another Moses" is on the Blood & Fire Phase One comp Chantells & Friends: Children of Jah, one of their absolute best releases. Lots of apt lyrics on it too, my all-time favourite being "Assemble Not Thyself" which is mostly mashed-up Bible verses, but hits hard when the iniquity workers are so busy working every day.

btw, I have another Ras Michael recommendation for anyone who was following that conversation on the album exchange thread: Rastafari, which is his most famous album as it turns out but was slightly hard to find on streaming for mysterious reasons. The opening track, "Mr Brown" is funky as hell:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BcoDo7f3ERY

― obvious old hat (rob), Saturday, 31 January 2026 15:20 (one month ago)

yeah abyssinians are all time. satta massaganna of course but arise is also a tremendous album

― J Edgar Noothgrush (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Saturday, 31 January 2026 15:30 (one month ago)

^Arise is sounding great too, thanks JCLC

― obvious old hat (rob), Saturday, 31 January 2026 15:44 (one month ago)

And they are, unfortunately, timely

lol I forgot there's an instrumental on Reggae Power called "Robert F. Kennedy"

― obvious old hat (rob), Saturday, 31 January 2026 15:54 (one month ago)

man sharing sweet reggae tunes in this fucked up time is really a good feeling, thanks to viborg for waking up this thread. in recent years the vocal groups have really been my sweet spot, there's always great dub mixes if that's what I want and the live harmonies reach me really deeply.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uXOi2uB7OZo

― J Edgar Noothgrush (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Saturday, 31 January 2026 16:00 (one month ago)

also this is a chance to share one of my favorite things ever, Michael Rose via Niney the Observer "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," which takes the title of a movie where the title was being deployed with tense irony instead has the question posed in earnest: "Guess who's coming to dinner? Natty dreadlock!" and then they smoke a bowl and give thanks and praise

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sfDI8Y04_uE

― J Edgar Noothgrush (Joan Crawford Loves Chachi), Saturday, 31 January 2026 16:04 (one month ago)

hell yeah love that song!

― obvious old hat (rob), Saturday, 31 January 2026 16:08 (one month ago)

the many voices in this song (The Soulettes, "Deh Pon Dem") are truly sublime:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7yJLF7AJ4zQ

― obvious old hat (rob), Saturday, 31 January 2026 16:11 (one month ago)

Some great suggestions here.

For more roots, Wailing Souls - Fire House Rock really hitting the spot today.

― Cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria de Episcopio, Thursday, 5 February 2026 21:06 (three weeks ago)

The opening track, "Mr Brown" is funky as hell

I've loved this track ever since I discovered it via a documentary on Jamaican music that I found on this board.

I suppose "funky reggae" is a subjective term, but another entry into the canon would have to be this Bobby Aitken and Val Bennett track, "One Way Street," the opening of which sounds like a Meters tune:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OPrW2KnevhE

― Cattedrale metropolitana di Santa Maria de Episcopio, Saturday, 7 February 2026 00:22 (three weeks ago)

I heard yesterday that Sly Dunbar debuted recording on Double Barrel by Dave and Ansel Collins. Great track.

― Stevo, Saturday, 7 February 2026 06:53 (three weeks ago)

two weeks pass...

I saw Adrian Sherwood and African Headcharge last week at the Barbican. Sherwood did his version of Scratch Perry's "Makumba Rock" and it was so good, so heavy (Doug Wimbish on bass!) and then this thing happened that I love about reggae, and which makes me wish I was more of a cognoscenti. I was like - this sounds familiar, it sounds like a minor key version of "Your Love Got a Hold On Me" by Dennis Brown, so when I got home I listened to it and yeah, it basically is, so what's that riddim, aha it's Heavenless. Look that up, lo and behold it turns out there's a NEW (ish) Vin Gordon and the Real Rock Band album with a new version of Heavenless on it, in fact the whole album's fantastic, and like the little greedy bastard I am I want it, I want it immediately, but it goes for silly money. But what else has Vin Gordon been up to? Well quite a bit it seems! So I've absolutely fallen down a Vin Gordon rabbithole and I've never been happier with a decision

― Tracer Hand, Wednesday, 25 February 2026 23:11 (five days ago)

Would love to have seen that. I recently stumbled across Akwaaba, one of the few albums without Sherwood producing. It is a big, big step down although it's interesting to hear what AHC sounds like on their own.

― Cow_Art, Thursday, 26 February 2026 04:17 (four days ago)

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