TROJAN SPECIAL

S P E C I A L

DUB BOX SET (1998)
320 KBPS

The first of two valuable dub collections on Trojan — part of the label's bargain, three-disc box set series — this 50-track mix of trance-inducing sound effects and brutal rhythms chronicles the music during its '70s heyday. Selecting from a store of original sides by the likes of Gregory Isaacs and former Skatalite and tenor great Tommy McCook, dub originator King Tubby and protégés Scientist and Prince Jammy deliver plenty of solid version remixes, while early knob-twisters Lee Perry and "Niney" the Observer weigh in with some quality reworkings of their own. Crack-session bands the Upsetters, the Aggrovators, the Revolutionaries, and the Roots Radics all come off sounding like the real bedrock of reggae, as space-probe interjections bounce off heavy, heavy bass and drums. A quality dub primer perfect for reggae newcomers.

Disc 1
1. Marijuana - Sly & The Revolutionaries
2. Storming The Death Star - Roots Radics Band
3. Public Eyes - Gregory Isaacs
4. Love Of Jah Jah Children - The G.G. All Stars
5. A Dancing Version - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
6. Miss Know It All - Scientist
7. Rebel Dance - The Observer All Stars
8. Dubbing Sandra - The Upsetters
9. King Tubby's Conversation - King Tubby
10. Crabbit Version - King Tubby
11. White Rum - Sly & The Revolutionaries
12. Mission Impossible - Roots Radics Band
13. Leggo Beast - Gregory Isaacs
14. Dubbin' & Wailin' - Velvet Shadows
15. Rema Dub - The Observer All Stars
16. Long Time Dub - The Upsetters
17. A Version I Can Feel - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators

Disc 2
1. King Tubby's Explosion Dub - King Tubby
2. Cocaine - Sly & The Revolutionaries
3. The Death Of Mr Spock - Roots Radics Band
4. Nigger - Gregory Isaacs
5. Right Road To Dubland - The Jahlights
6. Jah, Jah Dub - The Aggrovators
7. Rasta Locks - The Observers
8. Dub Dat - The Upsetters
9. The Gorgon Of Dubs & Horns - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
10. King Tubby's Patient Dub - King Tubby
11. Black Ash - Sly & The Revolutionaries
12. The Son Of Darth Vader - Roots Radics Band
13. Slum - Gregory Isaacs
14. Do You Dub - The Aggrovators
15. Mosquito Dub - The G.G. All Stars
16. Dubbing With The Observer - The Observers
17. Rock Me In Dub - Thompson All Stars

Disc 3
1. Freedom Dub - The Upsetters
2. A Gigantic Dub - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
3. Collie - Sly & The Revolutionaries
4. Tam Tam - Gregory Isaacs
5. Turntable Dub - The Observers
6. Scientist Ganja Dub - Scientist
7. Dub On My Pillow - The Aggrovators
8. Herb - Sly & The Revolutionaries
9. The Alien Aborts - Roots Radics Band
10. Leaving - Gregory Isaacs
11. Dread Dub - Lloyds All Stars
12. Sir Niney's Rock - The Observers
13. The Big Boss Of Dubs - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
14. Dub So - The Upsetters
15. King Tubby's Badness Dub - King Tubby
16. African Dub - The Silvertones

DUB BOX SET VOLUME 2 (2000)
320 KBPS

From the seemingly bottomless vaults of Trojan Records comes this very fine collection of dub from the '70s: reggae's classical period and the high point of dub as a producer's art form. One in a series of limited-edition box sets, this set features 50 tracks on three discs at three-for-two pricing with attractive, no-frills packaging. The bands featured include such eminencies as the Upsetters, Soul Syndicate, the Aggrovators, and the Revolutionaries, all of them at various times the house bands for the best studios in Jamaica. The producers responsible for the dub mixes presented here are primarily the grand masters of the genre: King Tubby, Scientist, Prince Jammy, and Lee "Scratch" Perry. Highlight tracks include the seriously twisted "Casanova Dub" (by the Observer All Stars), "Strictly Dub" (one of many versions of Rupie Edwards' hugely popular "Everyday Wandering" rhythm), and King Tubby's bracingly minimalist "Dancing Version." If you only feel you need one dub collection, this one should be it.

Disc 1
1. Lambsbread - Sly & The Revolutionaries
2. Casanova Dub - The Observer All Stars
3. A Loving Melody - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
4. Fist Of Fury - Prince Jammy
5. Kingdom Of Dub - The Upsetters
6. War In A South African (Version) - Killerman Jarrett
7. Buck Rogers In The Black Hole - Roots Radics Band
8. Channel One Dub - Linval Thompson
9. Buckshot Dub Rupie - Edwards All Stars
10. Reform Institution - Gregory Isaacs
11. Smile Dub - Niney & The Soul Syndicate
12. Well Red - Augustus Pablo
13. Dancing Version - King Tubby
14. Young Lover - Scientist
15. Freedom Dub - The Revolutionaries
16. Jungle Fever - Truth, Fact & Correct
17. Since I Dub - The Aggrovators

Disc 2
1. Trim The Barber - King Tubby
2. Here I Come Dub - Niney & The Soul Syndicate
3. Stop The Dubbing - The Aggrovators
4. Rizla - Sly & The Revolutionaries
5. Thompson In Dub - Linval Thompson
6. Gambling - Roots Radics Band
7. Throne Of Blood - Prince Jammy
8. Doctor Seaton In The Echo Chamber - Rupie Edwards All Stars
9. Straight To Channel One Head - The Aggrovators
10. House Raid - Augustus Pablo
11. Bad Lamp - The Upsetters
12. Embarrasment - Gregory Isaacs
13. Silver Bullet - The Observer All Stars
14. This Is The Greatest Version - The Soul Syndicate
15. The Mighty Gates Of Goza - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
16. Dub I Dub - The Revolutionaries

Disc 3
1. Bus A Dub - The Upsetters
2. Soldering Version - The Aggrovators
3. Roots Man Dub - The Revolutionaries
4. Another Version - King Tubby
5. Shaolin Temple - Prince Jammy
6. So Long Dub - Niney & The Soul Syndicate
7. Long Time Version - Winston Fergus
8. Curly Dub - Winston Fergus
9. Crofs - Gregory Isaacs
10. Flash Gordon Meets Luke Skywalker - Roots Radics Band
11. Negrea Africa Dub - Linval Thompson
12. Mister D Brown Skank - The Observer All Stars
13. Tanglelocks - Groovemaster
14. Strictly Dub - Rupie Edwards
15. Scientist (Stalag 17) - Scientist
16. True Believer In Dubs - Tommy McCook & The Aggrovators
17. Acapulco Gold - Sly & The Revolutionaries

REGGAE SISTERS BOX SET (2003)
320 KBPS

'Reggae Sisters' is the best out of the 3 CD box sets I've got so far and here are just three very different reasons why:
1) Phyllis Dillon singing Marlena Shaw's "Woman of The Ghetto". This is rough, tough, skankin' reggae which makes this legendary female reggae singer sound like a rude boy, a la Peter Tosh. The drums are almost militaristic at the beginning and the guitar skank is like a bamboo across a dilliquent's backside. Mention is necesary for the backing vocals - soulful, wailing, melancholic and they balance the track's general toughness. Huge tune and funk/jazz/soul fans will love to surprise their friends and audiences with this rare cover of a monumental soul track.
2) Nora Dean's "Peace Begins Within". Closer to the Wailers' musical and philosophical style, this track bounces along with a spiritual robustness behind Dean's wailing, plaintive vocal "Oh me, Oh my, Cost of living got so high...but peace begins within". But it's a great message to combat the gangsterism, poverty and resulting rioting which was hitting Jamaica during the troubled Michael Mann era.
3) The Gaylettes doing "Son of A Preacher Man". Hot mama! This is Dusty Springfield's tune with rude fat bass and jumping chugging rocksteady guitar action. This exemplifies how reggae artists embraced the soul tracks being made in the States and not only made them entirely their own but injected them with a crucial vitality and robustness.
Those words 'tough' and 'robust' keep creeping up here but this isn't the entire story. A great deal of this collection is very 'poppy'. There are many, many, sometimes cheesey, love songs on here - 'Moonlight Lover' and 'Silly Wasn't I' for starters. And in these we realise what may almost be termed 'the plight' of female vocalists in this notoriously macho culture. They were so often only allowed to record songs about lovin' their man or missing their man by these often quite mysoginistic producers. Now this may seem like a negative but this whole collection is testimony to how these women still knocked out dazzling, effortlessly precise music despite these restrictions. And even if these may seem like cheesey, poppy little tunes to reggae new comers the hardened reggae fan will realise that these are super rare, vintage tracks with such great musicianship that the cheesey lyrics (often someone else's anyway) are completely secondary in the listening experience. "Perfidia" or "Emergency Call" are both among the better examples of this.
As was hinted at above, this is a great collection because of all the covers. In fact this was the reason I bought it. You can hear the following famous tracks covered and they would merit similar descriptions and praise as those above: "Fever" (heavy dub bass line), "Rescue Me" (plenty of brass, distant and haunting recording of Judy Mowatt's vocals), "Don't Let Me Down" by the Beatles being worked by Marcia Griffths, the super chilled version of "Groovin'" again by The Gaylettes and many more.
This is a fantastic collection folks, for reggae fans and those new to it, taking in so many different styles of reggae through the ages.

Disc 1
1. If You're Ready (Come Go With Me) - Cynthia Richards
2. Gypsy Man - Marcia Griffiths
3. Come And Get Some - Barbara Jones
4. Make Me Yours - Phyllis Dillon
5. Hurt So Good - Susan Cadogan
6. Groovin - The Gaylettes
7. Peace Begins Within - Nora Dean
8. Love Was All I Had - Phyllis Dillon
9. I Can't Help It Darling - Barbara Jones
10. Silly Wasn't I - Sharon Forrester
11. Fever - Susan Cadogan
12. Here Comes That Feeling (aka That Lonely Feeling) - The Gaylettes
13. Don't Stay Away - Phyllis Dillon
14. Walk Through This World - Barbara Jones
15. Aily I - Cynthia Richards
16. Angel Of The Morning - Joya Landis
17. In The Ghetto - Susan Cadogan

Disc 2
1. Son Of A Preacher Man - The Gaylettes
2. Don't Let Me Down - Marcia Griffiths
3. Leave It In The Hands Of Love - Phyllis Dillon
4. Kansas City - Joya Landis
5. Really Now - The Dreamletts
6. Woman A Come - Marguerita
7. I Let You Go Boy - Dawn Penn
8. It's You I Love - The Webber Sisters
9. A Thing Of The Past - Phyllis Dillon
10. I Shall Sing - Judy Mowatt
11. Moonlight Lover - Joya Landis
12. Hard Life - Merlene Webber
13. Why Did You Lie? - Dawn Penn
14. She Kept On Talking - Judy Mowatt
15. Band Of Gold - Marcia Griffiths
16. Why Should I - Rita Marley & The Soulettes

Disc 3
1. Nice And Easy - Susan Cadogan
2. Travelling - Debra Keese & The Black Five
3. Children At Play - Marcia Griffiths
4. Woman Of The Ghetto - Phyllis Dillon
5. Congratulations - Susan Cadogan
6. Emergency Call - Judy Mowatt
7. Pied Piper - Marcia Griffiths & Bob Andy
8. Rescue Me - Judy Mowatt
9. Bring It Up - The Soulettes
10. The Right Track - Phyllis Dillon
11. Take A Chance (On Me) - The Gaylettes
12. To The Other Woman - Hortense Ellis
13. That's How Strong My Love Is - The Gaylettes
14. Perfidia - Phyllis Dillon
15. Stand By Your Man - Merlene Webber
16. My Island - Paulette Williams
17. When Will I See You Again - Marcia Griffiths