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PETER TOSH - Bush Doctor  

PETER TOSH - Honorary Citizen    

I am very happy with this box set. I have a ton of Peter Tosh in my vast reggae collection and this box set is a nice little addition. Although it doesn't cover as much as I'd like it to cover (there could be a disc four in my opinion) , it does do well in capturing his authoritative and militant voice through his beautiful music. Peter was a Wailer as in Bob Marley and the Wailers and he, as Peter would say, "decorated Bob's music and made it beautiful". Although he has been over shadowed by Bob Marley's success with reggae, he stands on his own in that world and equally with Bob in my opinion.

I have heard it stated and have read that Bob Marley is to Martin Luther King Jr. as Peter Tosh is to Malcolm X. Both sent a message to the people, but they sent it in different ways. Peter being the militant voice. His music almost seems too beautiful to be militant, but maintains a hard-edge and a defiant tone which were his intentions. This box set captures that militancy especially with the concert recordings on disc two when he speaks to the crowd. 

PETER TOSH - No Nuclear War   

"No Nuclear War" turned out to be Peter Tosh's last effort, and what an effort it was, mixing excellent message songs with his usual razor sharp delivery; potent lyrics and excellent grooves dominate this lp, and show the direction Tosh would likely have gone in had he not been so brutally murdered.

While the music is somewhat slick and overproduced (find me a quality 80's reggae lp that wasn't) and introduced drum machines and other electronics into Tosh's music, clearly showing that Tosh again was trying to become more mainstream, it was Tosh's lyrics that dominate this lp- showing his maturity and heinsight in "Lessons In My Life," mixed with his usual attacks on the government in "No Nuclear War" and his remake of "Apartheid."

Sadly, we will never know what move Tosh would have made after this brilliant effort, but we have his music and all that it has to offer, as the most fitting tribute to the legend and his unwavering vision.

LEE PERRY - Arkology   The nearly four hours of astounding music encoded on these three discs merely scratch the surface of the highly personal sonic universe created by this legendarily eccentric, yet ridiculously prolific, dub-reggae producer. It's still the best source of entry into Lee "Scratch" Perry's world, though, a place defined by homemade avant-garde production techniques applied to the wittiest, angriest, sexiest, and most soulful reggae tunes ever written. Perry was born in 1936, and his career spans the history of Jamaican music. These 52 tracks, however, derive mainly from the late 1970s, when he was at the height of his considerable powers and recording hits like Max Romeo's "War in a Babylon" and Junior Murvin's "Police and Thieves" for Island. Helpfully annotated, with a healthy handful of unreleased tracks, Arkology is a beginner's banquet of tracks that sound increasingly deep, daring, and downright frightening as the depth of Perry's talent is plumbed. --Richard Gehr

  LEE PERRY - The Ultimate Collection   Ultimate Collection may be more aptly titled "Essential Collection" as it provides a definitive overview of the career of this notoriously peculiar Jamaican producer and artist. Lee "Scratch" Perry got his start in the legendary Studio One before making his musical mark on the greatest groups of 1970s Jamaica . This collection spans the length of the producer's fertile career, starting in the late 1960s with the molding of the then vocal group the Wailers into a reggae group with "Small Axe" and "Duppy Conquerer" before concluding with an extended mix of "Roast Fish and Corn Bread" from Perry's own repertoire of originals. The album is doused in the magical concoctions the eccentric "Ape" stirred up in his legendary Black Ark studio: listeners bear witness to the launching of Max Romeo's career with "War ina Babylon," the dub fruits of collaborations with Augustus Pablo ("Vibrate On"), and snippets of the prolific relationship with unknown vocal duo the Congos. With a mixed grab bag of historically important songs from the experimental dub master, Ultimate Collection is an essential starter CD for those interested in the mad genius that was Lee "Scratch" Perry. --Karen K. Hugg

JOE HIGGS - Blackman Know Yourself   With The Wailers backing up one of Bob Marley's primary mentors, this is one of the CLASSIC, classic Reggae albums. It features some of Joe Higg's best originals such as Sons of Garvey and Steppin' Razor along with Marley covers, Small Axe and Sun Is Shining. Joe Higgs is one of the founding fathers of Reggae Music and this collection will firmly demonstrate to you why Marley and The Wailers, Jimmy Cliff, The Wailing Souls and many others spent hours in his back yard learning their craft from a master.

STEEL PULSE - Ultimate Collection  You get a sampling of the best of Pulse because even with 16 songs clocking in at over 73 minutes, there are a lot of more prime cuts.  This is another great example of the FINE collections being put out by UNI/HIP-O RECORDS... the disk is not just the best sellers, it is a carefully selected and ordered set that should be included in any good Reggae Music collection.  One of Bob Marley's favorite bands, Steel Pulse became one of reggae's most successful bands in the late '70s and early '80s. After releasing their debut album, Handsworth Revolution (1978, Mango), and its successors, Tribute to the Martyrs and True Democracy (both for Elektra) in the early '80s, with their innovative blend of straight-ahead reggae, flamenco and Euro-pop containing potent pleas for social reform, critics and fans alike hailed them as Marley's successors.  They may not quite be that but they got some righteous vibes!

SHAGGY - Hotshot   In 1993, when Shaggy successfully reworked the Prince Buster ska classic "Oh Carolina," he was on the cusp of creating a hot, new ska/pop fusion. Unfortunately, he opted to become a pop-reggae novelty act like Snow. Shaggy's fourth album certainly won't win over new fans or appeal to reggae purists and Capleton enthusiasts, but that's fine by him. While there are no immediate club anthems in the "Boombastic" or "Oh Carolina" vein, Shaggy's coarse vocal delivery shines on the sweet, Latin-music-inspired "Chica Bonita." Likewise, "Not Fair"--where he boasts that he'll take a woman "to the clouds without going downtown"--has Hit Single written all over it. On the downside, Shaggy's rap-reggae flow doesn't match the production values of the R&B production duo Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis. On "Lonely Lover," Shaggy and Next's T-Lo bastardize a classic Main Ingredient song, while on "Dance and Shout," he distorts the Michael Jackson legacy by sampling "Shake Your Body (Down to the Ground)." -- Dalton Higgins

  JUDY MOWATT - Only a Woman   

The title of this album is Only A Woman. That is indeed an understatement. Hear Ms Mowatt roar and be impressed. She is a gifted vocalist and songwriter. This former member of the I-Threes continues to impress. Judy Mowatt easily outshines Rita Marley and Marcia Griffith with her output. This follow up to Black Woman is an excellent album. Any fan of reggae music should give this album a listen. The opening track You're My People sets the tone for this album. This is music with social consciousness. There is no runt among the litter here. Each track stands up on its own. The title cut is one of the stand out tracks on the album. There is also a swaying cover of the Curtis Mayfield song You Don't Care. Bob Marley must be smiling in heaven when Judy Mowatt sings her songs. She has certainly made some great reggae music.

JUDY MOWATT - Dreamland   

Dreamland is an album which show cases why Marcia Griffith has had such a good career in the music business. I don't think I've bought an album that gave me more wicked old school lovers rock before. With songs such as "Truly","Melody of Life" and "Tell Me Now" you can't loose. There are no "filler" tunes on this album. Every song is a shot that will take you back in time when reggae music was pure and original! A must have for all true reggae lovers! One Love!

  
Bob Marley & The Wailers SOUL REBELS - Roger Steffens and JAD Records have their second installment of three collections of virtually everything recorded by BMW pre Catching A Fire with Island Records. There have been bootlegs and outtakes galore of the recordings in this period...you can find dozens of "Greatest Hits Collections" that are that in name only - the recording quality is horrible. Here's where JAD steps in. Not only are the recordings excellent (hey, they're not from digital masters etc. they are from deteriorated tapes and rare discs pressed over 30 years ago in JA so don't expect sonic wonders...but they sound good) there are rare cuts, dub tracks and alternate takes of all the Lee Perry produced Wailers material. While I was not that interested in Part One, this second installment of the "Complete Wailers" is a worthy addition for your Marley collection...I'm looking forward to Part Three.

REGGAE AROUND THE WORLD - For lovers of cultural music from all corners of the globe, PUTUMAYO Records has done the world a great service by collecting top performances from top musical artists in all types of genres. I think I am safe recommending any of the PUTUMAYO World Music Collection and their "Reggae Around The World" collection is no exception. The disc opens with South African, Lucky Dube performing "We Love It" and travels over 11 cuts through more stops in Africa then South America to the US and of course to JA. Burning Spear is always great (Jordan River) but it is Ernest Ranglin with a Reggae Jazz "Stop That Train" that stands out from Reggae's island birth place. "In Ghana" by Rocky Dawuni, has a very Israel Vibration / Ky-mani Marley sound and is one of my favorites along with a bubbling "Dtangkinbala" from Blekbala Mujik. The disc closes with a Live version of "No Woman No Cry" by Peter Rowan from the US that features really nice acoustic and electric guitar work by the band...a very nice closer to a very Irie collection. I hope there will be a volume two!  

Getting a lot of time on the CD player at the moment is Sly and Robbie with "FRiENDS"...killer disc Mon! Hits, Hits, Hits. Teaming up with Simply Red, they produce not one but two takes on Gregory Issacs "Night Nurse" and a soulful "Ghetto Girl", Ambilique with "Penny Lover", other cuts featuring Maxi Priest, Liba and Danny Madden plus just Sly and Robbie at their standard greatness with cuts like "Theme from MISSION IMPOSSIBLE". Get it!

More on this soon come but, thanks to HeartBeat Records, CULTURE we've got another powerful disc from one of THE groups in Reggae Music. "Production Something" brings together some new, re-worked and dubbed out cuts for some vital listening pleasure...

For a non-stop compilation packed with "hits", get DANCE HALL Vol. 8 from Germain (a D. Germain Production). Here's a sampling: Frankie Paul "Never Love This Way Again", Garnet Silk "Who Is Like Selassie", Richie Stephens "Acting Strange", Tony Rebel with Marcia Griffiths on "Ready To Go", Buju Banton "Lion Rules" and a big up to Ras Shiloh with "Child of a Slave".

U-ROY - The Best of U-Roy: Rightful Ruler

"KEBRA NAGAST: The Lost Bible of Rastafarian Wisdom and Faith from Ethiopia and Jamaica" edited by Gerald Hausman with a special Introduction by Ziggy Marley

Handed down orally from generation to generation in Rastafarian and West Indies culture, the Kebra Nagast is the Ethiopian Bible of lore that has not been available in English for almost a century. The earliest form of the text appeared around the 6th century. Subsequently, it has been translated into Arabic, back to Ethiopian, then into English. French and German translations appeared in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, directly from the original Ethiopic version. This version is based on the 1922 translation by Dr. E.A. Wallis Budge, Scholar of Christ's College, Cambridge. Gerald Hausman's expertise as a traditional storyteller makes The Kebra Nagast come alive for a new generation of readers.