Roots & Culture 101 Items

An excellent 4-track roots and dub reggae 12-inch on the French Fruits Records label, of which the first release was I Kong's 'A Little Walk' album.

Introducing Bays a 9 track boil up heralding a fresh chapter in Freddys fantastic voyages. Bays opens with slow burn funk of ‘Wairunga Blues’ journeying through a hybrid of reggae, hi-tek soul and jazz with techno rhythms underpinning Freddy’s signature horns and Joe Dukie’s smooth & introspective vocals, 'Slings And Arrows', '10 Feet Tall', 'Wheels', 'Razor', 'Makkan', 'Fish In The Sea', 'Cortina Motors' and arriving finally on the crooked blues jam of ‘Novak’.
BAYS is named after our Wellington studio homebase, where the album was predominately written and recorded around beats, food, darts and a winter of content.

Stix Recordings rounds up all those essential Mato 7" anthems onto this extended player, with all the cuts remastered for the occasion! Includes two unreleased hits featuring Blackstreet (No
Diggity) & Snoop Dogg and Dr. Dre (The Wash). Woopiwoop, that's the sound of reggae-hip hop perfection!

A definitive guide to Dancehall Reggae! Over 30 killer tracks from Yellowman, Eek a Mouse, Gregory Isaacs, Tenor Saw and loads more.

Check out this classic Roots material by Winston Shan & The Hippy Boys and Winston Sinclair & The Hippy Boys from around 1969!

Back to back two Killer 60s soul to reggae instrumental monsters - versioning Young-Holt’s classic Soulful Strut and Booker T and the MGs Seminal Time is Tight!

The reggae rocker, Courtney John unleashes his new album, Ecosystem, born from a collaboration with the French label Soul Man Records which also produced the successful album Reggae Loves Soul!
With this new LP, recorded and mixed between Kingston and Paris, Courtney John has created a lyrical painting of our world, hosted by a classic early reggae sound that will appeal to reggae aficionados and a wider audience of music lovers…

Check out this nice Roots material by Raging Fyah! "Real Life Story" riddim.

Following 2 acclaimed first editions, Stix Records presents the 3rd volume of its Disco Reggae compilation series.

Like previous one, the 9 tracks comp is made both from productions of the home labels now sold-out as vinyl, and from brand new exclusive music by the like of Taggy Matcher, Mato or newcomer Rosemary Martins, taking over classics titles from Donna Summer, Stephen Encinas, Roberta Flack, Herbie Hancock, Steve Parks, or Inner City.

The perfect soundtrack to extend the summer!!

Amazing instrumentals in best El Michel's tradition with a touch of Roots Music, straight from Canada - we love it.

colored vinyl edition

Check out this nice Roots material by Jesse Royal and Mr Williamz! "Real Life Story" riddim.

Check out this nice Roots material by Derrick Morgan & Desmond Dekker from around 1968!
Beverley's All Stars are featured on the B-side.

Lily Of Da Valley is the first full-length album from Jesse Royal, who in his short career so far, has already been featured in Vogue magazine, had a Vice TV episode appearance, a #1 Jamaican single, and over 8 million views on a single video. Keeping authentic reggae music alive is Jesse Royal's mission as he continues on the legacy of the late greats Bob Marley, Peter Tosh and Jacob Miller, to name a few. Jesse Royal's restless musical drive paired with profound music, prolific lyrics and socially-conscious messages has him regarded as the next reggae star to emerge from reggae's birth land of Jamaica.

First issue of Sleng Teng label material released by Evidence Music. “Mr Bossman” by Wayne Smith was recorded from 1983 to 1986.

Check out this classic Roots material by The Imperials, Al Senior Pone, Ranny Williams & The Hippy Boys from around 1969!

Check out this nice Roots material by Winston Wilbert!
The Sparkers are featured on the B-side.

Check out this classic Roots material by Derrick Morgan from around 1967!

Lloyd Barnes voiced KC White on this rhythm from 1967 (Originally produced by the yet to be identified 'C.B.' and first used as the backing track for the Webber Sister's 'Keep On Moving'). 1975 recordings.

"None A Jah Jah Children" collects the eight best tracks from the two longplayer "Rastafari" and "Kibir-Am-Lak" that Ras Michael & The Sons Of Negus made for producer Tommy Cowan in the 1970's, all tracks re-mastered by Kevin Metcalfe. This are nyah chants made sound system ready by the Talent Corporation with the heavyweight musical back-up of Robbie Shakespeare, Peter Tosh, Earl "Chinna" Smith, Robbie Lyn, Tommy McCook, Carlton "Santa" Davis and the Sons Of Negus with the all the various drums like the 1st, 2nd and 3rd funde, akete bass drum, repeater, bass funde and trap drums. The original recordings happened at Dynamcic Sound and at Joe Gibbs studios. The LP-Vinyl includes also a nice printed inner sleeve with images and linernotes by Harry Wise

Check out this nice Roots material by Morgan Heritage and Runkus flowing on "Mile High Riddim"!

Check out this nice Roots material by Lieutenant Stitchie and Lilly Melody presented from Irie Ites Records!
"African Princess" rhythm.

Record is close to NM!

Watch out, this clear 45 rpm single is limited to 250 copies worldwide!

Record Kicks presents a new limited edition transparent 45 rpm single vinyl by UK rock steady/soul/dub combo Pama International feat another two winners.
On the A side the new single "Then You Can Tell Me Goodbye" flipped by the reggae 69 stormer "Gasoline" on the B side.
In their first 10 years Pama Int'l recorded 9 albums, 3 BBCRadio 1 Maida Vale sessions, won the Rebel playlist on BBC6, and became the first new act to sign to Trojan Records in 30 years. Their collective nature saw them work with members of The Specials, Madness, Steel Pulse, Style Council, Galliano, Kasabian, Mad Professor, Toots & The Maytals, Jimmy Cliff to name a few.

A reissue of a Max Romeo tune recorded at Lee Perry’s Black Ark around 1974/75 with a trombone instrumental / Dub on the B side.

Outstanding three track EP from the archives of Caliban (A side project of London musician Milton Myrie; a session guitar player who worked with cult UK buddhist afro and reggae band Ozo as well as on the much sought after Steel and Skin ‘Afro Punk Reggae’ 12”). Talk about bang for ye buck.. 1 side crucial oddball digital cuts, b side sounds like a UK jazz funk classic... Gold Print Sleeve. BIG TIP!

Caliban produced only one self-released 7” ‘Open Mind / Digital Reggae’ in 1984.

Following the re-discovery of this very little known 7” by Caliban a few years back, UK producer Jackson Bailey aka Tapes managed to track Milton down, who as well as being in possession of most of the stock of the original record, was also sat on a number of amazing unreleased recordings from the Caliban sessions. With an album of unreleased Caliban material compiled by Tapes to follow later on Music From Memory, this EP introduces one of the unreleased tracks; the incredible feel good disco anthem “Supernatural”. Taking us on a glittering, rhythm charged rocket tour of the Funk Cosmos, this until-now-unheard future classic will surely set the summer nights alight.

The three track 12” also includes “Digital Reggae” which featured on the original Caliban 7”. This computerised dancehall/funk hybrid was partially penned to address the lack of black culture included in the payload of the United States’ first space station; “Digital Reggae will be included in the Payload of Skylab!”. As well as the original mix, the EP also includes a new dub put together by Milton himself and assisted by riddim specialist Tapes!

Jay-Z's 'Black Album' acapellas mashed up with classic Studio One riddims striaght out of 70s Kingston.

Check out this classic Roots material from around 1967!

Check out this classic Roots material by V. Vinstrick and The Vibrators from around 1968!

Check out this classic Roots material byThe Kingstonians from around 1968!

Check out this classic Roots material by The Ethiopians and Dave Baker from around 1968!

Check out this classic Roots material by Jackie Bernard and The Upsetters from around 1978!

7inch and video originally released in 2017 and now reissued by popular demand after the quickly sold out

Million Stylez, Mr Williamz and Charlie P flow over “Modern Time Riddim“ produced by Dreadsquad.

The best of the early singles by Bob Marley and the Wailers Volume 2. The partnership of Bob Marley and the Wailers in its short life would create what many consider to be some of the greatest reggae ever recorded.

Dreadsquad, AKA Marek Bogdanski, returns to the scene with the second and third instalments of his Riddim Machine series. As part of a collaboration consisting of Dreadsquad’s own Superfly Studio and the renowned Moonshine Recordings, listeners are in for a treat, courtesy of Poland’s most prolific reggae dancehall producer. As ever, Dreadsquad manage to encapsulate all evolutions of reggae – from rocksteady , roots and rub-a-dub to dancehall and dub – all with a present-day twist to keep the bass bins rumbling and the people skanking. Both volumes will be available in both vinyl and digital format, so there’s no excuse to miss out! Volume 2 is laced with an amalgamation of characters from the Reggae/Hiphop/Soul scene, featuring the likes of Kojo Neatness , Gardna, El Fata, Dub Princess, Tenor Youthman, Takeyce-Ti, Monkey Jhayam, ManeceLive or Greg Blackman in his soulful roots tune Clean Up. Among a plethora of sublime productions, with throwbacks to the old sounds of early reggae, roots and rub-a-dub, there’s the highly anticipated anthem Issues (previously released on Bun Dem Riddim), with none other than the mighty YT on microphone duties . Keep an ear out for the remix of Chainska Brassika’s Knowledge Is King (featuring Tom Spirals); there’s some serious stepping to be done to this riddim. The closing track for this volume is more than worthy of a mention, as ‘Space’ manages to deliver a transcendentally meditative dub vibe to bring the record to a close in a suitable fashion.
Both volume of Riddim Machine feature artwork illustrated by Kasia Wilk. The releases will be available digitally, via most online download stores (iTunes, Juno, Bandcamp, Amazon, etc.), as well as a physical vinyl release, available at most usual vendors.

Limited edition for Record Stoe Day 2017!

At long last, in proper quality and officially licensed, here's a pair of records long worked at, historically important, largely unheard, and most of all, musically brilliant. Above all, the dub mixes on these records are known among connoisseurs as being among a handful which can not only be considered a definitive King Tubby's style statement, but also among the most radical, transformative and forward thinking mixes ever committed to tape by the King himself. This is proper King Tubby's music; Tubby the man, not just Tubby's the studio. These two 12"s represent most of the known cuts of this brilliant rhythm, played by the Wailers' Barrett brothers, alongside Earl Chinna Smith, Augustus Pablo and Gladdy Anderson, all together truly a rhythmic force to be reckoned with. "Message from the Congo" and "God Is Love" are two vocals cuts produced via the mid 1970's partnership of Milton "Billy Hutch" Hutchinson and the late Linton "Bob Soul" Williamson. Together these upstart artist-producers operated from a base of operations on King St. in downtown Kingston, nothing short of a historic location that was both concurrent with and adjacent to both the Wailers own record shop and Channel 1's first pressing plant.

With the Barrett brothers at the helm of the session, the rhythm was laid at Randy's studio with Errol Thompson as engineeer, then brought to Tubby for voicing and mixing. "Message from the Congo" finds Bob Soul & The United Stars chanting a message of rastafari over the propulsive uptempo rhythm driven by the late Carly Barrett's masterful drumming. The harmonizers in the "United Stars" as they are dubbed on this record, were actually members of both the Righteous Flames and Rocking Horses vocal groups. The dub mix, "Congo Dread Chapter 1", is actually worthy of the type of genre cross-referencing hyperbole I normally decry in music writing. In hindsight we find in this track, Tubby prefiguring not only the remix and the 'edit', but also the frantic yet orchestrated chaos of a lot of the complex electronic dance music that would being to come into its own a full decade later. To try and describe the magic herein would be pointless, you must simply listen to Tubby deconstruct and reconstruct the rhythm using a melange of his now famous tools and techniques to devastating effect. Indeed, it is tracks like this one which made the man himself and those very techniques now so famous. These two tracks were originally released in Jamaica on both the Gemini and Danger Zone labels (in identical mixes). On the flip side of this first 12" we find Billy Hutch's little known vocal on the rhythm, entitled "Ten Long Years." The soulful vocal finds Bill in top form, and this track was originally released on Bill's very first album "Reggae Showcase", released only in NYC and extremely tough to track down. Rounding out the 12" is a real treat, a previously unreleased different take of "Message from the Congo", with different harmonies, and a background voice telling you "this is a message…", bringing the title of the song sharply into focus.

Check out this nice new joint by Junior Murvin featuring Hempress Sativa! TIP!!!!

The 'Dub To Go EP' represents the first teaser for the upcoming Kabanjak solo album 'Tree of Mystery' which will be released by ESL Music in the late summer of 2010.