Roots & Culture 315 Items

4LPs and 4CDs

On The Grove’ is an ambitious and passionate collaboration project, it features musicians spanning seven decades, including Jamaican legends: Ernest Ranglin, Ken Boothe, Earl 16 and Devon Russell; alongside contemporary artists, including jazz trumpeter Ms. Maurice (known for her work with Afro—Jazz Ensemble Kokoroko and Nubya Garcia), and vocalist Alexia Coley.

Reggae Disco Rockers cover Neil Young's classic "Harvest Moon" with Marter on guest vocals. The coupling features a remix by Slowly! Reggae Disco Rockers, who had an exceptionally big hit last summer with their cover of F. Knuckles' "The Whistle Song", have now collaborated with male vocalist Marter. The band has now collaborated with male vocalist Marter, who is a member of Jazzy Sport and expresses his unique world view as a singer and songwriter, on a cover of 'Harvest Moon', one of Neil Young's best-known songs. As on the previous album The Whistle Song, Emerson Kitamura plays keyboards on this album, giving it an organic atmosphere. The coupling track is a remix by the ever-popular Slowly, with a ground-crawling bassline, and both the organic original version and the cool remix are perfect, again in full jacket!

Drummer "Drummie" Joe Isaacs had already created history as the house drummer at Studio 1 in Jamaica on countless pre-reggae classics before moving to Canada in 1968 and is credited with slowing down the fast pace of ska during the rocksteady era. With Risco Connection, Isaacs released a series of choice reggae / disco covers, from 'Ain't No Stopping Us Now' and 'Good Times' to 'I'm Caught Up (In A One Night Love Affair)' and 'It's My House' as limited 12" singles on his own Black Rose imprint. "Arriving in Canada, we were one of the first set of musicians out of Jamaica coming here," explains Isaacs. "With Risco Connection, we wanted to try something new, songs that would have a crossover between disco and the rocksteady feeling and the right lyrics. We had trouble getting them well distributed widely at the time but people still picked up on the sound." 'Risco Version' brings together all of the vocal versions, dubs and extra tracks from the singles. Both formats feature an interview with Joe Isaacs and liner notes by journalist Angus Taylor. Audio is restored by Sean P and fully remastered and cut loud and proud by The Carvery.

Before Dan Klein's unfortunate passing, The Frightnrs agreed to keep a promise he asked of them - continue making music together. Part of that promise has been made manifest here... Daptone Records is proud to present ALWAYS - the raw, soulful new long player from The Frightnrs.

The road to Always began with a period of intense songwriting back when The Frightnrs and producer Victor Axelrod (Ticklah) were working on the group's debut, rocksteady masterpiece, Nothing More to Say. In addition to the scorchers heard therein, Axelrod and The Frightnrs agreed many of the recordings were too sweet to tamper with in order to fit the rocksteady mold. Some were created at their headquarters in Queens with Dan on the mic, some were elaborations on older ideas, others were brand new creations made at the finish line.

Thanks to the vocal stems they had captured in this golden period, Dan Klein's other-worldly voice lived on, giving The Frightnrs all the raw material they needed for an entire album's worth of new, original music. So with that, The Frightnrs and Axelrod returned to the studio and painstakingly conceptualized, tracked, re-tracked and mixed them into a complete album with their beloved friend singing lead. The fruits of this arduous process lay bare the undying love and respect between musical brothers.

The last song written for this album, "Why Does it Feel Like a Curse", married two song concepts with one of Dan's original vocal performances - creating a beautiful, flawless composition that not only serves as a highlight reel of their editing skills and songwriting prowess, but also as a kind of metaphor for The Frightnrs jour ney. The per fect ending f or ALWAYS.

Disco Reggae Rockers features wicked reggae disco versions of funk, soul and disco classics! This new album follows on from Soul Jazz Records" earlier highly successful "Hustle: Disco Reggae" and features reggae covers of classic songs by Earth, Wind and Fire, Michael Jackson, The Isley Brothers, Candi Staton, Curtis Mayfield and more as performed by Derrick Harriott, Devon Russell, Hortense Ellis, Glen Adams, Dave Barker and others.

David Hillyard & The Rocksteady 7 are back with their first LP since their 2018 album, The Giver. The new album, "Plague Doctor," blends the Rocksteady 7's signature sound, which combines elements of American jazz and Jamaican influences, with classic Brazilian rhythms and themes. The Rocksteady 7 features some of the best players in the current ska and reggae scene, including members of NYC ska staples The Slackers and percussionist Larry McDonald (Toots & The Maytals, Gil Scott-Heron. Lee "Scratch" Perry).