Search "airhead+wait" 122 Items

Limited to 450 copies.

Stamped White Label

A tumultuous selection of recordings from Black Ark, Perry's legendary studio and hotbed of creation. Rare 12" versions, unreleased mixes and featuring a stellar line-up, including:

Drums: Mikey ‘Boo’ Richards, Lowell ‘Sly’ Dunbar
Bass: Boris Gardiner, Radcliffe ‘Dougie’ Bryan
Guitar: Earl ‘Chinna’ Smith, Ernest Ranglin, Robert ‘Billy’ Johnson, Lynford ‘Hux’ Brown
Keyboards: Winston Wright, Robbie Lynn, Keith Sterling
Percussion: Noel ‘Scully’ Simms, Lee Perry

A quick internet search brings up some extraordinary footage of Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry producing a session at the Black Ark. Taken from the film ‘Roots, Rock, Reggae’, directed by Jeremy Marre, the sequence shows Junior Murvin collaborating with members of the Congos and the Heptones on a song improvised on the spot for the film crew. Before the vocals are recorded, the Upsetters lay down the backing track. The musical director of the session is the afro-haired bass player, Boris Gardiner; unusually, it is he who counts in the band to start each take. After a long conversation with Boris a few years back, I asked Lee about his contribution to the Black Ark sound.

Lee Perry: ‘Boris Gardiner was a good person, just a humble person, and he’s the best person I ever met in the music business so far. Boris is a very top musician, and with him you could put anything together, him do “Police And Thieves” and all that. You just tell him what you want and him can do it. A very great person.’

Boris is probably best remembered today for his huge international hit from 1986, the schmaltzy ‘I Want To Wake Up With You’. Yet in the 60s and 70s he was one of Jamaica’s top bass players and arrangers, having an international hit with ‘Elizabethan Reggae’, and creating a run of classic tunes at Studio One.

Boris Gardiner: ‘I did at least seventy or eighty songs at Studio One, all in this one short period between January and April 1968. And we used to work four days per week, and we did four rhythms per day for 30 pounds a week – it was good money. I played on songs like “Feel Like Jumping”, “Nanny Goat”, “Baby Why” by the Cables, the whole “Heptones On Top” album, and “Party Time”. Lee Perry used to be at Studio One same time as me, kind of working around, so he know me from there. So he came and roped me into the group when the Black Ark studio was in progress. He built it right there at the back of his home. So Scratch called me and asked me to come and do some sessions around his studio. I was always ahead of my time as I can see it, in the music in Jamaica. So the songs that I made you always hear chord progressions and changes. Sometimes I think it’s as if I was born in the wrong country, because I just couldn’t do a two chord tune – heheh! To me it need more than two chords to give it some excitement, like it need some changes or something.’

After years of moving between Jamaica’s competing facilities, Perry had decided to build his own studio at the back of his house in Washington Gardens.

Lee Perry: ‘The Black Ark make over a pile of shit – my pile and me put it under the Black Ark. I make the Black Ark over my shit piss, so the bass always go “Poo Poo Poo Poo”! Errol Thompson put the machines in there, and make the patch panel. So the studio was all waiting, but only me could operate it. I didn’t have the Soundcraft mixer then, I did buy a lickle thing you call a Alice mixer. We didn’t have anything professional, but the sound was in my head and I was going to get down what I hear in my head. And it’s like a toy, a toy affair, that’s the way music is. You see like when you buy a kid’s toy, well you bring a joy to them, so is that way I see music. I don’t see music like how other people see it, I see it just like a toy.’

Unusually, Lee decided to do everything himself, both producing and engineering. The film clip shows Lee fully relaxed as he simultaneously directs the musicians and adjusts his recording machines.

Boris Gardiner: ‘To me Scratch always knew what he wanted. Out of all of them Scratch was a true producer, because he would be in the studio and he would listen and say change this or I don’t like that, and he was his own engineer also, so he was always around there listening. So he knew what he wanted and how to try and get it from the start, unlike Coxsone Dodd or Duke Reid, who knew what they liked or didn’t like only after they heard it. Scratch was in there with everybody, so he is really doing a full production as a true producer.’

Lee Perry: ‘I used to do them all by myself. Anybody in my studio could sit down in the visitor’s chair and look, but me do everything – me have a chair that can move from here to there, a chair that have wheels. So I could be turning in any area or any direction, so I could have my hand over here and my hand over there. Heh heh.’

And at a time when 8 and 16 track recording had become the norm in most high end studios, Lee recorded everything to a semi-professional TEAC 4 track recorder, which he can be seen casually adjusting with a screwdriver in the film clip. He explained that since he would end up mixing down to a stereo (or two track) master, more tracks would just be a distraction.

Lee Perry: ‘It was not a professional tape recorder, I was using those TEAC 4 track set that they was trying like experiment to see what would happen. Well, I have it all set up. The first thing I’d think about, all right, is you have to mix everything back down to the 2 track stereo or 1 track mono. Then you can press it and release it. So I knew what I wanted at the end, and I balance it just like that in the studio with the instruments. Sometime when you put only four or five instrument in the studio, you have a better, cleaner record, you can hear what everybody play. And if you have maybe eight musician in the studio, it’s more like a confusion, because everybody wants to play a different thing, yunno. If you is the producer and you can tell them what you want to hear it will be better. So I can put the bass and drum together on one track because me know exactly what me need. If you don’t know, then you need more tracks so you can balance it later. So for the backing, I would just do the two tracks: the bass and drum and percussion track, that is one; and the guitar, organ and piano on another track, that is two. So you still have two more tracks if you want to do vocal, that would be three. And if you want to do horns or a harmony vocal, you can do that on the fourth track. To me it’s a waste of time, a waste of energy with a 24 track machine, waste of current and waste of money. Because it all have to come down to one or two tracks in the end.’

The early Black Ark sound was stripped down and minimal, often with only one or two musicians playing keyboard or guitar. Lee would also use extreme EQ to emphasize the bass and tops, and his hi-hat sound is instantly recognisable from the earliest days of the Ark.

Lee Perry: ‘Well, I used to have an equaliser for the bass drum, and it’s like for heaviness on the beat, and then I had another equaliser for the cymbal, to give it that “Ssshhh ssshhh”. So we have different machine to send different instrument through that they can sound different. I managed to change the vibration of the music, because the music was just local music produced by rum drinkers and cannibals. So me turn on the music to a higher range.’

Boris Gardiner: ‘I think I always use a DI box to record bass at the Black Ark. Because bass want to fade into the other instruments’ microphone, so we often plug it straight into the board and then Perry sets the EQ on the board and take it straight. Then we built a drum booth so the drums really sound separate too – it give him more control.’

As the Black Ark evolved, Lee developed a richer collage of sound, built around three primary effects: the Mu-tron Bi-Phase phaser, a spring reverb and a Roland Space Echo.

Boris Gardiner: ‘One thing about Scratch was that he always used his effects – that was his sound. He always phase the ska guitar, but you don’t always know he’s recording it like that until he play it back. So until he play it back you have no idea what it will sound like.’

Lee Perry: ‘I did have a phaser that I buy, and then when I’m in the studio, in the machine room, and phasing them, the musicians don’t hear it, what I am doing, until them come in the studio, and them hear the phasing. So we did it all live. And the musicians they won’t even know what goes on! While the musicians are playing, I am doing the phasing. I take the musician from the earth into space, and bring them back before they could realize, and put them back on the planet earth. The phaser was making things different, like giving you a vision of space and creating a different brain, a phasing brain. So that’s where I take the music out of the local system and take it into space. The Space Echo also have something to do with the brain. You send out telepathic message and it return to you, so that’s how the Roland Space Echo chamber come in – what you send comes back to you. And while you know you send the telegrams out, you are waiting for what is the reply of the telegrams coming back. So that’s why the Space Echo go and come, rewinding the brain and forward winding the brain. I was also using a spring echo chamber, but just for drum, for the clash of the drum. And everything just fit in, like the thing I want to do it just come to me and come from nowhere, and then it appear and it happen.’

Boris Gardiner: ‘He loved to do things that nobody had done before, him always try a new thing. And he was a good writer too you know. Perry bring in a drum machine sometimes and we use that on some songs for the Congos and everyone. Well I actually like playing with a drum machine cos a drum machine is always steady. Most drummers they either push forward or pull back – they call it the human touch, but I call it out of time! Hahaha. “Row Fisherman Row” was really the great hit with the Congos, but that is all real drums and percussion, it’s just that Perry makes it sound almost like a machine with his echoes on the percussion. I played on “Police and Thieves” and that was a big hit too, maybe it was Sly Dunbar on that. One day Bob Marley came to him with a song on a tape and said “boy Perry, I don’t really like the bass and drum on this song here, if you can do anything to it then just change it and see if we can get something better”. Well Perry had only 4 track tape at his studio, but this was a 24 track tape that Bob bring. So Perry called me and Mikey Boo and took us down to Joe Gibbs studio and started playing the rhythm and all that on the 24 track. So I was on bass and Mikey Boo was on drums and we listen and we listen, and then we dub it back over to make new drum and bass. Well that song became “Punky Reggae Party”, so that shows you how Bob trusted Perry.’

Lee’s other great innovation was adding layers of sound effects, sometimes live through an open mic, but often pre-recorded onto a cassette tape which he would add to the collage on mixdown. Because these effects – bells, cymbals, animal noises, dialogue from the TV – were not synched to the music, they would add a layer of randomness to the sound.

Lee Perry: ‘You know cassette? I make cassette with sound track, and all those things with cymbal licking, flashing. In my Black Ark studio if you listen the cymbal was high, like “Ssshhh ssshhh”. But I did have them all recording on cassette, and while I was running the track and it was taking the musician from the studio, I was playing the cassette to balance with the drum cymbals and things like that, so them didn’t have to play that because it was already on cassette playing. You could call that sampling. And I have this “Mooooow”, like the cow, running on the cassette, and it go onto the track that I wanted to sound like that. Somebody discover it in a toilet. You know when the toilet paper is finished, and you have the roll, and the hole that come in the middle. Well you put it to your mouth and say “Hoooooo”, and it sound like a cow. You put it to your mouth and you imitating a cow and say “Moooooo”. Heh heh heh. Yeah, sound sampling. Well somebody had to start it, and we was loving to do those things.’

Boris Gardiner: ‘Well the Black Ark did have a strong vibe, but, once everybody all there, most of those guys who smoke really like it, but those who didn’t smoke didn’t really like it, like myself. Scratch is a man who never joke fi draw him herbs, you know? Heheh. But I am not a smoker cos it’s not good for my heart. I have a heart problem called tachycardia, an irregular beat of the heart. So it could be upsetting at times when there’s so much smoking going on.’

By the late 70s the relaxed atmosphere at the Black Ark had soured, as Lee attempted to extricate himself from various outside pressures, and his behaviour became more erratic.

Lee Perry: ‘What happened I did for myself not to be working with jinx and duppy called dread. And those duppies they think that me owe them favour. I open the door, and the duppies them find that me is the door opener, and then the duppies them take shape inna me yard and inna me house, and they were a jinx. Jinx mean bad luck. So to get rid of them, me had to burn down the Black Ark studio fi get rid of jinx.’

Boris Gardiner: ‘Was Scratch crazy? Well some say now that he was just putting on an act. But I think, why did he put it on? After all the problems he was having and that sort of thing, and they were saying that he was getting off his head, and he start to act strange, well I just stopped going. I stopped working there. It wasn’t a good atmosphere – nobody could really enjoy that again. So I called it a day. It is sad after all the good work we did. But when you try to be smart and try to outsmart others, well it don’t work out for long with you. He came and did a show here in Jamaica the other day, but I didn’t really know Lee Perry as a singer. He won the Grammy not long ago, but I find it surprising that he got a Grammy as a performer not a producer. He’s been very lucky: now he is successful in a sense and some people love him cos he’s a character, and they don’t see nobody dressed like that. Hahahah!’

Speaking to Lee in February 2021, via WhatsApp to Jamaica, he sounded relaxed and positive, with more praise for Boris and optimism for the future.

Lee Perry: ‘Boris Gardiner was very good, very great in the brain. He really intelligent in music, and me and him work miracle together! And remember that there was no end to the Black Ark, the Black Ark will be coming back. The Black Ark keep on living and cannot die.’

One of the two new 7" from All Nations Records coming early 2022 is a rework of a legendary tune that all reggae fans know. “I Know Myself” from Ernest Wilson has been a regular play by all champion sounds from Sir Cosxone to Jah Shaka and alikes since late 70’s. Never would be the intention to do better, but All Nations Records likes to do his thing a little bit different, so Simon Nyabinghi has rebuilt the tune entirely in his studio in 2022 style. With a clever recipe of carefully picked sounds and a grooving way of playing, it has the original vibes with a bouncing twist that should suit to all original fans and beyond. All in all, a great humble tribute to a legendary artist sadly gone to zion earlier in 2021.

“Tubby did three original dub albums, ‘Dub From The Roots’. ‘The Roots of Dub’ and the third is ‘Brass Rockers’ with Tommy McCook ‘pon the flying cymbals. Where he mixed it with the horn going in and out in a dub way and one named ‘Shalom Dub’ you can call Tubby’s too because he mixed the versions as they were off forty fives’’ Bunny ‘Striker‘ Lee

King Tubby and Producer Bunny ‘Striker’ Lee are intertwined in the birth of Dub Music. After discovering a mistake that made a ‘serious joke’ ( more of which later...) they went on to release the first pressings of this new musical genre namely ‘Dub Music’. Tubby’s vast knowledge of electronics and Bunny’s vast catalogue of rhythms would lay the foundations of what today is taken as a standard... the Remix / Version cuts to an existing vocal tune.

Osbourne ‘King Tubby’ Ruddock was born in Kingston, Jamaica on 28th January 1941 and grew up in the High Holborn Street area of downtown Kingston. He studied electronics at Kingston’s National Technical College and also on two correspondence courses from the U.S.A... When he had qualified Tubby began repairing radios and other electrical appliances in a shack in the back yard of his mother’s home. His work in the early days included winding transformers and building amplifiers for Kingston’s Sound Systems. Tubby built his first Sound System in 1957 playing jazz and Rhythm & Blues at local weddings and birthday parties. His reputation as a man who knew and understood both electronics and music grew steadily and as the sixties drew to a close. Tubby purchased his own basic two track equipment. He installed this alongside his dub cutting machine, a home made mixing console and his impressive collection of Jazz albums in the back bedroom of his home at 18 Dromilly Avenue which he christened his music room.

Double sided killer Wackie's from 1978 - Both sides fully smoked out dubwise trademark Wackie's style, essential.

Originally released on the Jumbo Caribbean Disco label from Brooklyn. "Big Leg Mary" is on the same rhythm as Wayne Jarrett's killer "Come Let's Go" (same rhythm as Dkr-125 ). Wasn't It You is a different cut from the earlier one on the Senrab label (a different cut of DKR 132), but equally as killer.

Channel One production from 1979, conscious roots and dubs for these times.

Wade "Jimmy" Dyce was an original member of Cultural Roots. He was a vocalist and played a key role in shaping the sound of the group. Cultural Roots emerged as a four-part harmony group for producer Donovan Germain in the late 1970s, releasing « Revolutionary Sounds » and « Mr Bossman » which counts among ‘Jah Shaka's favourite tunes’. Then they released « Hell A Go Pop », one of the Greensleeves label’s lesser-known classics. In the early 80's, Wade Dyce produced alone three songs at Chris Stanley's famous Music Mountain studio. Wade Dayce surrounds himself with the best musicians of the time, namely the Revolutionaries, but does not remember the exact formation apart from Sly Dunbar on drums and Bongo Herman on percussion. « Humble », « Money Mare » and « Hide & Seek » are three forgotten songs that can be described as killer roots from the middle of the 80s and which you can (re)discover again through this reissue on the original Moving On label. For this release, Jamwax worked with Parade Studio for this original and unique Disco 45 cover graphic creation. Today, Wade, now sixty-seven years old, is living in Salem, Massachusetts, where he graduated in 2010 as a mental-health specialist. Long live to the Cultural Roots !

Earlando Arrington Neil became Early B on the Jamaican sound system scene, working his way through Soul Imperial, King Majesty and other sets before coming to prominence in the early 1980s on Kilimajaro, where he became known as ‘The Doctor’ for unleashing his lyrical cures on the mic. Recording for various producers from 1981, Early B reached another level upon linking with deejay-turned-producer Jah Thomas in 1984, the humorous hit ‘Sunday Dish’ leading to this explosive LP of the same name, an enduring classic of early dancehall that also features the equally hilarious ‘Learn Fi Drive.’ All killer, no filler!

A smooth Reggae version of the Randy Newman classic, most famously covered by Nina Simone, that was originally released in 1985. Licensed from producer and bona fide reggae legend Errol Dunkley, this version features killer horns and soulful vocals from Judy & Lynda. Backed with 'Heavenly Day'.

A 140 gram pressing in 3mm spine black disco sleeve with sticker and labels designed by Bradley Pinkerton.

1 december 1944, Thiaroye military camp, right outside of Dakar, Senegal. 1600 French soldiers of West African origin (Benin, Mali, Ivory Coast, Tchad, Senegal , Gabon, Togo etc.) have been quickly evacuated by the French Army during what was subsequentially called the ‘whitening of the colonial troops’ that happened before the armistice signature. The soldiers are awaiting to be paid for their war effort. Things go sideways, protests erupt, and the French military staff decides to open fire. The official number of casualties is 35, although various sources claim several hundred people died on that fatal day. Since then, several artists have grasped that difficult topic, screaming for recognition and reparation. Such is the case with a young Senegalese musician and singer named Maxidilick Adioa, with his very first single ever released, ‘Toubab Bile’, in 1987. At that time, Adioa had been living in France for a few years. He was considered a master percussionist, playing, recording and touring alongside the great Ivorian artist Alpha Blondy. He had just written a beautiful tune, ‘Nao’, for Aminata Fall, one of the biggest actress and singers in Senegal. It seemed like a good time to launch his solo career. Toubab Bilé remains Adioa’s biggest hit to this day, and one of the best African reggae tune ever recorded. Adioa ended up signing an album deal with Chris Blackwell’s Island records and toured the world endlessly during the following years. In 2012, François Hollande was the first French President to officially mention and pay tribute to the Thiaroye massacre in a speech.

"Late Night Attack come catch the Late Night Attack!" Good things come to those who wait. We're thrilled to finally unveil the latest reissue in our Harry J grail series, a long-anticipated release "Late Night Attack." This 1987 gem shares the same rhythm as "Jam The Calypso," a reissue from a couple of years ago. Vicious Irie, also known as Sedley Downer, delivers an absolute fire performance, spitting lyrics over this fast-paced Harry J digi riddim.

One of the most popular and high profile of Jamaican reggae vocalists, Gregory Isaacs was a rough diamond who clawed his way out of the harsh western Kingston ghetto with an instantly recognisable voice that was wonderfully emotive, expressing both his toughness and determination for betterment, as well as the bleeding heart of a vulnerable lover. New Dance is one of the excellent mid-1990s dancehall albums expertly produced by Anthony Dehaney, alias Bunny Gemini, working as usual with the Firehouse Crew, this time with Fatman Thompson of King Tubby’s studio at the mixing desk and guitarist Lascelles Beckford of the Gifted Roots band as special guest. As usual, Gregory rides the rhythms with considerable aplomb, feeling completely natural atop the hard-edged rhythms and tackling a range of topics along the way. Much of the album deals with love lost, love gained, and love deferred; ‘Say A Special Prayer’ revamps the evergreen ‘Send Me The Pillow That You Dream On’ and ‘New Dance’ salutes the allure of dancehall music in the open air. This is one of Mr Isaacs’ better offerings from the mid-1990s, worth getting to know if you’re not already familiar with it, and a must-have if you’ve worn out your original copy.

Reissued in a fine style, the ultra-classic 80s thriller ‘There You Go’ by Johnny Lee on the original Fat Bwoy imprint. This long time and in-demand gem is distributed through TRS Records by popular request. The people have spoken. Sweet vocals on this heavy and bold ‘Declaration Of Rights’ riddim, perfect combination and class.

"Double releases are a tradition in the house of Krachladen Records, the home of the new Sublabel Krachladen DUB. The 12" split EP „Dub Rosin Vol. 01“ will be released at the same time with 4x 7“ vinyl release „normal dub“ from a rocket in dub. The Dub Rosin EP opens a series of split EPs and compilations, which are reserved exclusively for DUB musicians and will be released 2-4 times a year at irregular intervals. On Dub Rosin Vol. 01, A and B side will be shared by the Düsseldorf IDM masters Graph with two and a rocket in dub with three previously unreleased tracks. For 15 years the Düsseldorf IDM duo Graph (Stefan Jürke & Jens Beyer) has been engaged in the search for sounds beyond trends within electronic music. They experiment with sound and rhythmic structures that are constructed and deconstructed with the help of digital and analog tools. They constantly contrast the precision of digital music tools with improvised textures, surfaces and "beats", thus creating extraordinary and always danceable soundscapes. For Dub Rosin Vol. 01, Graph have provided two brutal but at the same time very peaceful and atmospheric tracks in which they experiment with Dub elements in a refreshing way and remain true to themselves despite all innovations. Deep and deepest subbasses fly around your ears, embedded in a trippy and organic soundspace. The three tracks of "a rocket in dub" form a kind of bridge between the old and the new tracks (if music could talk, italic 32 vers. normal dub, KLD 001). Themes and harmonic schemes of the old tracks are reworked to versions, provided with new drums and percussion and thus updated. The tempo is a bit slower, but the hypnotic effect of repetition is still the main focus. The third short track was created as a friendly homage to Düsseldorf (for F.S.), a hint of a theme."

reissue, misprint

Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare or Sly and Robbie as they are affectionately known are the drum and bass backbone of Reggae Music, they have played on, produced, invented, reinvented more records then many of their contemporaries put together.

Sly Dunbar born Lowell Charles Dunbar on 10 May 1952, Kingston, Jamaica, drummed his first session for Mr Lee Perry which included a Jamaican hit ,a track called 'Night Doctor', before moving on to the group Skin, Flesh & Bones who had a residency at Kingston's famous 'Tit for Tat' club. This band would evolve into the Channel One house band The Revolutionaries where Sly named after his fondness of the band Sly and the Family Stone would begin to play alongside a bass player who would become his long standing partner in music, namely one Robbie Shakespeare.

Robbie Shakespeare born 27 September 1953, Kingston, Jamaica, had worked his way through session bands including the legendary Aggrovators before uniting with Sly Dunbar in The Revolutionaries. Both musicians had worked with other respective bass / drum players including such figures as Lloyd Parks [bass], Carlton 'Santa' Davis [drums], but everything seemed to fall into place when they worked together.

They also both had a quest to push the boundaries of reggae music, which they would do throughout their careers, over many sessions to numerous to mention. But highlights would include the groundbreaking Mighty Diamonds 1976 set 'Right Time' with its fresh rockers rhythms which lead the way in the 1970's. Also their work with the bands Culture and Black Uhuru the later of which they toured extensively with, spreading the reggae vibes across Europe and America. Not to forget to mention their Taxi label / productions which are always inventitive whether its in the reggae field or outside where their playing / production skills are much in demand.

The third piece of this jigsaw is the mighty Mr Bunny 'Striker' Lee who brought these legends together. Born Edward O'Sullivan Lee 23 August 1941, he must be one of reggae's most underrated producers. Leading the way in the 1970's especially in the dub field and being one of the early exponents of a King Tubby remix ,which would see nearly all his 7'' releases carrying a Tubby reworking on its flip side. Bunny started his musical career in 1962 working for Duke Reid's Treasure Isle label and soon moved into the world of production gaining his first hit in 1967 with 'Musical Field' by Roy Shirley for the WIRL label. The 1970's was a very productive time for Bunny Lee and saw the launch of his LEE'S label which was producing hits in Jamaica. Not having a studio of his own and renting studio time from the existing establishments like Randy's Studio 17 and Channel One he had to have a crack team of session players to carry out this task, fast and efficiently. This happened firstly under the guise of THE AGGROVATORS [ see The Aggrovators dubbing it studio 1 style JRCD005] and then with the group of musicians THE REVOLUTIONARIES[ see The Revolutionaries at Channel 1 dub plate specials JRCDOO3]. It’s here in the latter of these groups that Bunny matched Sly and Robbie together for the first time and it’s this match made in heaven that these tracks on this release are culled from. Sessions that Bunny Lee produced with Sly and Robbie during this magical 70's period. These rare dubs are taken from the original master tapes, you may have heard the tune before but not these versions. So sit back and enjoy Reggae Musical History in the making....

Heavyweight soul providers Fat Freddy’s Drop are about to take flight once again with the worldwide release of new album Blackbird!

Heavyweight soul providers Fat Freddy’s Drop are about to take flight once again with the worldwide release of new album Blackbird!

Alter Echo & E3 return for their third chapter on ZamZam with a dark, low-slung steppers featuring the one Rider Shafique of Bristol’s esoteric Young Echo crew. AEE3’s first collaboration with a vocalist, “Heights” provides a rockstone riddim for Rider to step forward with a powerful lyric, a declaration of principles and intention to trod outta Babylon, tearing off mental chains along the way with total focus on the destiny of liberation for those with the will to persevere. Rider’s presence transforms every track he graces into pure message music, as heard in recent months on collaborations with Gorgon Sound, Ishan Sound, Gantz and more.

"Heights" rocks with swirling atmospheres and pointillist detail, powerfully psychedelic dubbing at once organic and metallic, always with fundamental dub principles anchoring and propelling forward, ever forward. The version “The Sound Tonight” strips the vocal out completely, using that space to push the kick, bass and ricocheting snares further forward with extra dub flourishes, mirages, and sample grinding.

You should listen to the beauty of the Prince Buster All Stars’ Bongo-led horns version of all times Abyssinians classic “Sata Masa Gana” also known as the praise to god. The Earth Sound Records exclusive remastered reissue comes loaded with a Cool Operator drums & bass cut. This single sided 45 rpm 10-inch is pressed on red vinyl.

Emotional Rescue looks back again with a 2022 repress, digging deep in to the early 80s Bristol post punk scene of Pig Pag, the Wild Bunch and the Dug Out club. A short lived project of just 3 releases, Mouth trail-blazed leftfield percussive jams in the rich vain of Liquid Liquid and ESG but in their own jazz-infused way. Centered round the cultural melting post of the St Paul's district, it's pubs, clubs and blues parties threw together young and old to the sounds of dub, funk, jazz and soul and took the spark lit by punk rock and new wave and spawned music that still resonates today. Consisting of a floating line up based around main members Andy Guy and Rob Merrill, alumina included a young Nellie Hooper before he would go on to be a founding member of the Wild Bunch and on to produce the likes of Bjork, U2 and Madonna. Based around a hard tribal drumming, mixing guitar, trumpet, shouted vocals and effects, the thrown in the mix nature was inspired as much by avant-jazz than punk's do it yourself attitude. Here then, on one EP are their complete recordings, including as the title cut, their best and deepest, Voyage To The Bottom Of The Sea. Featured on a compilation LP from the legendary Y Records, its bottom heavy dub sound is augmented by female and toasted vocals riding a top a heavy stepper style riddim. This is followed by an increasingly dizzy array of percussion jams. Acab Part 2) is all skips and trumpets, while the versions of Take Your Coat Off perfect skat vocal / tom interplay, before the finale busts out the rockabilly influences in full effect with jagged guitar, skipping hats meets double bass punk style.

This special record sees Mad Professor delving into his archives and pulling out 9 previously unheard and unreleased tracks spanning the period from 1980-2015. Beginning with a track recorded in his front room studio at Bruce Road, and finishing with an unused from the Black Ark sessions from the 2015 tribute to Lee Perry, the album is a journey in the sound of Dub. A few of the tracks feature legendary rhythm section, Sly and Robbie. This limited edition of just 600 pressings from the legendary Mad Professor is a must for any Dub fan.

Earth Sound Records is shaking the place with two rare cuts of Prince Buster & The All Stars classic hits.

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

The 100th release on Pressure Sounds is the brilliant set of I Mo Jah's ‘Rockers from the Land of Reggae’ and ‘Words in Dub’, as two single vinyl releases, and a double cd. It's surprising that these two albums have not been re-released before, as both albums are seriously sought after. There will be 3 bonus tracks on each of the CDs. The albums come with full sleevenotes with excellent sound quality. The CD pack includes a full package with graphics and the usual high quality annotation and mastering. _____ . ______
Notes for the two albums:

A contemporary of Ras Michael & the Sons of Negus, Eric Donaldson and Freddie McKay, Philip Fullwood started out composing for Studio One and playing percussion for Burning Spear.

Both "Rockers from the Land of Reggae" and "Words in Dub" were backed by Sly & Robbie, Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace, Clive "Azul" Hunt, Bingy Bunny and Flabba Holt, among others.

The striking sleeve of "Rockers...", in black and white with green handwritten typography, told the story of Jamaica, with Arawaks overseeing the arrival of Christopher Columbus’ ship Santa Maria, whilst between two sound systems the dreads were dancing and smoking a spliff under a tree. The art was drawn by Magnus Johnstone, a painter and deejay who presented the radio show ‘Reggae Mukasa’ on WMBR, and would later become the foremost champion of the burgeoning hip hop scene in Boston.

“When I made "Rockers from the Land of Reggae" I was taking about 500 to Jamaica and I was told I had to have a license to go through the customs. I got fed up and I just leave the album with them. They wanted me to get a license and all them things, and I said ‘Why I want a license to bring my own thing to Jamaica?’. They said no, so I leave them at customs. I don’t know what happened to them. Maybe they sell them. And that was the end of it. I give the rest of them to Chin Randy’s in Jamaica Queens to distribute.”

And so "Rockers from the Land of Reggae" soon vanished into obscurity. By 1983 Phillip Fullwood had settled permanently in the US and virtually retired from music. Over the years, partly fuelled by its extreme rarity, the album’s reputation has grown immensely, and original copies now command a very high price. Phillip is thrilled that this reissue will now expose it to a wider audience.
“Life happen that way. I got kids and grandkids. I’m just a small guy who was with Spear and just tried to do my thing, like everybody else in the entertainment biz. My occupation, my passport you know says entertainer. Wishing a t’ing, yunno.”

"Words in Dub", the highly unique set, released in a stark hand-printed sleeve, comprised self-produced rhythm tracks and some donated by friends, such as ‘Africa Rock’, a dub of ‘See Dem Da’ (Jah Marcus Roots 7”) by Burning Spear, with member Rupert Wellington on lead vocals. The first side also featured dubs of Purple Lights’ ‘Pestilence’, fronted by the singer Bangie, and ‘Revolution’ by Jah Blue & The Originals, who included Winston Rodney’s brother. ‘Reorganize The Race (Marcus Say)’, with its dense layers of digital reverb in the intro, later features singing about ‘weeping and wailing’ also by Jah Blue & The Originals, though the vocal cut was never released. Several rhythms would later get a do-over by Phillip’s American-based group I-Mo-Jah, perhaps the most thrilling being ‘Jah Say Love’, rerecorded by I-Mo-Jah as ‘Peace & Love’. ‘Hotter Fire In Babylon’ is a dub of Burning Spear’s ‘Spear Burning’ (Spear 7”), and the album closes with ‘Bubbling’, a dub of ‘Maybe’ (Yah Congo 12”) recorded by Phillip’s long-time friend Eric Donaldson.

The original recordings were primarily laid at Channel One with Barnabas and Crucial Bunny at the mixing board, with ‘Hotter Fire In Babylon’ recorded at Randy’s by Chin Randy himself, and ‘Bubbling’ at Dynamic Studio. The final dub mixes were done at Channel One and also at the legendary Black Ark by Phillip Fullwood’s own hands.

A one-off limited pressing from her forthcoming album. Sensational singer, Leba, daughter of reggae pioneer Toots Hibbert, highlights her vocal prowess & charm, on her first release for 2018 - a cover version of the Bob Marley classic.

Backed by the Taxi Gang Band, recorded and mixed at Channel One Recording Studios, Kingston Jamaica. Produced and arranged by Sly Dunbar & Robbie Shakespeare.

The album was originally released in Nigeria by Tabansi Records and recorded at Afrodisia/Decca studio in Lagos. The Lp never really saw a commerical issue and was probably pressed in very few promotional copies for Radios and Djs making the original nearly impossible to be found nowdays.
Musically it comes with some dope , slow and one-a-way digital roots riddims filled with mad synths , deep conscious lyrics and a deep bassline, it's quite unique as the two main track comes with a raw Dub which is very hard to be found on any other African Reggae albums , the last track call “If I'm To Rule The World” is a very interesting blend of Reggae and Boogie.
We have been working together with the lead singer of the band , Sharon Escco Wilson that we met personally in Lagos, to finally make the album available worldwide.
The cover have been fully restored and the Audio remastered , in the LP we'll add an insert with Lyrics , original pictures from back in the days (and a few new ones) , a newspaper article from 1990 and an extensive interview by Sharon Escco Wilson.

This is the first release on All Nation Records new label, courtesy of French producer Simon Nyabinghi.
With all instruments and mix done in his freshly rebuilt studio, Simon delivers a proper roots and dub riddim that has already done the rounds as dubplate magic around the globe prior to its official release. With the help of young and upcoming talent Youthie on trumpet duties, this uplifting track will rock any sessions as well as your living room, especially when followed by the wild dub mix you’ll find on the flip of this record.

After Moon Invaders split in 2014, Nico, former drummer and Pierre, former guitarist reconnected during a Slackers' gig in Belgium. They agreed that the Pum Pum Hotel Studio would be the perfect place to experiment a new dub project so they scheduled a date to meet there and give it a try. Just few minutes after entering the studio, the record key was pressed and the first tracks’ recording of Dub Rocketry was on the way. Nico playing drums with Pierre playing bass first and next Nico adding keyboard, melodica, percussions and Pierre adding the guitars. They were joined later by David Loos and Rolf Langsjoen, previously saxophonist and trumpetist of Moon Invaders. It took one year to record the 12 tracks and finish the dub mix using analog tapes machines, vintage effects and vintage instruments. With the help of Chuck Wren, "Dub Rocketry" first LP came out in 2016 on Jump Up Records the famous label from Chicago. They had so much fun doing this first album that they decided to renew the experiment and launched the "FireCrackers" recordings one year later, right on time for the Badasonic Records label creation. "FireCrackers" second LP comes out in February 2020.

Time for the 5th Dig This Way Records singles release. One of those releases we are very proud of! Since the beginning of our Dtw adventure we have been working together with Greg Jata Illustrator who designed our logo and made some graphic works for us till to discover around a year ago, he also plays in a roots group: The Royal Horses! As a natural progression of our friendship and working cooperation we decided to try finalize together a couple of riddims they had ready! In the meantime, since around 2005/2006 we've been big fans of Keathus I Jah Dynasty (Milton Samuels) music, Red Hot have always been an hit in our selection. Since a few years we have gladly seen him joining the reggae community on Facebook , bringing on his own productions , sharing his love for Africa , Ethiopia and Rastafari...so we thought could have been a great idea to have him singing on a riddim we got from Greg....a dream coming true to be able work together with a veteran artist involved in some of the best tracks that ever came out of Jamaica. So it was, Keithus I is a nice & easy person, a Talented singer with a deep sensibility to this music and the lyrics and interpretation for the riddim we got from him...it's just perfect! We had the track finalized by Ian Prince Jamo Campbell who worked to Backing vocals and Roberto Sánchez at Lone Ark studios who took the whole raw idea and carved it to perfection on what you will hear impressed on the Dtws005 plastic! We still have a 2nd riddim by Royal Horses ,it's as good as this...and we are working to something special , so hold on! Much more to come out of Dtw stables!

Stix Records proudly presents Push Push by Taggy Matcher (aka Bruno « Patchworks » Hovart), back with upraising singer LMK, with a strong message to all the street stalkers harassing women! After the success of “My Man”, from Singasong album in 2014, every visit from LMK at Taggy Matcher’s studio is the occasion to embrace their shared love for vintage “Rub A Dub”, a genre that she champions. “Push Push” is an assumed tribute to the early digital productions of King Jammy, one of the best references when it comes to marry Lo-Fi & strongness. LMK sings with conviction a clear message to all the stalkers: “Push Push / Get Out Of My Way”… the message is quite clear! On B side, you’ll find the instrumental version for all DJ’s & MC’s ready to blast through their soundsystems.

In the last months we had the pleasure to open a connection with Eeyun Purkins, he helped us to mix some Abeng riddims and sent us some riddims to work with. February/March/April /May , the "lockdown months" have been very active and "Moonlight Runner" is one of the results of the collaboration we created during that period , Ian ‘Upsettah’ Burgess , Eeyun Purkins & Abeng worked independently on it so it's for us a pleasure to publish this music on our Dig This Way Records! We hope you enjoy this moody roots music... In the next months we will press more chunes born from this Roots-Heads meeting!

Fat Freddy's Drop present the ‘lock-in’ album, a sonic moment in time as the band jam conscious songs of freedom and hope for a generation. The studio session was captured at the iconic Michael Fowler Centre in the band’s hometown of Wellington, New Zealand during the pandemic lockdown. Devoid of audience, it’s a reflection of the surreal times that’s halted tour life 2020. The band re-located their Bays studio to the MFC and set up in a circle on the MFC stage for the recording, providing a unique space to jam slow burn classics such as ‘Soldier’, ‘Hope’ and ‘This Room’ as well as test drive ‘Avengers’ a brand new track in the making. The other tracks recorded are 'Special Edition', ‘Six-Eight', ‘OneFourteen’ and 'Trickle Down’ from ‘Special Edition Part 1’ the band’s most recent album. The crisp multi-track production was recorded by Western Audio, monster mix back at Bays studio by DJ Fitchie, Freddys beat master and producer. Mastering at Calyx studio in Berlin. The ‘lock-in’ session melds Freddys fastidious studio chops and love of freewheeling jams with a tautness that comes from 21 years in the business and a reputation as one of the finest live draws in the world.

Known by reggae fans worldwide as an original sound system toaster, Micah Williams professionally known as Mr Williamz is a Reggae/Dancehall artist born in London before being moved to Jamaica by his father aged six. By age ten, he was already MC’ing and winning local competitions – such was the culture in Jamaica. At 15, he returned ‘home’ to London ready to take on the world. With single releases on both Necessary Mayhem and Greensleeves Records, Williamz authentic sound is heavily inspired by the Dancehall style of the 80s/90s and truly channels the sound of Jamaica through a familiar London lens. In demand as an artist, he appears features on tracks from Major Lazer, Shy FX, Mungos Hi-Fi, and Green Lion Crew to name but a few. He has also recorded and performed globally with the lines of Chronixx, Damian Marley, Hollow Point, Gappy Ranks and more. Despite all the features, Williamz has kept fans waiting for his debut album… but they need wait more as ‘2021’ brings about the release of ‘Soundkiller Mindset’ and ahead of that a super ltd double A-side.

This is the first volume of the HOT Sauce compilation LPs dedicated to the Trojan related UK labels between 1965 and 1975. The initial plan is for at least 3 albums of 14 titles. HOT Sauce Volume 1 features Rocksteady, Boss Reggae, early Dub & early Reggae outstanding original Jamaican tracks including rare songs, overlooked gems, hidden treasures and some hits. The record labels showcased on the first volume are Attack, Amalgamated, Black Swan, Blue Cat, Downtown, Doctor Bird, Duke, Grape, High Note, Randy’s and Trojan. The tracks here have been selected according to their musical interest firstly, their rarity, and their complementarity. These tracks are all outstanding tracks, “killer tracks”, there are no “fillers” whatsoever. Particular attention has been paid to the way the songs are sequenced (or “mixed”) so that the album builds up nicely and gradually, generally starting with the Rocksteady songs on the A side and the 70s songs on the B side. HOT Sauce is a musical journey across the early Reggae UK labels and across different Jamaican musical genres & talents and the way they interact together. Since the early 70s “Tighten Up” series, no compilation have really explored these labels in depth on vinyl…