Bulldog and Jackhammer Present: Your Introduction To Reggae

SATCHMO · 07-01-2009, 04:34 PM

What happened to the last 4 dancehall entries? If I don't see Capleton's Reign of Fire on here I might just die.

Bulldog · 07-01-2009, 05:00 PM

I'll be getting the ball rolling again in the next few days by posting another couple of albums. It's just that me and Jackhammer have had busy weeks, so it's not that we're gonna leave this thread to rust or anything.

As for Capleton, you'll see

jackhammer · 07-06-2009, 06:04 AM

Richie Spice- Di Plane Land (Unofficial Compilation 2000+)

Richie Spice straddles the Dancehall scene with elements of Pure Roots and Lover's rock evident amongst his distinctive vocal style. Beginning virtually every song 'Na Na Na Na Hey' his music is pure sunshine on a rainy day. his lyrics have a lot more range than many similar artists and he can be as politically charged as he can be weetly romantic.

He may not be a name that many are familiar with yet his reputation is ever growing and he has so far resisted the urge to dilute his sound for commercial gain.

Just one review with my final two on the way this week.

Bulldog · 07-06-2009, 06:21 AM

I remember that guy! Pretty sure I've got that album on CD somewhere - must remember to have a dig around for it a bit later.

I'll get my last pick for this list up a bit later. If anyone's wondering yes, there'll be another mixtape after we've done this section

Gavin B. · 07-06-2009, 08:46 PM

He looks a lot like Mutabaruka. (see picture below)

A local man in Jamaica once told me, " This is an island and everybody is related, mon.

Bulldog · 07-07-2009, 04:09 AM

Dennis Brown - Stagecoach Showcase (1982)

Dennis Brown was another oddity of the dancehall era of reggae in the 80s, given that he was another one of the few who began his career as a singer and not as a dancehall DJ. Having recorded many hits, including the UK top 20-busting Money In My Pocket in 1979, Brown became a superstar in Jamaica and had the honour of being included on Trojan Records' Jamaican Superstars album along with the likes of Gregory Isaacs and John Holt (which was released in 1998; the year before Brown's death from a collapsed lung).

For me, his 1982 release here ranks as his finest achievement, which not only is littered with prime-time lover's rock lyrics, but the pulsating basslines are very typical of dancehall and, interestingly, in a lot of places we hear some very dub-esque percussive reverb, all of which makes for a fascinating, three-pronged assault of a reggae album. So, in essence, you're looking at a classic in those three sub-genres of reggae.

jackhammer · 07-09-2009, 08:12 AM

Turbulence-Do Good (2007)

Despite the terrible cover that seems to have been knocked up cheap PC software the music within is much more palatable. Turbulence (Sheldon Campbell) is a highly prolific artist who proved his worth in 2003 whilst teaming up with German producer brotherman. A return to Brotherman producing after a couple of lacklustre efforts gave us Do Good. A hotpotch of one drop, nambo horns and calypso influenced tracks. Turbulence seems to be taking a much more relaxed vibe on here with 'Bright Eyes' and 'Pursue' big stand outs.

Although not strictly a Dancehall/Lover's Rock album per se, it's gentle rhythms, soul tinged vocals and gentle horn work earns it a worthy place.

Wayne Smith/Prince Jammy-Sleng Teng/Computerised Dub (1986)

Despite the title, this double album is a perfect example of the electronic beats that fused with Reggae that contributed to the Dancehall vibe.

Wayne Smith's sleng teng is an infectious mix of electronic beats providing the music with various styles with the lovers rock of 'Hard To Believe' and the bass heavy skank 'Sleng Teng' providing an album not easy to pigeonhole and also one that some Reggae purists not liking due to the Electronic work.

Prince Jammy's 2nd half is Dub dominated but again the use of Electronic's sounding like a casio keyboard going haywire, the music is still dancehall friendly and not like the bass heavy, reverb usually associated with Dub. A dated album for sure but enormous fun.

Gavin B. · 07-09-2009, 10:09 PM

The rise of King Jammy's sleng teng riddim ended the 12 year rule of the one drop riddim in the dancehalls with the digital (or digi) riddim. Reggae mutated into another subgenre under the amophous umbrella of "worldbeat" music which blended elements of hip hop,international, socca, reggae and even synth pop.

Digi riddims refer to riddims created around the time that Jamaican producers began to use the drum machine and the ubiquitous Casio synthesizer. Three major digi riddims, sleng teng, ragga (or raggamuffin) and raggaeton began to displace Carelton Barrett's organic one drop to the snare riddim he developed with the Upsetters.

Producers, instead of performers, became front and center with the rise of digi riddims and skilled musicians playing old school roots reggae became irrelavant to both the production of and the performance of music.

I don't like the post reggae era (from 1986 and beyond) any more than I like post rock and roll era. Nearly all of the real authenic roots genres of popular music have devolved into digitalized parodies of the real thing. Even electronica and dub music have become subgenres of "dance music" in the music marketing nomenclature.

Bulldog · 07-13-2009, 08:43 AM

Dub

The idea of dub as a form of musical expression can be traced back to the studio antics of reggae producers Osbourne 'King Tubby' Ruddock and Lee 'Scratch' Perry in the late 60s and early 70s. This basically entailed remixing already-existing and complete songs to make up B-side material for the artist in question. The consequent dub mix would usually involve the removal of any vocal tracks in order to put an emphasis on bass frequencies and drum tracks, or the 'riddim', mostly by turning up the echo or reverb on them and overdubbing snippets of lyrics and/or guitar or brass from the original mix of the track.

Basically, dub music started out as an early form of remixing by deleting any existing vocal tracks and manipulating the riddim in those ways. This use of the mixing desk as an instrument in itself can easily be seen as a prelude to the electronic dance music which would blossom in future generations, as on top of this rhythm-centric backbone producers could overdub all kinds of sound affects to create a more vivid sonic picture - bird noises, water flowing, thunder striking and so forth. All this still gave room for sound system DJs to rap over a sparse musical backdrop with improvised, heavily-rhymed lyrics (in reggae terms as opposed to hip-hop, the DJ would take over the vocals, while the Selector would be in charge of the vinyls). Lest we forget, in the early days, the main purpose of a lot of Jamaican reggae was to be played at sound systems (aka dancehalls).

So what you're looking at with classic dub was the earliest form of big-shot producers creating instrumental remixes of singles not only to make up for B-side material but also to put to good use in dancehalls as individual pieces of music in their own right. Upon the music industry recognising the market there was for dub music, this would lead to the first dub albums being recorded in the early 70s.

Over the next few posts you'll find out about ten of the essential albums to represent one of the most important revolutions in all music history. I'll be getting started with a couple of picks of my own shortly. So, stay tuned!

Bulldog · 07-13-2009, 10:22 AM

King Tubby - Crucial Dub (anthology, 2000)

Basically, the review's in the compilation's title. This is, as the said title suggests, crucial dub. For a start, as I mentioned in the above introductory rant, King Tubby was one of the pioneering producers of the genre. The 22 tracks which make up this anthology, while not containing samples from all areas of the man's work behind the mixing desk, do contain some essential examples of dub at its most spaced-out, laid back and riddim-heavy. The CD contains the works of folks such as Bunny Lee, Fatman and Phil Pratt, which alone makes for a fairly diverse mix of sounds all revamped by King Tubby in the archetypal dub style. This was the first dub CD I ever came across, and I couldn't have chosen a better one to get me started on the genre. Highly recommended.

Augustus Pablo - East Of the River Nile (1977)

Augustus Pablo here is another one of the early names in the music industry which is basically synonymous with dub. Pablo was basically canonised within the culture of reggae for his use of the melodica - a mouth organ of European origin (which you can see him having fun with on the sleeve cover there) - in his music. The way it seamlessly fits into the sonic picture gave this album iconic status and would influence countless acts to follow. That and the fact it was recorded in Lee Perry's legendary Black Ark Studio, mixed by the aforementioned King Tubby and had its riddims provided by the legend known as Robbie Shakespeare does a lot to give this album the reputation it has. This here is one of the universally-accepted classics of dub and therefore an absolute must given the fascinating dimensions the piercing notes of Pablo's melodica adds to proceedings.

07-06-2009, 06:04 AM	#43 (permalink)
jackhammer Ba and Be. Join Date: May 2007 Location: This Is England Posts: 17,331	Richie Spice- Di Plane Land (Unofficial Compilation 2000+) Richie Spice straddles the Dancehall scene with elements of Pure Roots and Lover's rock evident amongst his distinctive vocal style. Beginning virtually every song 'Na Na Na Na Hey' his music is pure sunshine on a rainy day. his lyrics have a lot more range than many similar artists and he can be as politically charged as he can be weetly romantic. He may not be a name that many are familiar with yet his reputation is ever growing and he has so far resisted the urge to dilute his sound for commercial gain. Just one review with my final two on the way this week. __________________ It be my music and film collection. “A cynic by experience, a romantic by inclination and now a hero by necessity.”

07-06-2009, 08:46 PM	#45 (permalink)
Gavin B. Model Worker Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,248	He looks a lot like Mutabaruka. (see picture below) A local man in Jamaica once told me, " This is an island and everybody is related, mon. __________________ There are two types of music: the first type is the blues and the second type is all the other stuff. Townes Van Zandt

07-09-2009, 08:12 AM	#47 (permalink)
jackhammer Ba and Be. Join Date: May 2007 Location: This Is England Posts: 17,331	Turbulence-Do Good (2007) Despite the terrible cover that seems to have been knocked up cheap PC software the music within is much more palatable. Turbulence (Sheldon Campbell) is a highly prolific artist who proved his worth in 2003 whilst teaming up with German producer brotherman. A return to Brotherman producing after a couple of lacklustre efforts gave us Do Good. A hotpotch of one drop, nambo horns and calypso influenced tracks. Turbulence seems to be taking a much more relaxed vibe on here with 'Bright Eyes' and 'Pursue' big stand outs. Although not strictly a Dancehall/Lover's Rock album per se, it's gentle rhythms, soul tinged vocals and gentle horn work earns it a worthy place. Wayne Smith/Prince Jammy-Sleng Teng/Computerised Dub (1986) Despite the title, this double album is a perfect example of the electronic beats that fused with Reggae that contributed to the Dancehall vibe. Wayne Smith's sleng teng is an infectious mix of electronic beats providing the music with various styles with the lovers rock of 'Hard To Believe' and the bass heavy skank 'Sleng Teng' providing an album not easy to pigeonhole and also one that some Reggae purists not liking due to the Electronic work. Prince Jammy's 2nd half is Dub dominated but again the use of Electronic's sounding like a casio keyboard going haywire, the music is still dancehall friendly and not like the bass heavy, reverb usually associated with Dub. A dated album for sure but enormous fun. __________________ It be my music and film collection. “A cynic by experience, a romantic by inclination and now a hero by necessity.”

07-09-2009, 10:09 PM	#48 (permalink)
Gavin B. Model Worker Join Date: Jan 2009 Posts: 1,248	The rise of King Jammy's sleng teng riddim ended the 12 year rule of the one drop riddim in the dancehalls with the digital (or digi) riddim. Reggae mutated into another subgenre under the amophous umbrella of "worldbeat" music which blended elements of hip hop,international, socca, reggae and even synth pop. Digi riddims refer to riddims created around the time that Jamaican producers began to use the drum machine and the ubiquitous Casio synthesizer. Three major digi riddims, sleng teng, ragga (or raggamuffin) and raggaeton began to displace Carelton Barrett's organic one drop to the snare riddim he developed with the Upsetters. Producers, instead of performers, became front and center with the rise of digi riddims and skilled musicians playing old school roots reggae became irrelavant to both the production of and the performance of music. I don't like the post reggae era (from 1986 and beyond) any more than I like post rock and roll era. Nearly all of the real authenic roots genres of popular music have devolved into digitalized parodies of the real thing. Even electronica and dub music have become subgenres of "dance music" in the music marketing nomenclature. __________________ There are two types of music: the first type is the blues and the second type is all the other stuff. Townes Van Zandt

07-13-2009, 08:43 AM	#49 (permalink)
Bulldog why bother? Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: UK Posts: 4,840	Dub The idea of dub as a form of musical expression can be traced back to the studio antics of reggae producers Osbourne 'King Tubby' Ruddock and Lee 'Scratch' Perry in the late 60s and early 70s. This basically entailed remixing already-existing and complete songs to make up B-side material for the artist in question. The consequent dub mix would usually involve the removal of any vocal tracks in order to put an emphasis on bass frequencies and drum tracks, or the 'riddim', mostly by turning up the echo or reverb on them and overdubbing snippets of lyrics and/or guitar or brass from the original mix of the track. Basically, dub music started out as an early form of remixing by deleting any existing vocal tracks and manipulating the riddim in those ways. This use of the mixing desk as an instrument in itself can easily be seen as a prelude to the electronic dance music which would blossom in future generations, as on top of this rhythm-centric backbone producers could overdub all kinds of sound affects to create a more vivid sonic picture - bird noises, water flowing, thunder striking and so forth. All this still gave room for sound system DJs to rap over a sparse musical backdrop with improvised, heavily-rhymed lyrics (in reggae terms as opposed to hip-hop, the DJ would take over the vocals, while the Selector would be in charge of the vinyls). Lest we forget, in the early days, the main purpose of a lot of Jamaican reggae was to be played at sound systems (aka dancehalls). So what you're looking at with classic dub was the earliest form of big-shot producers creating instrumental remixes of singles not only to make up for B-side material but also to put to good use in dancehalls as individual pieces of music in their own right. Upon the music industry recognising the market there was for dub music, this would lead to the first dub albums being recorded in the early 70s. Over the next few posts you'll find out about ten of the essential albums to represent one of the most important revolutions in all music history. I'll be getting started with a couple of picks of my own shortly. So, stay tuned! Last edited by Bulldog; 07-13-2009 at 08:49 AM.

07-01-2009, 04:34 PM	#41 (permalink)
SATCHMO Al Dente Join Date: Mar 2005 Location: Texas Posts: 4,708	What happened to the last 4 dancehall entries? If I don't see Capleton's Reign of Fire on here I might just die.

07-01-2009, 05:00 PM	#42 (permalink)
Bulldog why bother? Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: UK Posts: 4,840	I'll be getting the ball rolling again in the next few days by posting another couple of albums. It's just that me and Jackhammer have had busy weeks, so it's not that we're gonna leave this thread to rust or anything. As for Capleton, you'll see

07-06-2009, 06:21 AM	#44 (permalink)
Bulldog why bother? Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: UK Posts: 4,840	I remember that guy! Pretty sure I've got that album on CD somewhere - must remember to have a dig around for it a bit later. I'll get my last pick for this list up a bit later. If anyone's wondering yes, there'll be another mixtape after we've done this section

07-07-2009, 04:09 AM	#46 (permalink)
Bulldog why bother? Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: UK Posts: 4,840	Dennis Brown - Stagecoach Showcase (1982) Dennis Brown was another oddity of the dancehall era of reggae in the 80s, given that he was another one of the few who began his career as a singer and not as a dancehall DJ. Having recorded many hits, including the UK top 20-busting Money In My Pocket in 1979, Brown became a superstar in Jamaica and had the honour of being included on Trojan Records' Jamaican Superstars album along with the likes of Gregory Isaacs and John Holt (which was released in 1998; the year before Brown's death from a collapsed lung). For me, his 1982 release here ranks as his finest achievement, which not only is littered with prime-time lover's rock lyrics, but the pulsating basslines are very typical of dancehall and, interestingly, in a lot of places we hear some very dub-esque percussive reverb, all of which makes for a fascinating, three-pronged assault of a reggae album. So, in essence, you're looking at a classic in those three sub-genres of reggae.

07-13-2009, 10:22 AM	#50 (permalink)
Bulldog why bother? Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: UK Posts: 4,840	*King Tubby - Crucial Dub (anthology, 2000)* Basically, the review's in the compilation's title. This is, as the said title suggests, crucial dub. For a start, as I mentioned in the above introductory rant, King Tubby was one of the pioneering producers of the genre. The 22 tracks which make up this anthology, while not containing samples from all areas of the man's work behind the mixing desk, do contain some essential examples of dub at its most spaced-out, laid back and riddim-heavy. The CD contains the works of folks such as Bunny Lee, Fatman and Phil Pratt, which alone makes for a fairly diverse mix of sounds all revamped by King Tubby in the archetypal dub style. This was the first dub CD I ever came across, and I couldn't have chosen a better one to get me started on the genre. Highly recommended. Augustus Pablo - East Of the River Nile (1977) Augustus Pablo here is another one of the early names in the music industry which is basically synonymous with dub. Pablo was basically canonised within the culture of reggae for his use of the melodica - a mouth organ of European origin (which you can see him having fun with on the sleeve cover there) - in his music. The way it seamlessly fits into the sonic picture gave this album iconic status and would influence countless acts to follow. That and the fact it was recorded in Lee Perry's legendary Black Ark Studio, mixed by the aforementioned King Tubby and had its riddims provided by the legend known as Robbie Shakespeare does a lot to give this album the reputation it has. This here is one of the universally-accepted classics of dub and therefore an absolute must given the fascinating dimensions the piercing notes of Pablo's melodica adds to proceedings. Last edited by Bulldog; 07-13-2009 at 10:35 AM.