A very different album than usual from the great tenorist Nat Birchall – a set that's no less soulful than his other records, but in a completely different way! The album's a collaboration with producer Al Breadwinner – and has this approach that feels like a lost Jamaican instrumental session from the start of the 70s – as if Nat's playing the role of saxophonist Tommy McCook over some nicely laidback Kingston-styled rhythms! Birchall solos on tenor on most tracks, but also blows a bit of melodica too – and even handles a bit of organ and percussion too – all swept up in a dubby mix handled by Breadwinner, who contributes drums, guitars, and keyboards. There's a bit of trumpet and trombone on the set too, plus baritone sax from Stally – and the quality of the record is excellent, every bit up to the range of the Jamaican legends listed as inspiration on the cover – a lineup that includes McCook, Lee Perry, Augustus Pablo, and Cedric Brooks. Titles include "In The Hills", "Ancient Wisdom", "Youth Iron Rock", "Freedom Style", "Amlak Dub", "Hail Don D Jr", and "Igziabeher". (Jazz, Reggae) LP, Vinyl record album

A very different album than usual from the great tenorist Nat Birchall – a set that's no less soulful than his other records, but in a completely different way! The album's a collaboration with producer Al Breadwinner – and has this approach that feels like a lost Jamaican instrumental session from the start of the 70s – as if Nat's playing the role of saxophonist Tommy McCook over some nicely laidback Kingston-styled rhythms! Birchall solos on tenor on most tracks, but also blows a bit of melodica too – and even handles a bit of organ and percussion too – all swept up in a dubby mix handled by Breadwinner, who contributes drums, guitars, and keyboards. There's a bit of trumpet and trombone on the set too, plus baritone sax from Stally – and the quality of the record is excellent, every bit up to the range of the Jamaican legends listed as inspiration on the cover – a lineup that includes McCook, Lee Perry, Augustus Pablo, and Cedric Brooks. Titles include "In The Hills", "Ancient Wisdom", "Youth Iron Rock", "Freedom Style", "Amlak Dub", "Hail Don D Jr", and "Igziabeher". Includes bonus tracks "Iron Rock Dub" and "Igziabeher Dub". (Jazz, Reggae) CD

Glen Brown's often the producer here – helming the decks on a host of classic cuts from the early 70s – but he also emerges as the main character too, at times when he steps to the mic and adds in a bit of encouragement to the proceedings! Brown's not really working in deejay mode – he's more in the background on most cuts, but then gets to shine as the lead artist on some of the later tracks in the package – especially the numbers that feature Glen on melodica, blowing the sweet keyboard with a spacious style that's a bit like Augustus Pablo! Titles include "Get Up" by Ron Wilson, "Scatter Light Rock" by Ron Wilson & Lennox Brown, "Dirty Harry" by Tommy McCook & Richard Hall, "Determination Skank" by Tommy McCook & Glen Brown, "Mr Ball Head Aitken" by Bobby Aitken, and the Glen Brown cuts "No More Slavery", "Crisp As A Ball", "Pantomine Rock", "The Winner", "Mitchville Rock", and "School Call". LP, Vinyl record album

Not 100 years of recorded dub music, but a set of work that's bound to be as crucial in the 2070s as it was when first recorded back in the 1970s! The package is a stunning tribute to the talents of Joe Gibbs in the world of dub – and it not only brings together key cuts, but also features 30 number of the 48 in the package that appear here on CD for the first time ever – a great illustration of the way the Doctor Bird label digs even deeper than most other reggae reissue imprints, to come up with essential material like this! The 2CD package is overflowing with gems we've never heard before, all as wickedly sharp as Joe's bigger tracks – and not only is the sound quality great, but the whole thing comes with very detailed notes on the music too. 48 tracks in all – with titles that include "Roots Kunta Kinte", "Memory By The Score Version", "Keep On Dubbing", "War Is Over", "Bubbler In Money", "The Winner", "Broom Stick", "Black September Version", "Informer Version", "I Need Dub", "Bwoy It Rough", "No Bones For The Dogs", and lots lots more! CD

4 full length sets of mid 80s Sugar Minott dancehall – Buy Off The Bar, Rydim, Time Longer Than Rope and the joint Sugar Minott & Leroy Smart effort Rockers Award Winners – all from '84 and '85 and together in a single box set! A wealth of mid 80s dancehall from a pivotal source! First up is Buy Off The Bar, featuring main tracks and dubs including "Buy Off The Bar", "Can't Cross The Border", "Frontline". "Two Timer", "Strictly Sensei" and more. Rydim includes "Feel The Rydim", "Mass Ni Mass", "Old King Cole", "Nah Go To South Africa" and more. "Time Longer Than Rope" includes "Can't Get MeOut", "Jah You Make Me Sing", "Rockers Master" and more. Rockers Award Winners includes "Nah Follow No Fashion",, "A True", "Cell Block One" and more by Minott, plus the Smart rockers "Girls Are Skanking", "Give Love A Try", "Reggae Music" and more. CD

Nice 80s digital dub era grooves from Sly & Robbie! For years, We'd back and forth on how we feel about Bill Laswell's slick modern production – but we've really come around on it more recent years, especially considering how influential the 80s style turned out to be in post-millennium music, be reggae or just about any other popular genre. That said, we've never doubt Sly & Robbie, so in the grand scheme of things, this album always boiled down to a winner. Like a lot of mid 80s Material productions, this one pulls in an all star cast to lend a hand to the Rhythm Twins, including Bernie Worrell, Herbie Hancock, Wally Badaru, Manu Dibango, Afrika Bambaata, Bernard Fowler, Mike Hampton, Doug E Fresh and even Bob Dylan. The overall groove is very electro, with 6 long-ish numbers: "Make 'Em Move", "No Name On The Bullet", "Mile (Black Satin)", "Bass & Trouble", "Language Barrier" and "Get To This, Get To That". LP, Vinyl record album

There's plenty of dub procedure going on here – as Al Breadwinner takes tapes from the original Right Procedure album by Soul Power & Sound, and mixes them out into a wicked set of extended dubby takes on the tunes! If you know the Breadwinner touch, you'll know the special sort of magic going on here – a contemporary touch, but one that's very faithful to modes first explored in the analog generation – with plenty of respect for the righteous energy the group brought to the lyrics of the tunes! Guitar is handled by Evon Lazarus and Trevor McLaughlin – the latter of whom handles lead vocals too – on titles that include "Lick Ganja", "Yard Music", "Love's Got Me Hypnotized", "Africa", and "I Love Your Ways". LP, Vinyl record album

It may be commercial reggae, but the strength of the group's version of "Now That We Found Love" really pushed them over the top! That track's the real winner here – a smooth modern soul number with just a slight hint of Kingston, grooving away in a crossover style that we still really dig. Other tracks include "Journey To Addis", "One Cold Vibe", "Cold Sweat", and "African Woman". LP, Vinyl record album

Soul Jazz have done it again! As with their classic NuYorica, Strata East, and Black Jazz comps, this one's a definitive sampling of rare funky stuff that you'll never find otherwise. The set brings together 14 classic Jamaican tracks from the 60's and 70's – and unlike a lot of the other weak-ass reggae comps out there, every cut on here is a winner (or if you prefer, 100% Dynamite!) Great cuts include "Armageddon Time" by Willie Williams, "Stereo Freeze" by Jackie Mittoo, "Granny Scratch Scratch" by Sound Dimension, "Popcorn" by The Upsetters, and lots more! There's also some great Jamaican covers of American funky soul classics – like The Marvels' version of "Rock Steady", and Phyllis Dillon's great remake of Marlena Shaw's "Woman of the Ghetto". Lots more goodies, and the usual Soul Jazz high standard – which is 100% Dynamite! LP, Vinyl record album