Live material from Bob Marley & The Wailers – recorded in an obscure nightclub in our hometown of Chicago during the 70s, and quite a nice change from some of the bigger label releases of the time! The band has a loose, very spontaneous vibe – and there's a nice flow to the longer length of the tracks – served up with instrumentation from Earl Lindon on keyboards and organ, Al Anderson on guitar, Aston Family Man Barrett on bass, and Carlton Barrett on drums – with backing vocals from the I-Threes behind Bob's lead vocals! Titles include "Rebel Music", "Talkin Blues", "Concrete Jungle", "Natty Dread", "I Shot The Sherriff", "Slave Driver", and "Midnight Ravers". LP, Vinyl record album

Rare funky work from Bob Marley & The Wailers – tracks that are more of a studio jam than a typical recording – and which were done before a famous performance that the group played at the Matrix club in San Francisco! There's a lean, snakey groove to all these cuts – heavy on basslines from Family Man Barrett, whose work really sets the tone for the tunes – while Bob and Peter Tosh trade guitar lines, Carlton Barrett holds things down on drums, and Earl Lindo spices things up with some sweet organ work! Titles include "Kinky Reggae", "Stir It Up", "No More Trouble", "Rastaman Chant", "Slave Driver", "Put It Up", "Stop That Train", and "Duppy Conquer". LP, Vinyl record album

Bob Marley material that goes way past the obvious – not the big hits of the Island Records years, but instead a whole host of much more obscure recordings from the 70s – tunes that were either rare Jamaican-only singles, or titles that were created only as dubplates for use in sound systems! Bob's vocals are still in place on most numbers, but the dubs are heavy, and the tunes resonate most strongly with basslines and rhythms, bubbling along with a very deep, moody sort of vibe – hardly the sound of Marley's chart-topping hits. Titles include "African Herbsman Version", "Turn Me Loose Dub", "War (alt take)", "Man To Man Version", "Soul Rebel Dub", "Rat Race Dub", "Concrete Jungle Dub", and "Man To Man Dub". LP, Vinyl record album

A second set of super-rare tracks from the Bob Marley side of the universe – not material that was issued by Island Records as part of his run of hit albums in the 70s – but instead some very obscure dubs that were taken from acetates that were initially only circulated through Jamaican soundsystems back in the day! The material here is very different than the cleaned-up hits – as the tracks often mute the vocals, bring up the rhythms, and go for an echoey brilliance that must have sounded great coming out of some massive speakers in the street! You'll definitely have to turn your stereo up to 11 when playing this one – for titles that include "Black Survivor Dub", "Top Rankin Dub", "So Much Trouble Dub", "Babylon System Dub", "Ride Natty Ride Dub", and "One Drop Dub". LP, Vinyl record album

The debut album from Cynthia Schloss – a reggae singer who'd go on to bring a whole new level of soul to Jamaican music! In fact, the album's maybe half reggae, and half soul – delivered by Cynthia with a range that would have been right at home in American soul in the early 70s, especially given that the pace of most tracks is a lot more laidback than some of the disco work that was taking over America at the time! Yet the grooves aren't exactly the usual Jamaican style, either – as they've got a bubbling vibe and upbeat quality that almost reminds us a bit of crossover soul from the same time – a bit like some of the best work on RCA that would peak on AM radio, with a real universal appeal that's only furthered by Schloss' vocals. Titles include "Love Forever", "I Won't Cry", "There's A Fire", "Red Rose", "Winston B", "Guava Jelly", "Hurry To Me", and "Nightfall". LP, Vinyl record album

The debut album from Cynthia Schloss – a reggae singer who'd go on to bring a whole new level of soul to Jamaican music! In fact, the album's maybe half reggae, and half soul – delivered by Cynthia with a range that would have been right at home in American soul in the early 70s, especially given that the pace of most tracks is a lot more laidback than some of the disco work that was taking over America at the time! Yet the grooves aren't exactly the usual Jamaican style, either – as they've got a bubbling vibe and upbeat quality that almost reminds us a bit of crossover soul from the same time – a bit like some of the best work on RCA that would peak on AM radio, with a real universal appeal that's only furthered by Schloss' vocals. Titles include "Love Forever", "I Won't Cry", "There's A Fire", "Red Rose", "Winston B", "Guava Jelly", "Hurry To Me", and "Nightfall". CD

Nice! There's been a couple of different versions of the seminal Blackboard Jungle dub LP floating around, now the fine folks at Auralux have unearthed and reissued the original version, with the wild stereo mix and original track order! This is one mighty set of Perryisms, wrought in the pre-Black Ark era, and though he's uncredited on the sleeve, we've read that King Tubby was responsible for the wonderful reverb and mixing console action taking these tracks to the next level. Essential! 18 tracks: "Black Panta", "V/S Black Panta", "Khasha Macka", "Elephant Rock", "African Skank", "Dreamland Skank", "Jungle Jim", "Drum Rock", "Dub Organizer", "Lover's Skank", "Moving Skank", "Apeman Skank", "Jungle Skank", "Kaya Skank", "Upsetting Rhythm 1", "Upsetting Rhythm 2", "Upsetting Rhythm 3" and "Happy Roots" CD

... LP, Vinyl record album