Volume 12 in the higly recommended series of reggae dancehall compilations from VP Records. Like the title says, they include the best of the current crop of dancehall singles, including some hard to find titles. Keep in mind that the even-numbered volumes (like this one) feature the slower roots and lover's rock songs. Always some nice, smooth vocals and usually one or two versions of current pop/r&b hits. (The odd-numbered volumes feature the harder, more uptempo dancehall tracks.) This volume features: BERES HAMMOND "Doctor's Orders", CAROL GONZALES "Personal Delivery", SANCHEZ "Wherever I Lay My Hat", PINCHERS "Carpenter", MARCIA GRIFFITHS "I Shall Sing", GARNETT SILK "Kingly Character", MAXI PRIEST & TUMPA LION "Too Late To Turn Back Now", DAWN PENN "You Don't Love Me", JUNIOR TUCKER "Love Of A Lifetime", WAYNE WONDER "Baby You & I", COCOA TEA "Good Life", MIGHTY DIAMONDS "I Need A Roof", BERES HAMMOND & JOSEY WALES "Free & Single", SUGAR MINOT "Sprinter Stayer" LP, Vinyl record album

A classic blend of saxophone and dub – one that shows just how much big the shift in Jamaican production styles was during the 70s! In the previous decade, reedman Tommy McCook was right on top of the mix on most of his performances – echoing the tenors of American R&B and soul musicians of the 50s and 60s – whereas here, he's much more layered down in the grooves – often mixed with a fair bit of echo and effects, so that his horn and the work of The Agrovators is beautifully muddled together – as the best elements of a cocktail can be in the hands of a true mixmaster! Titles include "Creator Of Dub", "A Happy Dub", "A Collie Dub", "The Dub Station", "Inspiring Dub", "Sprinkling Dub", "At The Dub Market", "The Meducia", "The Dub Duke", "The Height Of Dub", "Joh Soy Dub", and "King Tubby Dub". LP, Vinyl record album

The very first album from Coxone Dodd – the start of a huge legacy that ran into classic Studio One Records productions of the 60s and 70s, and which started with this initial album of early Jamaican grooves! There's plenty of jazz in the mix here – freer-flowing solos than you'd hear in Jamaican music a few years later – especially on the saxophone lines, which seem to get strong solo space in both the vocal and instrumental cuts! The music has some strong currents of American R&B at points, particularly the jazzier west coast variety – but the rhythms are already clearly the sound of Kingston, and really give the music a unique appeal. Titles include "Campus Hop" by Dennis Sindrey & Rico, "Beeston Street Riff" by Clue J & His Blues Blasters, "I Done You Wrong" by Simms & Robinson, "Freedom" by Clancey Eccles, "Donna" by Blues Busters, "I Was Wrong" by Winston Samuel, "Rub Up" by Dennis Sindrey & City Clickers, and "Little Willie" by Aubrey Adams & Blues Blasters. CD