Back catalogue: Reggae

Review: Clash, first released in 1977, was one of a series of definitive reggae albums to highlight the eminence of the soundclash, in which two reggae or dancehall crews rig up opposing soundsystems in a face-to-face musical standoff. Fashioning this album after the competitive form, Dillinger's sparring partner in this case is 'Trinity' aka Wade Brammer, who was active during the 1970s and 80s. Trinity as Dillinger is best known for deejaying over reggae and dancehall numbers; Clash albums became very popular at the tail-end of the 1970s and into the next decade, with singers and deejays alike competing for status, track by track.

Review: Sax player Prince Lincoln Thompson and his Royal Rasses - Keith Perkins (aka Cap) and Clinton Hall (aka Johnny Kool) - joined forces for this one in 1979. It's a definitive roots and reggae album with perfectly horizontal sound and deep cut grooves into which you can sink over and over again. The lyrics touch on standard reggae fair - love, jah, pain - and are effortlessly smooth and seductive over the organic, jumbled rhythms, The reissue has extensive sleeve notes and comes on yellow vinyl with engineering and mixing at Harry J. Studio.

Review: Prince Lincoln Thompson was a Jamaican singer and songwriter, and was for a time the leader of the reggae group The Royal Rasses. Several albums in the 1970s and 1980s came among his greats, blending roots reggae, soul and even jazz influences. Thompson's 1980 LP Natural Wild was a hit enough, but it's its shadow self in the form of God Sent Dub that really captures our interest. At first, this dub version of the former LP was only issued that same year, as a limited edition run of 300 copies on a blank label with no credits. Inevitably, this lent it "rare collectors item" credo and resale shark-worthy venerability, but that of course wouldn't have been possible if it didn't also house a quality, unique take on dub. Made up of remixes only of songs from Natural Wild, Thompson is unafraid of swung tempos beyond the usual straight plod, 'My Generation Dub' being a case in point. Otherwise, the producer flaunts his delay mastery on select instruments only, and cuts like 'Spaceship Dub' obvously recall the cosmic visions of international artists contemporary to Thompson, such as Tradition.

Review: After Prince Lincoln Thompson and the Royal Rasses Band recorded the Experience album in 1979, they did the honourable thing and followed up with its dub counterpart, Harder Na Rass. Originally released on Warrior Records in the UK, it's everything you want from a roots-adjacent dub album, mixed by none other than Prince Jammy in the mighty King Tubby's studio. The sound is outstanding, with the percussion especially cutting through the mix and the musicality remaining intact despite the focus on dubwise versioning. Dub devotees take heed, this album has got everything you want, freshly remastered and cut nice and loud.