FROM TROJAN RECORDS WEBSITE

Trojan Records is planning reissues of Desmond Dekker & the Aces’ two sixties LPs, ‘007’ and ‘Israelites’, “sourced almost entirely from the original Jamaican Beverley’s master tapes.”

They are asking for any help in providing high res (300 dpi) scans or colour photocopies of the original Doctor Bird LP sleeves (and labels) [...]]]> Copyright: strictly-vibes.com

FROM TROJAN RECORDS WEBSITE

Trojan Records is planning reissues of Desmond Dekker & the Aces’ two sixties LPs, ‘007’ and ‘Israelites’, “sourced almost entirely from the original Jamaican Beverley’s master tapes.”

They are asking for any help in providing high res (300 dpi) scans or colour photocopies of the original Doctor Bird LP sleeves (and labels) themselves along with those of ANY Pyramid and Beverley’s labels.

As usual, please send any images of enquiries to us at trojanwebsite@googlemail.com.

MORE @ TROJAN RECORDS WEBSITE

1. Jesse James 2:42 2. Mr Popcorn 2:40 3. I Got To Have Your Love 2:43 4. (Sloop) John B 2:23 5. Shoo Bee Shoo Bee 2:44 6. Hailes Selaise 3:13 7. Landlords And Tenants 2:46 8. Save [...]]]> Just thought I would let everyone know that the Laurel Aitken re-issues continue. Here is the tracklisting for “High Priest of Reggae” with bonus tracks.

1. Jesse James 2:42
2. Mr Popcorn 2:40
3. I Got To Have Your Love 2:43
4. (Sloop) John B 2:23
5. Shoo Bee Shoo Bee 2:44
6. Hailes Selaise 3:13
7. Landlords And Tenants 2:46
8. Save The Last Dance 3:13
9. Walk Right Back 2:22
10. Don’t Be Cruel 2:10
11. Woppi King 3:41
12. Suffering Still (Feat. Girlie) 3:43
13. Reggae 69 (Bonus) 3:02
14. Donkey Man (Bonus) 4:19
15. Blues Dance (Feat. Girlie) 2:20
(Bonus)
16. Lawd Doctor (Feat. Girlie) 2:56
(Bonus)
17. Babylon Gone (Bonus) 2:16
18. Everybody Sufferin (Bonus) 2:36
19. Freedom (Bonus) 2:21
20. Pussy Price (Gone Up) (Bonus) 3:03
21. Give Me Back Me Dollar (Bonus) 2:51
22. Skinhead Train (Bonus) 3:04
23. Kent People-The Gruvy Beats 2:50
(Bonus)
24. Skinhead Invasion (A.K.A. 2:20
Apollo 12) (Bonus)
25. Bendwood Dick (Bonus) 2:37

May 2009 will be the 40th anniversary since Jamaica lost one of its best-loved sons, the legendary and tragic Don Drummond. As a tribute to one of the greatest trombonist the world has ever known, Trojan are making available once more the ‘Memorial Album’ that first saw issue on the label towards [...]]]> FROM TROJAN RECORDS WEBSITE:

May 2009 will be the 40th anniversary since Jamaica lost one of its best-loved sons, the legendary and tragic Don Drummond. As a tribute to one of the greatest trombonist the world has ever known, Trojan are making available once more the ‘Memorial Album’ that first saw issue on the label towards the close of 1969.

Featuring updated versions of a dozen early Duke Reid productions, the album was intended to illustrate how Drummond’s talent transcended genres, a goal it undoubtedly achieved, with the new Reggae mixes as appealing as the original early sixties cuts.

Now, this classic collection is to be made available once more, its 12 tracks bolstered by 37 bonus tracks from Reid’s much-vaunted Treasure Isle catalogue.

READ MORE HERE.

www.strictly-vibes.com

So that means more Laurel Goodness!

FYI: Amazon has “High Priest” and “Scandal” listed [...]]]> YES! The Laurel Aitken Re-issues will be getting some US distribution as Dusty Groove has them listed as Mid May releases. OH YEAH and there will be re-issues of “Scandal In A Brixton Market” and “The High Priest Of Reggae”. AMAZING NEWS INDEED!

www.strictly-vibes.com

So that means more Laurel Goodness!

FYI: Amazon has “High Priest” and “Scandal” listed at $18.98 and to be released on June 23rd. They have “Ska With Laurel” and “Says Fire” listed at $15.49 but not in stock just yet.

Ernie B must be getting these in as well.

Prince Buster has been releasing his material on less then steller JA pressings of late [...]]]> I’ve got another reissue note. The news hit weeks ago and I should have posted it then but as you can probably tell I’ve been very slack in getting this updated lately. I’m working to correct that. NOW TO THE NEWS.

Prince Buster has been releasing his material on less then steller JA pressings of late and it’s a shame. It’s an even bigger shame when we all know that Japan and Rock-A-Shocka has been dropping the ultimate packages of Buster material for years! YES WE YANKS WANT IT TOO.

Well now the classic 1967 RCA Victor album Prince Buster “Sings His Hit Song Ten Commandments” is getting a simple superb treatment and we’ve got it in the states. It’s being released by Sony on CD for the first time.

From the site description it says: “It features a selection of ska and rocksteady tracks the best known of which are the title track, Buster’s hilarious Ten Commandments, which would’ve outraged the bra burners of the day, though the equally hilarious response from Princess Buster included here may have alarmed them even more! “They Got To Come” is the other well-known track here; Buster also covers the traditional “Wings Of A Dove”.

There are none of Buster’s highly regarded ska instrumentals here, but it’s a slice of history made available again and the care and attention Sony have lavished on the project, it has been remastered from the original master tapes, is to be applauded. Includes a 16 page booklet with notes from noted American reggae historian Roger Steffens.”

I picked it up tonight which promoted me to correct the oversight of not posting before and I have to say that it is amazing and well worth picking up. It’s one of the best Buster re-issues I have seen directly for the US market. The booklet includes such great images and a well written examination of Buster and his history. It even quotes Junor Francis in the notes!

Track Listing:
1. Ten Commandments
2. I Won’t Let You Cry
3. Is Life Worth Living
4. Ain’t That Saying A Lot
5. Here Comes The Bride
6. Girl Answer To Your Name
7. Ten Commandments From Woman To Man – Prince & Princess Buster
8. Wings Of a Dove
9. Smart Countryman
10. Tongue Will Tell
11. They Got To Come

CHECK OUT OUR BUDDIES REVIEW FROM SOME TIME BACK: www.duffguidetoska.blogspot.com

This has been out for more than a few years now but I think it’s a lost gem well worth revisiting again and again. It’s a critical piece of punky ska & reggae history especially here in the U.S. as it pre-dates the actual 2 Tone explosion from the UK. It also managed to bring [...]]]>

This has been out for more than a few years now but I think it’s a lost gem well worth revisiting again and again. It’s a critical piece of punky ska & reggae history especially here in the U.S. as it pre-dates the actual 2 Tone explosion from the UK. It also managed to bring together U.S. musicians and JA reggae founders to make new thoughtful music when this is a completely new experience.

It’s also funny that our buddy Marco has been thinking the same thing and actually beat me to the posting! Check out his blog here for more on this interesting piece of the puzzle.

The following text was pulled from the ROIR website who released the compilation “Forces 1977-1982″. All photos pulled from the bands myspace page.

Two years before the UK Two Tone movement (Specials, Madness, Selector, Beat) announced a raw punky ska “new popular movement” in the UK, months before The Offs captured San Francisco with their dubby punk, the number one band playing reggae, ska, dub and punk on the East Coast, particularly New York City, were The Terrorists.

They were regularly gigging in N.Y.C. at Max’s Kansas City, CBGBs, Irving Plaza, Mudd Club, Hurrah, Tramps, the 80’s. Their unique punky, reggae, dub, ska were in great demand.

Started in October 1977 by drummer Dro, bassist Gary Schiess (a/k/a DB), singer and guitarist Ray De Angel and keyboardist Frank Covello with early replacement singer John Collins and guitarist Mark “Dino Supreme” Levi, the band became truly solid and extremely bookable.

Their commitment to reggae and their ability to consistently crowd the dance floor kept them busy week after week.

These guys were hot; they brought in business and before long they played with Roland Alphonso and Lee “Scratch” Perry, who adopted them as his collaborators. They were punk, ska, dub, reggae freaks, just as the 1977 “Exodus” Marley punky reggae movement and Two Tone Earthquake captured the UK press and a new scene was born.

A US cult audience (readers of the NME, Sounds and Melody Maker from the UK) propelled the Terrorists to enthusiastic cult audience adoration – but these guys were totally committed to reggae and its incarnations. They knew their stuff and became professors and teachers to a whole new generation of New Wave scenesters who started to dominate the US underground market.

Because of the involvement of Lee “Scratch” Perry, who traveled with and fronted the Terrorists over 20 years ago, and the many tracks with Roland Alphonso of the Skatalites, also from 20 years ago, this is an important slice of reggae, ska, punk, dub from Manhattan in the late 70’s. This is an historic document with material that is absolutely marvelous and unique. It puts a totally new perspective on reggae in Manhattan evenings during that period just before Marley was breaking through internationally with “Exodus” and brought reggae to a new tidal wave.

Tracks:
1. Hail The Day; Fade Away; Love Is Better (produced by Lee “Scratch” Perry)
2. Guerrilla Priest with Lee “Scratch” Perry, Vocals; Four Corners with Roland Alphonso, Tenor Saxophone; Christine Keiler with Roland Alphonso
3. What Am I Living For with Roland Alphonso
4. Ska-Bostello with Roland Alphonso, (TS) & Soprano Saxophone
5. Treat Her Right with Roland Alphonso
6. Bridge View with Roland Alphonso
7. Anittoo
8. Forces
9. Drainidge
10. I Want Justice
11. Happy Man
12. My Best Girl
13. Bitch Slapped
14. It’s Impossible
15. Happy Go Lucky Girl
16. Copasetic

More info on “Forces 1977-1982″ at the ROIR Website.

There’s another cool review here.

You can hit up Ray, founding member, singer & guitarist of the band on his myspace page as well. Check out even more killer photos of the band and flyers.

John Holt got his start singing in The Paragons. Now I love the Paragons as they are one of [...]]]> The “eagerly” (as it has been issued more then a few times already) anticipated 2CD deluxe edition of John Holt’s classic rocksteady & early roots collection “1,000 Volts Of Holt” has been released via Trojan Records.

John Holt got his start singing in The Paragons. Now I love the Paragons as they are one of my all-time favorite vocal groups with hits including “Island In The Sun”, “Riding High On A Windy Day” (makes me shiver), “The Tide Is High”, “Happy Go Lucky Girl”, “Wear You To The Ball” and many many others. Such sweet vocal harmonies indeed.

The Paragons broke up in 1970 and John Holt jumped at the chance to pursue his solo career having hits almost almost immediately including the Bunny Lee produced “Stick By Me” (a wonderfully beautiful song about love and devotion). It was the biggest-selling Jamaican record of 1972.

The original 1973 release of “1000 Volts of Holt” is a sublime collection of an artist at the top of his game of course and because of the overwhelming positive reaction to that set 2 more sets were released to capitalize on his popularity. It included the hit “Help Me Make It Through The Night” that propelled him to a UK Top 10 hit. Following the pattern that “1000 Volts” started with “2000 Volts of Holt” and “3000 Volts of Holt” were released in 1976 and 1977 (the year of my birth I might add) respectively.

This is what the site says:
“Widely regarded as one of the greatest Reggae albums of all time, ‘1,000 Volts’ combined the rhythms of the Jamaican ghetto with sophisticated western arrangements and by so doing successfully transformed John Holt into a mainstream artist. Soon after its release, the singer’s rendering of Kris Kristofferson’s ‘Help Me Make It Through The Night’ peaked at number six in the Pop listings, while a year and thousands of sales later, the LP finally made it into the British album charts, a top 10 position denied only by the unregulated nature of Reggae music sales in Britain.

In addition to containing the original 12 album tracks that comprised ‘1,000 Volts’, this 2 CD deluxe edition features many of their respective Jamaican mixes along with numerous previously unreleased recordings, many of which had been intended for a never issued follow-up collection.

Digitally re-mastered from the original Trojan tapes and featuring extensive liner notes, this seminal album never sounded or looked better, and is a truly essential purchase for any self-respecting fan of classic Reggae.”

DISC 1: 1,000 VOLTS… PLUS!
1. Never, Never, Never
2. Morning Of My Life
3. Stoned Out Of My Mind
4. Baby I’m A Want You
5. Help Me Make It Though The Night
6. Mr Bojangles
7. I’d Love You To Want Me
8. Killing Me Softly With Her Song
9. You Baby
10. Too Much Love
11. Girl From Ipanema
12. Which Way You Going Baby
Bonus tracks:
13. Morning Of My Life (Ja mix)
14. Stoned Out Of My Mind (Ja mix)
15. Baby I’m A Want You (Ja mix)
16. Help Me Make It Though The Night (Ja mix)
17. Mr Bojangles (Ja mix)
18. Too Much Love (ja. mix)
19. Girl From Ipanema (Ja. mix)
20. Which Way You Going Baby (Ja mix)

DISC 2: 4,000 VOLTS OF HOLT (RARE & UNRELEASED MASTERS)
1. I Don’t Want To Be Lonely
2. It’s Just Because
3. My Eyes
4. Love And Affection (aka Sweet Vibrations)
5. Here Today (Gone Tomorrow)
6. If I Could Hear Her (aka Blue Dawn)
7. I Could Dance All Night
8. Maybe Some Day
9. I Played The Fool
10. Got My Head On Straight
11. Come Dance With Me
12. Good Morning Sun
13. Room Full Of Tears
14. Only You
15. Lonely Times
16. Sweet Malinda
17. Love So Right
18. Baby Don’t Get Hooked On Me
19. Just The Way You Are

From www.trojanrecords.com.
For More Info on John Holt check out www.roots-archives.com