Reviews

Talisman, formed in Bristol, England, were a reggae band active from the late 1970s until the 1990s. They were multiracial in their make-up, as per Birmingham’s UB40, yet played a more orthodox kind of Jamaican music than the 80s burgeoning … Continue reading →

Smoky voiced poetic singer Daweh Congo’s sixth album Ghetto Skyline was a mid-career classic. This was in no small part due to the impact of its opening title track – with its haunting, hinting descriptions of marginalisation poverty and unrest … Continue reading →

With his sincere, vulnerable delivery and earthy, evocative lyrics, deejay-singer Lutan Fyah has been at the vanguard of modern roots reggae during the last decade. Growing up around the family sound system, he chose music over a brief professional football … Continue reading →

Gappy Ranks rose from a troubled past to become the beacon of a beleaguered British reggae industry, cutting Peckings produced modern classic debut album Put The Stereo On in 2010. 2011’s Thanks And Praise turned the vintage rhythms off for … Continue reading →

The film director Francis Ford Coppola commented on his status as one of the leaders of the New Hollywood movement of the 1970s saying that he wasn’t the oldest of the young guys – he was the youngest of the … Continue reading →

Butter-wouldn’t-melt-voiced Birmingham singer Bitty McLean and Jamaican production juggernaut Sly & Robbie started their musical relationship in 2006. Three years later they had recorded both a live album in Japan and a studio set, Movin’ On. Bitty has appeared on … Continue reading →

London, UK @ Tabernacle 29/8/2013 London Premiere of Bunny Lee’s I Am The Gorgon. King Tubby project planned next             INTRO This month veteran producer and mid 70s dancehall ruler Bunny Striker Lee celebrated his … Continue reading →

U Roy and the London Olympics are used to sharing venues. Last year he performed at the Jamaica 50 celebrations at indigO2 in Greenwich while the larger arena hosted the gymnastics. This summer, as the Anniversary Games took place at … Continue reading →

Not the most accessible Joe Higgs album but an essential reissue. We know Joe Higgs was one of a series of crucial father figures to Bob Marley. He taught the Wailers to harmonise and to register their songs with royalty … Continue reading →

The pressure is on as Beres Hammond pulls out on the first night of the tour Last time Morgan Heritage came to London’s indigO2 it was historic in every aspect. There was the 50th anniversary of Independence; the pausing of … Continue reading →