A recent charity shop purchase, a £1 2CD Trojan compilation wasn't staying on their shelves while I had a quid in my pocket.
I've never been a massive fan of reggae, and almost never of the 'pop' end, preferring the more political and dub end of the genre, but a couple of tracks caught my eye, and influenced my buying.
CD1 takes us from 1964 to 1971, and there's a lot to like - Dandy's Rudi, A Message To You, Ethiopians' Train To Skaville, Harry J All Stars' Liquidator, Pioneers' Longshot Kick de Bucket, Maytals' Monkey Man and Symarip's Skinhead Moonstomp are highlights, and there are many more well known hits. It's always a delight to hear Bob & Marcia's Young Gifted And Black (even if I'd always thought of it as a soul classic rather than a reggae one).
CD2, however doesn't really satisfy nearly as much. Much is 'soft pop reggae', and limp AOR songs done to a reggae beat, but there's a little run in the middle - Rupie Edwards' Ire Feelings (Skanga), Dillinger's Cokane In My Brain, Althea and Donna's Uptown Top Ranking, Dennis Brown's Money In My Pocket and Janet Kay's Silly Games, which shine like a beacon in a very disappointing look at reggae from 1971-1992.
Worth that quid, but I can't see me listening to all 40 songs back to back again
2* - I could halve the number of songs on this compilation and improve it immensely.
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