Non-Jamaican reggae has been in my waiting room for a long time. Although my preference has always been Jamaican reggae, I can't really dismiss reggae from elsewhere if I haven't given it a chance. Here's what happens. Horace Andy, for example, has recorded in Jamaica, Canada and the UK, for different producers, in different studios, with different bands. Faced with three releases (one from each country) that you've never heard, which are you going to pick? Exactly.
In an a attempt to see the UK side of things I decided to check out Babylon, a movie with UK sound systems as its backdrop. It debuted at Cannes in 1981 but remained unreleased in the U.S. for decades, in the interim becoming one of those heard about it - forgot about it things. So I've never seen it. A restored version is on YouTube so that's the haps today. Before I settled in I thought I'd find some other stuff to go with it. I remembered a documentary about the U.S. reggae label Wackie's, so there you go, still staying on the non-Jamaican theme.
That's when the wheels came off. Looking for tunes to include, I made a pit stop. I listened to a Dillinger cut. Dillinger is distinctly Jamaican. There goes theme night. After the first two lines I had to break ranks. It is now officially a reggae mish-mash night. Because I found the first two lines nutty, I had to include the song. Dillinger's "Ball of Fire" starts with "My name is Ball of Fire and I've got crab in my underpants and it keep me dancing." When you listen to it you might hear "crap in my underpants" but, really, either one sounds unpleasant. You shit your drawers or you have lice. In the first lines of the song. Awesome. It stays on topic so yeah, wash down there. So here's that and a few other totally unrelated cuts. Movie time.
Dillinger - Ball of Fire mp3 at Internet Archive
Derrick Morgan - Rudie Don't Fear mp3 at Internet Archive
Horace Andy - Respiration mp3 at Internet Archive
Gregory Isaacs - Rock On mp3 at Internet Archive
Watch:
Bullwackie In New York 1981: Wackie's Rhythm Force at YouTube
1 comment:
Hey Tom! Just thought I'd pipe in at the start of the new year with a resolution: will try to be less of a stranger (here on la dim. de trastos) in 2023!
(@ "Babylon": Have a bluray of it in a box around here somewhere. Although I've completely forgotten the storyline, I know I thought it was pretty good when I watched it a few years back.)
espen
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