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DC Soundclash: Studio One/Soul Jazz: Gold and Silver |
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SIt’s been said before, but the truism won’t recede: the Studio One imprint is a bottomless well of superlative Jamaican recordings from the ‘60s and ‘70s. Anyone with stewardship over the catalogue is blessed with riches and options galore. In that recent role, the London-based Soul Jazz label is now well into its sixth year of reissuing the Studio One oeuvre. Since 2001, it has attempted an ambitious DVD/CD documentary, suffered the untimely death of Studio One founder/owner Coxson Dodd in 2004, and generally plotted a successful release strategy built around a theme-based approach to compiling: Studio One Roots, Soul, Funk, Dub, etc. Some truly exceptional and rare music has seen the light of day within those loose stylistic markers. The three latest entries – Studio One Groups, Kings and Rub-a-Dub – offer more of the same goodies but also hint at slight loss of focus. Groups is the class of the lot here. Long time Studio One devotee Rob Chapman was engaged to write track-by-track notes, and this almost curatorial approach is as effective as it is engaging. When you learn that the Gaylads’ “Give A Helping Hand” was not issued on any LP at the time nor subsequently, you make that mental note right away – ‘nice one, Soul Jazz.’ An off-kilter cut from 1966, when the music was transitioning out of ska to the slower, more lilting rocksteady mode, it’s the perfect example of the killer rare tune long neglected. As with most releases, Soul Jazz sprinkles in the rarities alongside more familiar songs, and so you get Studio One standards like the Clarendonians’ ska hit “You Can’t Be Happy,” or the even larger early reggae hit “Baby Why” by the Cables. But further nods to aficionados is offered up with the late-rocksteady sounds of The Consummates’ “What Is It,” as well as a wonderful vocal outing by The Stingers using Jackie Mittoo’s original “In Cold Blood” instrumental. Kings performs a similar rarities/known quantity balance, with some of those obscurer songs being true gems in the Studio One tiara. An alternative and sparse version of Burning Spear’s “Them A Come” is a revelation, and the under-presented Joe Higgs finally has his beautiful love plea “Change of Plan” showcased. The brilliance of the Studio One sound is no more present than on Alexander Henry’s driving “Please Be True.” Featuring an early reggae rhythm that was much versioned in Jamaica during the 70’s, it’s relentless as well as melodic, the quintessential combo factor in all great Jamaican recordings. Kings is focused around the solo vocalist ‘kings’ of Studio One, but the liner notes meander into a compressed and muddled mini history of Studio One that say virtually nothing about the featured tracks. It’s a problem with the subsequent Rub-A-Dub as well, a term not defined for the new listener. You might pick out from the sound that the Rub-a-Dub era was when Dodd re-treaded his old rhythms to meet the demands of the late ‘70s, disco-ing and dancehall-ing them up with drum overdubs and other dance enhancing tweaks. A new generation of singers emerged, notably Sugar Minott and fellow ‘youthman’ vocalist Barry Brown who effectively updates the ‘Heptones Gonna Fight’ rhythm with his own “Give Love” cut. Also along for the ride came the latest DJ’s and their mannerisms. Aided by drum claps and occasional echo effects, Rapper Roberts & Jim Brown ride the Full Up rhythm for their cheeky “Minister for Ganja.” The humor factor is probably the most effective from the Rub-A-Dub period, a period that can not fully escape the fact that it got the second – not the first – bite of the Studio One rhythm apple. As we eagerly await future Soul Jazz forays into the Studio One back catalog, one hopes that they develop more coherent and consistent editorial voices. Steve Barrow (Trojan Records – 1980’s; Blood & Fire – 1990’s-present) and Dave Katz (Auralux) are two examples of excellent liner writers that have masterfully shepherded the listener through each of their label’s releases. That Soul Jazz can pick the music is plainly not in doubt. |
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