Derrick Morgan - Court Dismiss / Freddie McKay - Fine Fine Fine

Double post today! Check out this one and the one below it, Max Romeo's "Let The Power Fall For I".

Update! I also added a new section on the column to the right, reggae by producer. I've added tags to each reggae posting with the tracks' producer and you can now browse by producer. I've been meaning to do this for a while so here it is!

Hopefully you've been introduced to Derrick Morgan and Freddie McKay at least through my previous posts here and here. Unfortunately as of now, this post exhausts my Freddie McKay collection, but there are many many more Morgan tunes to come.

"Court Dismiss" is a tune very similar to Judge Dread series by Prince Buster and the previous "Tougher Than Tough" by Morgan. Both are rocksteady takes from a court room with a judge incarcerating a group of rude boys. Plenty of the standard "lion, iron, zion," and "rough and tough" that can be found in both Buster's Judge Dread series and Morgan's "Tougher Than Tough." I'm sure there have been other artists producing songs like these at the time, I'll have to have a look through my collection and see if I can dig up some more rude boy court setting songs.

"Fine Fine Fine" is a rolling rocksteady tune with bouncing horns and an active group of background singers. McKay recorded his earliest tracks with Prince Buster in 1967 and this is from just later in the same year from producer Leslie Kong of Beverley's. '67 was a fantastic year for rocksteady music and this song has all the early trademarks of the ska to rocksteady transition. Many collectors would argue that mid-late 60s are the most exciting period of Jamaican music and I tend to agree. This song is a pretty good representation of that style!

Listen & download here:
A-side: Derrick Morgan - Court Dismiss
B-side: Freddie McKay - Fine Fine Fine

If you like this one, check out Prince Buster, Eric Morris, or more Derrick Morgan.

Max Romeo - Let The Power Fall For I / The Original Hippy Boys - Power Version

The first I heard of Max Romeo was his 1976 War Ina Babylon album and its more militant style of reggae didn't really grab me. It wasn't until I started collecting singles and found some earlier Max Romeo singles that I started paying more attention to him. Romeo began his career with The Emotions in 1965 but they didn't release a single until 1967's "Buy You A Rainbow" on the Caltone label. They released a few other singles under the name on the Caltone label before Romeo was ready to step up to solo work.

Romeo's solo career began in 1968 working with Bunny Lee. Over the next few years he released a steady flow of singles with various producers such as Lee Perry, Vincent Chin, Joel Gibson, and Derrick Morgan who produced this one. He even released a number of full length LPs through the 70s and 80s. Needless to say, he's not a one hit wonder.

I really enjoy the a-side here, I only wish the record was a bit cleaner. The lyrics read almost like a prayer and the tune has a humbling sound throughout. Harmonies fill out the sound behind the scarce instrumentation and there are a few organ lines to boot. If you like this one, check out the previous Max Romeo post I did, "Rent Crisis."

Listen & download here:
A-side: Max Romeo - Let The Power Fall For I
B-side: The Original Hippy Boys - Power Version

If you like this one, check out Freddie McKay, Elpedo Burke, or more Max Romeo.

Junior Byles - Beat Down Babylon / The Upsetters - Ital Version

Didn't realize this one was so noisy until it was done recording, but its still a great track.

I would this blog to eventually become very browse-able using the artists/record label links to the right, tabs at the bottom of the posts, and links within posts. I'd prefer to have a number of artists/labels that have multiple discs on here so you can here more than just 1 or 2 tunes from an artist if you like a certain disc. That being said, at least the next few will be from artists already represented here.

Listen & download here:
A-side: Junior Byles - Beat Down Babylon
B-side: The Upsetters - Ital Version

If you like this once, check out The Maytones, King Stitt & Andy Capp, or more Junior Byles.

Little Junior Parker - Dangerous Woman / Belinda Marie

As with many of the artists on this blog, I found Junior Parker while digging through stacks of 45s. The previous Parker post I did was the first I'd heard of him, but I subsequently found a handful of singles of his. This is easily one of my favorites of Parker's, and entirely for the a-side.

These two tracks are from 1959, 4 years before "If You Don't Love Me" and "I Can't Forget About You" from the previous post. It's a powerful rocking blues and Junior Parker's voice is velvety smooth and without a hint of and littleness. Parker was in his late 20s by the time of this release and would drop the "little" prefix from his name in next few years.

I enjoy the very late 50s and early 60s rock as I feel some of the music illustrates a transition from some of the more orderly styles of the 50s to the raucous 60's rock with the likes of The Beatles. I feel that this a-side fits the trend nicely so enjoy!

Listen & download here:
A-side: Little Junior Parker - Dangerous Woman
B-side: Little Junior Parker - Belinda Marie

If you like this one, check out The Clovers, Roy Milton, and more Junior Parker

The Heptones & Lee Perry - I Shall Be Released / Version

This is a remix of the "I Shall Be Released" that I previously posted by The Heptones. As you can see, this one was made with the notorious Lee Perry commanding the soundboard. I originally thought this was from the 80s, but it could very well be from the later 70s or even much more recent, I'm really not sure.

Perry adds his classic touch to the song, giving it a cloudy, pulsing, nearly dub feel. I haven't intently compared the two tracks, but I believe they contain the same vocal cut and many of the same instrument cuts. The b-side here is not the typical "version" of a song, in fact its an entirely different song altogether. It's an instrumental cut, something that Perry has mastered.

I really don't know too much about the origins of this disc. I am convinced that it is either a reissue or it is a very recent issue of a remix that was previously unreleased. And for anyone who's interested, I bought this one at the same time and place as this and this :).

Enjoy and please vote on which version of "I Shall Be Released" you like best!

Listen & download here:
A-side: The Heptones & Lee Perry - I Shall Be Released
B-side: The Heptones & Lee Perry Allstars - I Shall Be Released (Version)

The Heptones - I Shall Be Released / Love Me Only

I was originally going to upload another Justin Hinds & The Dominoes 7" this time but then I remembered I had this version of "I Shall Be Released" by The Heptones. I figured I may as well put it up to give another cover version way different than the cover in the previous post.

I also have a 7" of the remix of this Heptones version from the early 80s with some overdubbed instruments. I don't like it nearly as much as this version but I may put it up next just for the sake of completeness. Enjoy!

By the way, thanks for helping me reach 5000 hits with this post!

Listen & download here:
A-side: The Heptones - I Shall Be Released
B-side: The Heptones - Love Me Only

If you like these two, try: The Melodians, Pat Kelly.