Over the past several years, the French
Makasound
label has been unearthing an impressive amount of obscure but top-quality
roots reggae
from the 1970s. This particular collection draws on the work of singer, songwriter, and producer
Linval Thompson
between 1977 and 1979; the songs compiled here were all recorded at
Channel One
and mixed at
King Tubby
's studio -- with the exception of the album's real find, a previously unreleased song titled
"Natty Pressure Them,"
which
Thompson
recorded at the
Black Ark
studio with
Lee "Scratch" Perry
. Frankly, that song is of more historical than musical interest; it's not bad, but not terribly exciting either, with unusually restrained and almost lackluster production from
Perry
. But several other tracks shine quite brightly:
"Black Woman"
is a fine piece of vintage
lovers rock
, and
"Rasta Children"
finds
working in a solid rockers vein. He does a creditable job on the
Ken Boothe
classic
"Just Another Girl,"
and his one-drop sufferer's anthem,
"More Power,"
is also impressive. A couple of tracks (notably
"Jah Jah a Do It"
) suffer from poor sound quality, but overall this is a welcome contribution to a solid catalog of lovingly prepared compilations from
reggae
's golden period. Recommended. ~ Rick Anderson