A Look Back at The Skatalites Middle Period

Posted on May 3rd, 2008 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review, podcasts, ska history.

Officially speaking, The Skatalites were only together from 1963 thru 1965. Since 1989, the surviving members have stayed together (to varying degrees) in response to their then growing worldwide audience. But the years between ‘65 and ‘89 weren’t completely Skatalites free. Here’s the scoop on The Skatalites’ middle period recordings.

In 1973, The Skatalites put aside their differences for at least on recording session at Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s Black Ark Studio. This session has been the basis for several records, all of which share duplicate tracks in various stages of remix. In a rare move by the founders, this session is not a ska set. Instead, they opted to prove that their proficiency in Roots Reggae is as unparalleled as the style they are famous for. Mittoo’s switch from piano to organ and harpsichord are a stand-out change of vibe for these releases.

Lloyd Brevett and The Skatalites - African Roots - This record features the straight-ahead, unadulterated tracks from the Black Ark sessions.
The Skatalites meet King Tubby - Heros of Reggae in Dub - The Black Ark tapes were quickly sent off to King Tubby for a Dub Version-ization.
The Skatalites meet King Tubby - Legandary Skatalites in Dub - Same idea as above, and even has some of the same cuts, but this disc is packed with even more dub reworkings at the hands of King Tubby.

Ten years later (1983) found each living member of the original band being convinced that a full scale reunion would be worth the trip back to Jamaica. Reggae Sunsplash was the main impetus behind the reformation, but several great recordings were produced in the few days leading up to the big show. Not young men, anymore, but not quite the senior citizens they are today, these middle-aged Ska legends displayed huge amounts of mastery and energy.

Stretching Out - To prepare for the Sunsplash set, The Skatalites played a small club gig to shake off any rust that might have built up in the 18 year interim. Released from their previously strict recording session limitations, and allowed to “stretch out”, this live set proves that there was no little rust to shake off in the first place. (note: The Skatalites were never paid for this recording, feel free to bootleg it)
Rolling Steady - Recorded in ‘83 but released just last year, this record features the band in Music Mountain Studios, playing mostly new and lesser known compositions. Even Lord Tanamo shows up to sing Big Trombone. Absolutely great stuff.
Return of the Big Guns - The official ‘84 album represents this iteration of The Skatalites sound. Like Rolling Steady, many of the compositions are original to the record, not retreads of their 60’s classics.
Live at Reggae Sunsplash - This is the main event- the reason for the early 80’s reunion. The full time reunion would still be six years away, but this is the show that proved how vital and necessary The Skatalites were. This was when they took their place as the founders of Ska, Rocksteady and Reggae.

If anyone knows of any more recordings from their middle period, please alert me to them.

Update: on 05/07/08 castBot 8.6 created this podcast, using only AI and an ipod.

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Get Comfortably Numb with The New Slackers Record

Posted on April 11th, 2008 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review.

The Slackers
Self Medication
2008 Indication Records

Self Medication isn’t just the title of the Slackers upcoming release, it’s a suggestion. Sample a heavy dose of your favorite remedy, and let your headphones do the rest. The Slackers have taken their recent affinity of Tropiclia and taken it one step further by adding strong US and Brazilian psychedelic elements to their already groovy ska and reggae.

The first truely stand-out track on the album is “Estranged”, with lyrics and vocals from Glen Pine. This foggy tune is as much reminiscent of Far East Reggae as it is The Fun Boy Three. Haunting is one way to put it, but haunted may be more appropriate. As with “Estranged”, the title track, “Self Medication,” reveals a side to Ruggiero’s keys that we haven’t heard before. Synthy and psychedelic, they push the skank rhythm to the dark and sinister sides of The Slackers’ psyches. But it’s the track, “Eviction” that finds the Slackers in theit most novel style of the record- this modern-day “In the Ghetto” recalls Blaxploitation soundtracks as well as classic Jamaican shanty songs.

“Stars” is arguably the most interesting track on the record. Ruggiero plays with vocal overdubs in this expansion of his solo style. However, this song reaches further than Vic’s one-man-band- until it’s dizzying climax fades into it’s lullaby denouement.

But the record isn’t experimental all over. In “Don’t You Want a Man,” Hillyard adds to his growing songbook of socially charged lyrics that sound like love songs. (Or is it a break-up tune that sounds like a protest song?) “Leave Me” and “Happy Song” are straight forward Ska with all the up-beat energy you’d expect, but in a classic Slackers move they have less-than-upbeat lyrical themes. “Happy Song,” in particular seems like a minor attempt, on Hillyard’s part, to simply cheer up.

Several songs on Self Medication explore the singing someone else’s song as a metaphor for standing up for the ideals of those you’ve allied yourself with. This idea of singing someone else’s “happy song” began in the song, “Close My Eyes,” and is now being echoed not only on “Happy Song” but on Sing Your Song”- and to a lesser degree, “Don’t Forget the Streets.” Take it or leave it, but I believe many of these tunes are an re-affirmation of commitment from the band. Nearly every member of the band contributed lyrics to The Slackers’ new album and I’ll keep listening for however long they decide to sing each other’s songs.

Look for it later this month.

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Dave Hillyard Hits Jackpot

Posted on April 2nd, 2008 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review, reggae.

The concept of the newest release from The Slackers’ sax man, Dave Hillyard is nothing short of genius. We’ve heard his talent for composition, not only with The Slackers but also on The Rocksteady 7’s first two records. Anyone who’s seen him live can attest to the mind blowing effect his solos can produce, and that was captured on Way out East, Hillyard and the Rocksteady 7’s 2007 live record.

Now we have a new way to experience Hillyard’s Bop via Jamaica-style of Saxophone. Dave Hillyard Plays the Hits of Jackpot finds our hero riding the riddims of 13 classic reggae tracks from the Jackpot catalog. Like the DJ’s of the old sound systems, Hillyard improvises and reinterprets the songs on the fly, but instead of toasting with his voice… well you get the idea.

The idea was conceived by Glen Adams (original Upsetter, original Hippy Boy, original Augustus Pablo and sometimes Slacker). All of the original tracks are either produced by Bunny Lee or Lloyd Charmers, with the current production credits going to Glen Adams and King Django.

The whole record has a very familiar feel to it, and the new recordings fit seamlessly into these classic tracks.

Check out some of the cuts at Dave’s MySpace
And grab a copy of the disc over at JumpUp! -I did.

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Ska Oddity: The Notables

Posted on March 21st, 2008 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review, oddity.

I had noticed the disc, Quite Notable, in the Ska section of Vintage Vinyl since ‘97. Despite the fun ska sticker on the cover and crazy named band members, I never ponied up the $13 that Vintage was charging for this mystery album. It wasn’t until last year that my buddy, Doug Morgan, from KDHX’s The Underworld, gave me a copy of this Skatalites influenced wonderfulness.

I was immediately disappointed in myself for letting such a great instrumental band slip through the cracks of my attention. Further research revealed that this “band” is actually a fantasy front for the two fellas behind the sound, and those crazy names are merely fiction. It’s an impressive feat to emulate an entire Ska-Jazz combo with only two musicians- and one that deserves comparisons to both Chris Murray and NYSJE.

Read More:

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Take it or Leave it - Top 5’s of 2007

Posted on January 2nd, 2008 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review, news.

In case you haven’t noticed, we are now living in a New Year. It’s a time to reflect on the year before, a time to ask, “what were the best Ska and Reggae albums of the past 12 months?” More importantly, it’s a time where I answer that very question, in the form of various Top 5 lists.

Top Ska Albums

  1. The Pietasters - All Day I hesitate to call this a Ska album since it is largely Reggae with a fair share of Rock n’ Roll and Garage mixed into the track list. But the Pietasters will always be a Ska band at heart, and this album is their best yet.
  2. The Pepperpots - Shake It! I’d really like to hear the Pepperpots get a bit rawer. Shake It! is fantastic all over, although sterile at times. These girls are onto something.
  3. The Skatalites - On the Right Track I’ve reviewed this album previously, so to make a long story short: It’s far from the original line-up, but this album delivers new songs in the quintessential, straight forward Ska that you would expect.
  4. Kingston Kitchen - Today’s Special Not a full album, but Dr. Ring Ding fronts this Jazzy outfit through 6 tracks that push the stylistic boundaries of Ska-Jazz.
  5. Deals Gone Bad - The Ramblers These guys seem poised to be major players in the Ska scene. This album, once started, has a tendency to play all the way through. The soulful vocals and jazzy solos keep my fingers off of the skip button. But don’t rest on your laurels yet DGB, with power comes responsibility.

Top Dub Albums

  1. The Drastics - Waiting Easily my most played album of last year, and I haven’t had it for very long. Their brand of Dub is heavy and multifaceted, but never a nuisance. It’s mellow enough to be background music, but experimental enough to pay attention too. It is perfect Dub.
  2. Crazy Baldhead - Has a Posse Agent Jay has a very home made approach to Dub, and his recording aesthetic directly effects the end product. Warm and analog- very Version City.
  3. Ticklah - Ticklah vs Axelrod Brilliant Ska and Jazz Dubs in the style of Victor Rice. Rice is, in fact, on about half of the tracks. However, unlike In America, TvA has vocal tracks by a handful of musicians, while Rice tends to play straight instrumentals. I predict big things for Ticklah in the coming years.
  4. The Eternals - Heavy International This is not the mellow Dub Reggae that you used to see in the genre, this is noisy- circus style syncopation with mind warping effects, urban poetry and unsteady beats. The Eternals aggression has not fallen on deaf ears.
  5. Unnamed - The Good, The Bad and The Queen Damon Albarn now has side projects to his side projects. Blur and The Gorillaz front man, teamed up with the Clash’s Paul Simonon and Danger Mouse. Not a Dub album, and certainly not a Reggae album, GBQ is slow tempo Rock with moody Dub elements that make it worth mentioning here.

Top Early/Skinhead Reggae

  1. The Aggrolites - Reggae Hit LA My downstairs neighbor must hate it when I play this disc, because nothing gets my feet going like The Aggrolites.
  2. Tim Armstrong - Life of a Poet This record, backed by The Aggrolites is like a night out with the band and Armstrong, themselves. The tempo is steady and the drop is Skinhead, but there’s a Punky- sometimes Clubby sound to Life of a Poet.
  3. Green Room Rockers - Hoosier Homegrown These guys seemed to pop up out of nowhere, and now they’re winning over audiences on the East Coast. There is room for them to grow still, but a very impressive first album.
  • I have to give Honorable Mention to a few other bands who had Early-Style Reggae offerings from 2006, but didn’t become easily available (to me) until this last year. The Upsessions and The Caroloregians both released records that would have rivaled The Aggrolites for the top spot. I hope that in ‘08 I will hear more from both bands.

Favorite Tracks

  1. Dr. Ring-Ding and Vic Ruggiero - What it Takes
  2. Tim Armstrong - Inner City Violence
  3. The Slackers - Mind Your Own Business
  4. The Pietasters - G to F
  5. Bedoin Soundclash - Nico on the Night Train

Albums Worth Mentioning

Some of these listed here are being noted for being torch carriers in other revivalist genres; and some for adeptly mixing various traditional sounds. It’s this that I look for in music, Jamaican influenced or not.

  1. Sharon Jones and the Dap-Kings - 100 Days 100 Nights
  2. Antibalas - Security EP
  3. Beastie Boys - The Mix Up
  4. Manu Chao - La Radiolina
  5. Ozomatli - Don’t Mess with the Dragon

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New Skatalites Record: All New Songs

Posted on October 3rd, 2007 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review.

It’s been said that The Skatalites are less of a band and more of an Institution. How does a band that has spawned countess genres and sub-genres continue to hone it’s sound, after 40 some-odd years? How does the group retain the sound and groove of the original band, while still growing musically in very subtle ways? Granted, the many line-up changes, and untimely deaths that The Skatalites have endured over the years have left a mark on the overall sound, but not always for the worse.

The new album, On the Right Track, is a great example of how this Institution should continue. Original members Lloyd Knibb and Lester Sterling have recruited veteran Jamaican musicians to fill in the sound of this presentation of all new material. The record was made in Australia, where The Skatalites immediately found inspiration for new tunes and rhythms. This is evidenced by song titles such as, Outback Ska and Uluru Rock.

Lloyd Brevett was suspiciously missing from this record, which is disappointing. I’ve always seen Brevett (along with Knibb) to be the heart of the group. It’s their bass and drum that defined ska, and I’m more than a little surprised that they would go on without him. That being said, Reggae studio bassist, Val Douglas does a great job filling Brevett’s shoes on Right Track. If anything, he’s less restrained than Brevett. In a similar scenario, the album’s finest moments come from it’s least recognized original member, Lester Sterling.

Lester was always my favorite part of the stage show, not just for the great solos, but the inventive/silly dances he’d make up on the spot. But Sterling’s legacy has been obscured by the horn giants he’s played with. Don Drummond, Tommy McCook and Roland Alphonso were tremendously influential to Jamaican music, and anything ever written about The Skatalites puts these heavies at the forefront. But Sterling stands above all others on this record, and wrote two of the tracks.

Tracks of note:

Right Track - A funky carnival organ jam with Vocals by Doreen Schafer

Doreen Special - A soft but up-tempo Ska love tune

Little Irene - One of the Lester Sterling tracks that I mentioned. Like a boat on the ocean, the song bobs and floats… so relaxing.

One Armed Bandit - There’s something comical to the mood of this one that made it stand out.

Margueita’s Lament - A Latin style Ska that you can almost Waltz to. Very serious.

Outback Dub - Dub version of Outback Ska that is not to be missed.


All in all, not the finest work by The Skatalites, but far more vital than I would have expected. Every song is fully realized and belongs on the album, which is not something I can say of every new ska record. So, despite the many line-up changes and the decades behind them, they stay The Skatalites by staying on track and always moving forward.

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Ska Online: Bedouin Soundclash

Posted on September 30th, 2007 by JJ Loy.
Categories: Ska Online, album review.

I’m not sure everyone’s opinion on Bedouin Soundclash; I’m a little conflicted, myself. The first time I heard them, I was very turned off by their clean, radio-friendly sound. I gave their brand new record, Street Gospels, a shot and ended up liking a couple of tracks, which lead me back to Sounding a Mosaic, their penultimate album. While the vocals still remind me of the whiney boy hipsters that are popular in the current indie scene, the songs and rhythms come from a very rootsy place. I gotta say, they’re winning me over more and more.

Here’s an online live concert by AOL Music Canada Link (not a direct link, choose Bedouin Soundclash from the list of bands. A GoogleVid search Link Some of my favorites:

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Bedouin Soundclash Official Links: Website MySpace Wiki page Amazon List

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Slackers New Record: Boss Indeed

Posted on September 26th, 2007 by JJ Loy.
Categories: album review.

I just listened to the new official-bootleg-mixtape-thingy, The Boss Harmony Sessions by The Slackers, and thought I’d share a few thoughts on it.

First off, I immediately noticed the distinct production style the group pioneered in their last studio record, Peculiar. If you recall, on Peculiar, some of the band was recorded live while the rest was filled in at Version City. I’m not sure if it was the same exact device being implemented this time, but the effect was the same- rolling, energetic ska that you’d expect from a Slackers live show. However, unlike the last record, this disc had the presentation of a flea-market style mixtape.

Boss Harmony, an LA DJ that specializes in Jamaican sounds, hosts the tracks within, by creating soundscape segues and bong-chocked soliloquies.

A lot of these songs were intended to be released as singles, Vic and Dave both expressed to me their belief that the album was dead, at least for now. Perhaps that’s the reason behind this underground presentation. I, for one, am glad these tracks made it to official release status. This album is the first Slackers major release, since The Question, that didn’t seem inspired by tragedy in the least.

Here’s how the tracks break down:

Robots - I think that this song was greatly inspired by The Slackers time with the Phenomenauts. The dystopia is all Vic, but the style is somehow Mothersbaugh.Feed My Girl Ska - A classic Slackers tune from The Question, played in the style in which they preform it nowadays.

Funk Week - Title says it all- a whole weeks worth of funk packed into one 3 min instrumental track.

Mamma Told Me Not to Come - Everyone knows the Three Dog Night version of this, but did you know Randy Newman wrote it? These sarcastic lyrics find a great fit with Vic’s voice in this noticeably non-ska cover.

Mind You’re Own Business - I dare you go see any St. Louis blues band on any given night and NOT hear them play Mind You’re Own Business. I can’t speak for other cities, but it is a major standard in my neck of the woods. Here, the Slackers put a little skank to the natural swing of the song, with slightly unique lyrics.

El Gato - An Upsetters-esq track that comes close to being the second instrumental song on the record. Has anyone every collected all The Slackers tunes that feature animal sounds? It would be a mighty playlist.

Ska Boheme - This track reminds me so much of the instrumentals on Redlight. It’s classic, straight forward, Slacker style ska.

Wanted Man - The perfect follow up to Wanted Dead or Alive: both are covers about the trials and tribulations of a wandering man. Throw in the outlaw attitude Ruggiero exudes and the Wanted connection becomes even stronger.

Yer Still Blue - The Slackers are grabbing the Boogie-Woogie and running with it on this shuffle beat nod to yesteryear.

Minha Menina - When I first heard Os Mutantes, I had a secret wish that modern bands would revive the Tropicallia movement more often. Aside from one song from Beck and a couple from Belle and Sebastian (youtube music link), no one’s been up to the task. I would never have guessed that my favorite band would be among the first to branch out, and experiment with Brazilian psychedelia …and with the sitar… damn.

Little Joe - I featured this song, along with my interview with Dave, last year. It’s a sweet little lullaby song, with a killer dream-like organ solo.

Body Double - I’m at a bit of a loss for words, when it comes to this song. It’s funky rocksteady for sure, but the lyrics baffle me. I’d like to hear any interpretations anyone has out there.


All in all, I’d recommend this album to any Slackers fan or to anyone that needs to turn up the energy at a house party or dance contest.

Go buy a copy at a Slackers show, or go to :
Interpunk.com where they should go on sale this week.

1 comment.

Ska Online: Story of Jamaican Music Documentary

Posted on June 28th, 2007 by JJ Loy.
Categories: MP3, Ska Online, album review, video.

A few years back, the BBC made a great documentary, Reggae: The Story of Jamaican Music. It was fantastic, covering the birth of Ska during Jamaica’s independence and all the way up to Dance Hall.

I was most interested in the first episode which dealt mostly with the early ska days. The film takes us to the Alpha Boys School, and introduces us to the nun that helped raise the Skatalites, as well as many other notable Jamaican musicians. The cameras travel down the neighborhoods of Kingston where the original studios and clubs have been left to rot. We hear from likes of Lord Creator, and the then Prime Minister of Jamaica, before the film follows ska’s path to the UK, where we are privy to interviews with UB40, Paul Simonon, and many others.

If you have friends that need a good primer on Jamaican Roots music, I highly recomend this show. My only complaint is that the narrator states outright that Ska is Jamaica’s first type of music, even though the guests anecdotally refer to both Mento and Nyahbinghi in the interviews.

Here now, is the first episode of this great series, broken into four parts (as per Daily Motion rules)

UPDATE 05/10/08: DailyMotion is not cooperating with my embed plugin, but the links are still active:

Part 1

Part 2

Part 3

Part 4

P.S. DailyMotion is a great site. They let you upload longer segments than YouTube, and I love the way they display their tags, making the more popular tags more prominent than the others. Try searching for obvious tags: Ska, Reggae, or your favorite band. But given their constant embedding issues and increasingly limited content, I don’t really advocate the site any longer.

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