Patate France レコード& CD

Review: This officially licensed collection of tunes from Carl Dawkins assembles some of his best work from the mid-sixties to the mid-seventies. It was produced by Karl Johnson, Bunny Lee, Leslie Kong, Clive Chin, Geoffrey Chung and Harry J and shows off his broad array of styles and how his sound subtly evolved over that decade. From classic reggae to rocksteady and lovers rock, it all features his buttery vocals and plenty of earth production that takes you to a sun-drenched island in an instant. A worthy addition to the shelves of any discerning reggae head.

Review: One person who surely never dubbed too much was the prolific and pioneering King Tubby, but that hasn't stopped Patate Records from putting together a third volume of his work with that sub-title. All of the 12 tracks on this release are classic, rare and/or unreleased and they were ll produced by the man himself in the late 70s during the gold age of the genre. Rodguel Sinclair aka Blackbeard is the producer of the material and his backing band The Ring Craft Posse, which included noted reggae heads like Sly & Robbie, Family Man and Carlton Barrett, all feature next to some of the era's finest vocalists - Delroy Wilson, Horace Andy and Johnny Clarke amongst them. Basically, this is as authentic and essential a collection of 70s reggae as you can get.