Reggae & Ska > Metronome/Discovery Reggae & Ska

Him Name Buju Banton... Nahh Mr. Mention

Advantages: Lots of bangers
Disadvantages: Ends on a track that's weaker than the rest

“Mr. Mention” was released in 1992 as the second album from the Jamaican Dancehall musician Buju Banton. It dropped soon after his debut (within a year) and so had him showing just how productive he could be at the time as he brought lots of his Dancehall material (that became much more Reggae-styled as his career developed and he embraced Rastafarians ways. 1. “Batty Rider” The album opens up with one of the biggest singles that he had released ...
...that here you get him blasting through a fly tune that has him bringing through the sort of controversial lyrics that gave him notoriety when he broke into the game at the age of 15 with “Boom Bye Bye”. It is a hardcore tune, but one that I can’t say is really for all due to the themes. **Five Stars** 2. “Love How The Gal-Dem Flex” This is a big tune on the release and one that is seen to build upon the sorts of things that were heard on the first ...

XICripZ 18.10.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Mr. Mention - Buju Banton

Dawning of a New Era: AMAZING!

Advantages: Perfect in every way! So many tracks!
Disadvantages: Nothing

...one of them! Dawning of a New Era gathers together tracks from the classic era of reggae, 1968 & '69, and like the equally-essential "Dancehall '69", was compiled by Michael De Koningh, which means you get an impeccable selection of prime reggae, beginning with the massive tune "John Jones" from Rudy Mills. From there highlights include the so-terrible-it's-brilliant "Rescue Me" by The Reggae Girls, the even better "Su Su Su" by The Pioneers, a perfect ...
...Flint", and "Reggae Hit the Town" - the absolute classic tune from The Ethiopians, plus my personal favourite - "Splash Down" by The Crystalites, a driving instrumental which could be used as the musical dictionary term for "skinhead reggae instrumental" (if there was such a thing), it's so good. With a great mix of skin organ instrumentals and vocal anthems, and with two CDs there are so many classics pakced on here that you'll have a fantastic ...

john_harrison 21.09.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Dawning Of A New Era (The Roots Of Skinhead Reggae) - Various Artists

Studio One Ska is the ULTIMATE ska compilation

Advantages: Amazing songs, great packaging
Disadvantages: NONE

...sorts of subsidiary labels of Studio One and contains some educated and inspired selections - whoever put together this album definitely knows their stuff! GET IT NOW! if you like this album, check out the "Bonanza Ska" Studio One ska compilation, another absolutely essential album, and the Trojan Ska Box Sets ("Ska", "Ska Vol. 2", and "Ska Rarities"), plus the Prince Buster "King of Ska" CD. ...

john_harrison 21.09.2009 · Read full review
Ciao members have rated this review on average: very helpful
Review of Studio One Ska - Various Artists

Dancehall '69: The best skinhead reggae comp out there!

Advantages: Loads of tracks, amazing and obscure selection, great notes, EVERYTHING!
Disadvantages: None

This album, compiled by Michael De Koningh, is the best compilation of Skinhead Reggae, period (for those who want to know, skinhead reggae is - very basically - early reggae from around '68-71). It contains some monster rarities (which are still fantastic tunes, which will please both newbies and obsessive collectors alike), from obscure subsidiary record labels of Trojan and Pama records such as Gas, Camel, Escort, Joe, Big Shot, Grape, and Bullet. ...
...be a horrific task and would cost you a fortune, so be thankful for people like Mr De Koningh! This CD has it's own haunting vibe, it's an absolute revelation, with some of the best music ever released which otherwise would only have been be heard by the peope who bought the original 7" in '69! One of the most amazing things about this album is that you can listen to the tracks with absolutely no knowledge of the music, yet the sound is so raw, compelling, ...

john_harrison 21.09.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Dancehall '69 - Various Artists

Skinhead Revolt is Awesome!

Advantages: Awesome music, less than obvious selection
Disadvantages: Only 20 tracks!

...- with or without the skinhead tag attached. You may find some of the tracks on here on other compilations or artists CD's, but it's a fantastic effort from Trojan. I'm sure compiling these sorts of albums is a hugely difficult job as there's so much great material to choose from with seemingly no real reference point, but they've done a great job here. Unfortunately, there aren't any notes, but it doesn't really matter. Recommended! If you like ...

john_harrison 21.09.2009 · Read full review
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Review of Skinhead Revolt (20 Skinhead Classics) - Various Artists