Below you can find 5 albums that currently dominate my playlist. This list will be regularly updated. Hope to see you back soon!
1. Donald Byrd – A New Perspective
I’m not what you would call a Jazz adept but utter brilliance is simply hard to ignore when it is so evident as Donald Byrd’s A New Perspective. I had the album on my want list for some time now and even passed up the opportunity to purchase a rare pressing since the asking price of 270 euros was a bit too rich for my blood. I’m happy I did, because the SHM-CD I bought recently sounds phenomenal for just a fraction of what an original Vinyl release would have cost me.
2. Linval Thompson Meets Roberto Sanchez At The Ark (Marijuana Sessions In Dub)
Linval Thompson Meets Roberto Sanchez At The Ark has made a strong impression on me and that is based just on the one minute and thirty seconds snippets on of my favourite Reggae outlets Iroko Records. If you love the late 70’s Dub sound, just about on the brink of the Dancehall era, you are going to take a liking to what Roberto Sanchez has done with the original master tapes of this timeless classic from way back when. Strictly analogue as it was done in the day; reverb, echo and phase make you wine your waist!
J.J. Cales’s sound and way of singing has always put me right at ease even knowing he went through his early career dirt-poor and disillusioned by the music industry. Things took a turn for the better when other artists started covering his songs and royalties earned him enough money (and appraisal) to make a living as an musician, releasing his first album 32 years in the making. Even though the success in the wake of its release resulted in him not enjoying life as before, Naturally remains at the heart of the Tulsa sound cool as a summer breeze.
4. Kenny Smyth – Powerful Dread
There’s no shortcoming of talent in Jamaica and at times it seems the island will never run out of it. Kenny Smyth is definitely one of the brightest among the newest generation of Reggae stars and Powerful Dread is a showcase in word, sound and power. With abundance of young talent on board of this project in the form of the mighty Tuff Gong All Stars completed by some of the most seasoned session man on the scene brought the best out of this young and upcoming talent.
5. The Staples Jr. Singers – When Do We Get Paid
The 2022 reissue of 1975’s When Do We Get Paid keeps alive the spirit that instilled some of the biggest names in Blues, Soul and Gospel. I must have played “I’m Going to a City” so many times by now that there no escape from this year’s inclusion to my Spotify wrapped. A dead honest performance living up to the name that they choose to honour ever since they first set foot on a stage.