Barbados Reggae Bus

Advantages: great fun
Disadvantages: avoid 3pm to 5pm

...bright sun with the temperature around 30°C. A WHITE minibus approaches, then another, and another! Invitations are issued to climb aboard. But what did the rep have to say? Dire warnings as we recalled?.about safety, speed, overcrowding et alia. We boarded the fourth bus! What an experience! These are the 'reggae (mini) buses'! Otherwise known as ZR's (license plate letters!) the buses are WHITE some with a maroon stripe down the side. It transpired we were on Route 11. There were loads of them about ? the service was more frequent, more regular, and ran later at night. Any trip on a reggae bus is nothing if not memorable. Our driver was an extremely relaxed fellow, smoking a thin cigarette throughout, sporting beard, dreadlocks, and a colourful knitted wooly rasta hat. Our fellow passengers, all locals, generated a great atmosphere...

wanlan 24.08.2007 · Read review
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Review of 'Reggae Bus'

Studio One Ska is the ULTIMATE ska compilation

Advantages: Amazing songs, great packaging
Disadvantages: NONE

...You might have seen this CD before and been miffed at the measly 17 tracks on offer, especially compared to the 50 track box sets that Trojan offer for less money, and so left it on the shelf. However, this CD is simply the best ska compilation I've ever seen, so go back to the shop and buy it! I'll tell you why you should: This compilation contains original ska recorded at Brentford Road in the early sixties by the then-superstars of Jamaica, and the quality of the selection is awe-inspiring! As the house band, The Skatalites pretty much play on all of these tracks, with the artists forming a who's who of Jamaican music - Tommy McCook, Don Drummond, Jackie Mittoo and Roland Alphonso play in various arrangements alongside The Maytals, The Ethiopians, Delroy Wilson, Joe Higgs and The Wailers. The scorching ska instrumentals - Exodus...

john_harrison 21.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Studio One Ska - Various Artists

Reggae Got Soul

Advantages: Pressure Drop
Disadvantages: 3 Songs with ghastly 80's production

...I love Reggae but thankfully for you I am not as obsessive about it as I am about other forms of music, ok maybe I am but then I am more subdued about it. I spied this collection in my local HMV for £5-99 and it somehow slipped into my pocket, good thing too cause it has got two of my all time favorite songs on it "Reggae Got Soul" and Pressure Drop. This CD is part of Islands Reggae Greats series rather obviously from the Title isn?t it and has 12 chunks of chilled out Reggae by Toots and the Maytals on it. Kicking off with "54-46 That?s My Number" a rocksteady number for 1968 based upon Toots time in prison, then moving onto "Reggae Got Soul" it moves into a nice steady relaxed reggae grove and I am happily skanking away on my seat here. "Monkey Man" ups the tempo and I am chanting "Aye Aye Aye" hey I'm Scottish and we are...

Champ666 18.03.2005 · Read review
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Review of Reggae Greats - Toots & The Maytals

white trash punk reggae ska classic

Advantages: perfect for chilling
Disadvantages: none whatsoever

...Sublime material although the archives have already being raided. This is a sad loss because the Sublime album showcases a writer at his peak able to play with any number of musical genres and producing memorable songs every time. The album showcases the eclectic tastes of the band taking in Hip-hop, ska, punk, dub, heavy metal, latin and mixes them to produce a unique sound, and since discovering this band earlier this year this has become one of my favourite cds which I come back to time and again. By song – Garden Grove Starts off with a gentle reggae rhythm describing their love of Jamaican music and the hardship of being in a band before going dub stylee with heavy bass and a haunting synth line proving they can play it as well. What I Got Acoustic guitar, scratching and breakbeats – is this where Beck got his...

brownp1 17.07.2001 · Read review
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Review of Sublime [PA] - Sublime (Punk)

A Journey Through 50 Years of Reggae

Advantages: Cost, Range of Tracks overall, Original layout
Disadvantages: Disc 1 length

...The Island Records Anthology Box Set is a must for any Reggae fans. The box set is divided into three eras; 1959-1973 Ska to Reggae, including artists such as Jimmy Cliff, Don Drummond & the Skatellites and Desmond Dekker. This section portrays the upbeat, happy rhythms of Ska changing to Reggae later in this CD. In contrast Disc 2 gives us the 'Party time, roots and dub' of the 70s with Third World, Dillinger, Steel Pulse and Junior Murvin featuring their work. This disc provides a ride through the classic era of reggae at it height of popularity. The Final disc gives a modern take of reggae from 1980-2005 in 'Jamrock' with electronic elements and different melodies from Gregory Isaacs, Dennis Brown and Damian Marley, showing a transition to a more upbeat tempo. In my opinion the structure of the Island Records...

Meccers 29.07.2009 · Read review
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Review of War Ina Babylon (Island Records Reggae Box Set) - Various Artists

Ska-P Undiscovered brilliance

Advantages: Ska-P sublime music for any ska,punk or rock lovers
Disadvantages: none this album is flawless

...of a reggae feeling to it than any other song on here, though of course reggae and ska are of the same family. Do I need to mention the brass?No probably not. Just swing your hips and rock your head cos this music is magic. 'Tio Sam' is bouncy and another head bopper. The rhtym section of Ska P are outstanding they set sublime tempos. At times they are heavy, just like heavy rock , even metal put to a ska beat. They have made music inventive again.We even get a Metallica style guitar solo in this song though like much of this music it is tongue in cheek as well as tongue out.A cracking song! 'Violencia Machisto'. Even I can get close to a translation on this macho violence I guess. It is what you would expect from that title loud and rowdy. The keyboard in this song makes it. It is a case of one more brilliant track after another...

mart34 11.02.2007 · Read review
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Review of Planeta Eskoria [PA] - Ska-P

Reggae Pressure: Boss Sounds '69-70 - buy this album, now!

Advantages: High quality tracks, excellent sleeve notes and photos
Disadvantages: You may have most of the tracks

...Compiled by reggae experts Chris Lane, Noel Hawks and Dave Hendley (people who were actually there in '69 and love and know the music inside out), this CD is an absolute must if you enjoy the classic era of reggae. Even if you already have most of the tunes, this album is up there with other top-quality Trojan releases covering the same period, such as "Dancehall '69" and "Dawning of a New Era", and also includes a few rarities such as George Dekker's "Foey Man" to justify the purchase! The quality never lets up, with classic early reggae instrumentals, rocksteady, DJ cuts and fast skinhead reggae anthems. Just stick it your CD player and it'll never come out! Note: four of the advertised tracks are not on here, namely "Vampire" by The Upsetters, "Swan Lake" by The Cats, "Barbwire" by Nora Dean, and "Rooster" by Tommy McCook. Don't let...

john_harrison 20.09.2009 · Read review
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Review of Reggae Pressure (Boss Sounds 1968-70) - Various Artists

Look Out, He's Behind You! - not a pantomine

Advantages: Offers interaction with a familiar story
Disadvantages: None

...Look out he?s behind you! is a book I took out of the library a few weeks ago for my grandchildren to read while visiting me for the day. They thoroughly enjoyed it inspite of there agea of 2 and 3 years which has led ne to write this review. RRP - £5.99 Publisher - Frances Lincoln Books ISBN - 978-1-84507-734-1 Format - 20page paperback Ages - 4 -8 years The front cover of the book features a young girl in a bright red coat and hat holding a basket with a wolf watching from behind a tree. On the back cover the wolf is more prominent and appears to be saying ?sssssh!? as the young girl disappears into the distance. The story is obviously the tale of Red Riding Hood who is on her way to visit her sick grandmother with a basket full of goodies. The story starts by introducing the different characters in the book , Little Red Riding...

colliedog2 19.10.2009 · Read review
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Review of Look Out, He's Behind You! - Tony Bradman

He's Just Not That Into You - Or Is He?

Advantages: Quirky comedy romance that is also thought-provoking.
Disadvantages: None

...him to leave, which Neil does, but he's still into Beth, and she's still into him, but marriage isn't on the horizon so they'll remain into each other separately! As for Alex, he makes a point of never being into anyone because he just can't handle it, and Mary... well... Mary would love to be into someone who doesn't think that voicemail and texting are equivalent to actual talking. Confused? Don't be... Gigi, Beth and Janine are close friends who work for the same company. Gigi, who is extremely sweet and naïve, would love to find Mr. Right, but she might settle for Mr. So-So if he actually returns her calls. Beth, on the other hand, has already found Mr. Right, however, her long-time beau, Neil, doesn't believe in marriage. As for Janine, she managed to hogtie her college sweetheart by giving him an ultimatum; marriage or bust...

GoFigure 30.06.2009 · Read review
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Review of He's Just Not That Into You (DVD)

Brummie Reggae

Advantages: Great songs, great music, serious message
Disadvantages: Some of the songs have lost their context

...The legacy of punk has been widely recognised, we can see a direct link between the late seventies anarchic punk music and the more politically based new wave groups and indie guitar groups that followed in the 80's all the way through to today's nu punk bands. Another rather more unusual spin off of the punk era was a popularisation and eventual emergence into the charts of Ska/Reggae. In the early days when live punk bands were playing small venues DJ were filling in the time in between acts not with punk records as none of these new acts had been recorded yet but with reggae and Ska records. This led to an awareness of reggae to a young white audience and it wasn't long before home-grown reggae group were springing up alongside the punk influenced new wave bands. These new British reggae groups tended to be based in parts...

Mauri 11.05.2005 · Read review
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Review of Signing Off - UB40