Customer Reviews

Soul Revolutionaries: The Early Jamaican Albums

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(0)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Before Bob and the Wailers made their legendary recordings for Chris Blackwell at Island Records they recorded several independent albums which are currently available on the Trojan label. This CD contains the first four of those albums. Contrary to popular belief this material is far superior to the Island material, not that the Island recording aren't good. Yes the production may not be slick but everything else is absolutely stellar- the songwriting, the vocal harmonies, the lyrics-everything is completely on-the-one. Versions of songs which were later re-recorded for Island are delivered with serious conviction, including the two great Peter Tosh songs "400 Years" and "Stop That Train" which sound rather flat on the Island recordings. As Bob says in one song-"if you are a big tree we are a small axe"- and listening to these recordings you can believe it is true.

There are two different versions for sale on Amazon. Does anyone know what the difference is between these? Is it packaging? I'm trying to avoid slipcase LP replicas. They tend to scratch after repeated use.

I own this material in some form or another, but really want the original albums too. That's why I am rating it 5 stars.