Strange Kind of Woman
--
victory, hvala za Azizu Zareh
Moderator: _BataZiv_0809



1. S D I...reggae icon's 1987 album with The Dub Syndicate. This release has Perry at his brilliant best, the rhythms are complex & the melodic lines within the tunes are classic Lee Scratch Perry.

Those having witnessed Frank Black exorcising his demons through screams and wails onstage with the Pixies will stop for a double-take when they hear this, an album the frontman recorded live in Nashville just days before the band launched its 2004 reunion tour. He sounds like George Jones with a hangover. Stripping away the ear-splitting feedback and lyrics about spaceships, Black teams up with a group of dust-caked local musicians, whose collective resumes include stints at Stax Records, Muscle Shoals and American Studios, for a set of songs that are beautiful and warm--even when on "Another Velvet Nightmare," he mournfully sings, "Today I felt my heart slide in my belly/ So I puked it up with liquor."
1. Selkie BrideJust before the Pixies began their reunion tour in 2004, Frank Black holed up in Nashville, surrounded himself with legendary session musicians and recorded his first solo album for eight years. Guaranteed to confound those still wallowing in the glorious resurrection of the shrieking, screaming Black Francis, he's discovered a mellow maturity in Southern soul - and without losing his punk rock perversity or poetry.
Against a wash of guitars, simple harmonies and keyboards, his voice glides from bitter-sweet on Selkie Bride to shiver-inducing on Dark End of the Street, accompanied by songwriters Dan Penn and Spooner Oldham. Other covers, including the unlikely Song of the Shrimp from Elvis Presley's 1962 film klix! klix! klix!, melt against Black's own songs without disturbing the warm, timeless mood. Strange Goodbye, for instance, a duet sung with Black's ex-wife, Jean, is a poignant snapshot of marital breakdown. But he sums up his stunning new direction best on Lone Child when he sings: "I'm not full of your hate, I'm full of my grace."

1 (Jesus Hits Like The) Atom Bomb (2:27)Since 1992's Deep River, the Blind Boys of Alabama have been exploring the spiritual possibilities of secular pop songs, and by updating their sound without sacrificing one ounce of their fiery, deep gospel soul vocal approach, they have completely redefined themselves as a vibrant contemporary act for the 21st century, while stretching the boundaries of what constitutes gospel in the process. The group's latest, Atom Bomb, adds loops and hip-hop sensibilities to the mix, and with the aid of guests like Billy Preston, los Lobos guitarist David Hidalgo, Charlie Musselwhite, and rapper Gift of Gab from Blackalicious, provides further evidence that the Blind Boys, even though they are all in their 70s (singer George Scott, one of the group's founders, died in March, 2005 at the age of 75, just as this album was being released), have no intention of becoming a gospel nostalgia act. With Clarence Fountain, George Scott and Jimmy Carter splitting the lead vocal turns, and with perfectly spare and funky rhythmic support from guitarists Joey Williams and Bobby Butler, bassist Tracie Pierce and drummer Ricke McKinnie, the Blind Boys take Blind Faith's "Presence of the Lord" the rest of the way to the altar, and give traditional gospel scraps like "Old Blind Barnabas" and "Moses" (two of the obvious highlights here) a ragged, funky exposition that puts real soul on their bones. The rap pieces, like a cover of the Fatboy Slim/Macy Gray tune "Demons," which features Gift of Gab, seem more interesting for what they attempt than what they accomplish, however, and the version here of Norman Greenbaum's "Spirit in the Sky," which was never really a secular tune in the first place, fails to find any new spiritual (or musical) dimensions in the song, but these are minor problems in what is a pretty good album. The title cut, a cover of the Cold War-era "(Jesus Hits Like The) Atom Bomb," reveals a surprisingly current world view forty-some-years after it was initially recorded by the legendary Soul Stirrers, and is further proof that, although they may be well up in years, the Blind Boys of Alabama still know how to get to the soul of the matter. ~ Steve Leggett, All Music Guide

01 - Marvin Gaye - YesterdayYou'd think with the stable of great tunesmiths Motown employed in the '60s that there would be no need to go outside the family for songs. There was no denying the might of the Beatles catalog, however. So it makes sense that Berry Gordy, a man who wanted his brand of black music to be suitable for everyone, would marry his all-star roster to the music of Lennon and McCartney. Great songs, great singers--what could go wrong? Well, sometimes plenty. Listen to the Supremes gamely tackling "A Hard Day's Night," their harmonies trapped in a leaden arrangement that can't switch gears from Liverpool to Detroit. Or cringe as Diana Ross massacres Lennon's solo anthem "Imagine." Sometimes the singers overpower the material, as when the rough-and-ready Four Tops turn the understated "Eleanor Rigby" into a stomp. But sometimes it's sublime, as when Marvin Gaye envisions "Yesterday" as a hushed hymn, or Stevie Wonder revitalizes the already feisty "We Can Work It Out" by giving the tune a soul-drenched swagger. As an artifact of pop culture, this collection is fascinating. As a musical statement? Well, utilize your CD programmer. --Amy Linden
-----------------
UK compilation featuring 17 Motown interpretations of The Beatles' classics. Tracks, 'A Hard Day's Night' Diana Ross & The Supremes, 'The Fool On The Hill' Four Tops, 'Eleanor Rigby' Four Tops, 'Michelle' Four Tops, 'We Can Work Out' Stevie Wonder, 'And I Love Her' Smokey Robinson & The Miracles, 'Hey Jude' The Temptations, 'Something' Martha Reeves & The Vandellas, 'Yesterday' Marvin Gaye, 'Let It Be' Gladys Knight & The Pips, 'The Long & Winding Road' Diana Ross, 'Imagine' Diana Ross, 'Come Together' The Supremes & Cindy Birdsong, 'My Love' Jr. 'Walker & The All-Stars, 'She's Leaving Home' Syreeta, 'My Sweet Lord' Edwin Starr & 'You Can't Do That' Diana Ross & The Supremes.

Disc: 1This four-CD celebration offers an incredibly comprehensive look at the Allman Brothers, adding early demos, rare live recordings, alternate takes, outtakes, remixes, and solo efforts to the already powerful "official" catalog. Their progression from '60s Invasion-style rockers to blues cover band with a taste for B.B. King to dynamic rock & roll juggernaut is astonishing, and the inclusion of sundry oddities will make collectors happy.
----
Boxed sets such as this typically are a mixture of "Greatest Hits" material with enough unreleased material to hook die-hard fans into going ahead and spending money. "Dreams" is no exception to this, but it is better organized than most boxed sets. Die hards who already own the albums will get a lot of duplicate material, but roughly a third of it is unreleased and/or difficult to find. Those interested in discovering the group are in for a real treat! This boxed set is the perfect introduction.
Disc one is mostly cuts from the Pre-ABB groups The Allman Joys, Hour Glass, The 31st of February, and The Second Coming. When I saw the track listings after buying the set, I was initially disappointed by this, as I have little interest in being an Allman's "completist." However, I was relieved that all of the early cuts are at least pretty good, and at times, sublime! You hear a clear progression from psychedelic cover band to blues virtuosos to jazz/rock/country fusion. The second half of the disc is downright excellent.
Discs two and three are, by and large, greatest hits from the ABB golden era. If you don't already have a copy of the amazing Live at Fillmore East, there are three remastered cuts of probably the best tracks from Fillmore. Most ABB fans will already have Fillmore, but if you don't it's great to have these.
Over half of Disc four is solo and side project material by ABB members. As with disk one, all of these cuts are at least pretty good, with some really excellent numbers thrown in as well.
I'd rate this as one of the best boxed sets available because it doesn't contain any unnecessary filler tracks. You won't find yourself hitting the skip button very much at all. The breadth of ABB's musical heritage is laid out clearly and will continue to amaze after many listens.

1 Louisiana Fog (4:15)...This hodgepodge of material and sidemen still has some standouts, especially Little Richard's R&B ballad "Directly from My Heart" -- which features the Ford brothers and Tim Kaihatsu and Clay Cotton (back in the lineup from the Stone Blues days). "Big Legged Woman" and "Takin' Care of Business" are respectable... ~ Dan Forte, All Music Guide

Part 1DEVENDRA BANHART
"The Golden Apples of the Sun"
(Bastet 0001)
"Essential." -- Mojo, September 2004
"Sparkling." -- The Wire, July 2004
"8.6 (out of 10): [Its] sprawling landscape presents a persuasive case for the depth of a scene that seemingly sprung up (like mushrooms) overnight." -- Pitchfork, July 8, 2004
This is a compilation of current underground folk music, as selected by Devendra Banhart. Features artwork and handlettering by Devendra on cover, back cover, sleeve, tray and the disk itself.
The Golden Apples of the Sun is the first of two great compliations courtesy of the Arthur Magazine's in-house Bastet label. This fine collection of tracks spotlighting some of the artists of the new wave of folk music was selected by Devendra Banhart and includes Espers, Six Organs Of Admittance, Vashti Bunyan & Devendra Banhart, Joanna Newsom, Vetiver, Josephine Foster, Matt Valentine, Jack Rose, CocoRosie, Iron and Wine, White Magic and many more.
The first edition of 1000 copies sold out in a short space of time but due to popular demand and wide critical acclaim this second limited run of 1000 has been made.
1. Vetiver (with Hope Sandoval) - "Angel's Share" (from the "Vetiver" LP)About 10 years ago, I put a copy of Morton Subotnick's Silver Apples of the Moon on hold at a used record store in New Jersey. I've avoided picking it up mostly because I like the idea of it still being nestled away somewhere, forgotten by everyone. Devendra Banhart's title Golden Apples of the Sun neatly references the final line from W.B. Yeats' "The Song of Wandering Angus", where it's paired with those silver moon apples. ("And pluck till time and times are done/ The silver apples of the moon/ The golden apples of the sun.") It's also an album by Judy Collins, a collection of stories by Ray Bradbury, and a low-budget 1971 film about violence and hippies. But perhaps Banhart chose the title to contrast directly with Subotnick's famously chilly modulations, because even while this compilation functions as a kind of now-sound capsule of the contemporary neo-folk scene, its best artists share an anachronistic, misfiled air with Subotnick's dusty gem, patiently awaiting discovery.
Whatever the title's derivation, as head curator, Banhart assumes the tricky role of scene definer. I can't imagine the man behind "This Beard Is for Siobhan" subscribing to locked-door scenesterism, but Golden Apples of the Sun draws a clean line in the sand. Unlike Brian Eno, who kept his No New York sampler to just four acts, the bearded bard here musters a generous spread of 20 diverse freakfolk acts to serve as representatives of the various facets of the underground's most recent (and most promising) pigeonhole. Not intended to flood the market, Golden Apples of the Sun is limited to 1,000 copies and can only be had through Arthur magazine, which released the disc on its newly founded Bastet imprint.
For this disc, Banhart wisely pairs spankin' new tracks with a number of previously released ones. In an interesting change of pace from most compilations, however, the non-exclusive cuts are the real draw here, and they greatly benefit from both Banhart's careful sequencing and separation from their original full-lengths. Saddled between two downcast instrumentals, Little Wings' "Look at What the Light Did Now" absolutely sparkles. Kyle Field owns a preternaturally heartbreaking (and charmingly off-key) voice even at his happiest, and here, outside the context of his spotty K Records albums, his syllables are remarkably affecting. Viking Moses also kicks it Little Wings-style; his "Crosses" (from the album of the same name) displays a pawnshop sweetness: "Without love, life is gone/ Without life, love goes on and on."
Golden Apples' shifts in gradation keeps the narrative from stalling-out: Espers' "Byss & Abyss" balances boy/girl contrast with just the right amount of Philly opiate haziness; six-stringer Jack Rose ups the finger-picking ante with the careening notes of "White Mule" from his Red Horse, White Mule; Iron & Wine beautifully represent for soft strums with "Fever Dream" from their hugely popular Our Endless Numbered Days; and Banhart himself shows up dueting with folk legend Vashti Bunyan on the title track of his recent masterstroke, Rejoicing in the Hands.
Anti-folk singer/songwriter and nutritionist Diane Cluck's "Heat from Every Corner" (from Macy's Day Bird) comes complete with ambient footsteps and a click of the off switch, and sounds as though it was placed on tape by Chan Marshall 40 years ago. Current 93 collaborator and one of NYC's most compelling voices, Antony, closes out the disc in style with a musical interpretation of Edgar Allan Poe's "The Lake", featuring his signature heart-rending, androgynous operatics and mesmerizing piano. (If you're unfamiliar with his work, check out the I Fell in Love with a Dead Boy EP and be blown away by the brilliant camp heartache.)
Displacement breathes life into Currituck Co.'s "The Tropics of Cancer", a smiling but subdued acoustic instrumental from the often enjoyable Ghost Man on First, while Vetiver turn in "Angel's Share", a collaboration with Mazzy Star's Hope Sandoval that marked the standout on their self-titled debut. White Magic's "Don't Need" isn't the most riveting track from the Brooklyn trio's Drag City debut, but this meandering twanger makes more sense in the compilation's context than any of Through the Sun Door's witchier tracks.
Meanwhile, inherently strong numbers continue to shine: Joanna Newsom's "Bridges and Balloons" feels just as triumphant torn from The Milk-Eyed Mender. It functions as a lead-in for Six Organs of Admittance's "Hazy SF", a wee ditty that swims in the suave-dude realm of Compathia rather than the gorgeous spaciousness of the recently reissued gem For Octavio Paz.
The real treats, however, come courtesy of two lesser-known acts. Chicago's Josephine Foster (of Born Heller and The Children's Hour) rustles backwoods memories amid banjo, flute, and the indescribable air of English romanticism on the unreleased home recording "Little Life". It's a stunning fragment: Shirley Collins collides with and bows gently within the cleansing mud of a rocky stream. Likewise, ex-Matty & Mossy vocalist Jana Hunter blows the roof off the barn with "Farm, CA", a section of hauntingly whispered lo-fi dreaminess.
Not everything here achieves the understated power of these aforementioned tracks, but Golden Apples of the Sun's sprawling landscape presents a persuasive case for the depth of a scene that seemingly sprung up (like mushrooms) overnight. It's impossible to pick apart intentions, but this music feels far more sincere than other recent buzzes, and even if these artists are pulling the wool over our eyes (which seems unlikely), it would appear that perhaps a few of these players will outlast the current critical harvesting. To see if I'm right, hide this disc in your bedroom after one listen and wait a decade before that second date.

The track listing for 'Cripple Crow' is as follows:Devendra Banhart will return September 13 (Sep. 19 in Europe) with 'Cripple Crow', a record which sees the acclaimed modern folk singer/songwriter broaden his horizons.
The follow up to 2004's back-to-back releases 'Rejoicing In The Hands' and 'Nino Rojo', 'Cripple Crow' was recorded in Bearsville studios near the town of Woodstock, NY in the Catskill Mountains. Joining Banhart in the studio is sidekick Andy Cabic, Noah Georgeson and Thom Monahan -- the with latter credited as co-engineer & the former co-producer -- as well as a host of other musicians linked into the west coast acoustic scene.
Soundgenerator has heard the album, and can report it is bigger, brighter and certainly more ambitious than the 'Rejoicing/Rojo' releases last summer. While retaining Barhart's intimacy, the record focuses attention on electric ensembles rather than just acoustic guitars, and draws occasional symphonic moments on tracks such as 'Heard Somebody Say', 'Long Haired Child' and 'I Feel Like A Child'. A number of the tracks, three specifically ("Santa Maria Da Feira," "Quedate Luna" and "Luna De Margarita,"), are sung in Spanish, Banhart's second language.
Devendra will be touring across Europe throughout August, including a number of festival appearances in his itinerary, before embarking on a North American leg in October.

1. Million MilesMirah is another in the growing line of stripped-down, lo-fi, simple, but somehow heartwrenching acts. That being the case, it's hard to describe this music without the aid of a million referents (Moldy Peaches, Cat Power, Azure Ray, April March, Edie Brickell, etc.).
While I want to dislike this sparce music which consists mostly of Mirah Yom Tov Zeitlyn's delicate, sophomoric vocals and light tremomlo guitar, repetitive lines like "if we sleep together, will it make it any better" from "La Familia" make my inner 17 year old indie grrl do cartwheels. Run-on sentences aside, this album is the kind of stuff Jack White probably listens to on rainy days. "Sweepstakes Prize" builds from a do-wop wink into a fuzzy, rocking song. "Person, Person" recalls some on Donovan's sillier moments. The range of ground Mirah covers is represented best on "This Dance," which starts off full of lament, and threatens continually to build through three musically varied verses.
The music is undeniably light, but it is also diverse enough to keep things interesting. It's a guilty pleasure that will probably become a permanent part of my personal rotation.


Hailing from Bishopville, South Carolina, Drink Small has the biggest, deepest bass voice in the blues. His amazingly expressive sound falls right in between B.B. King and Bo Diddley. But Drink’s got a little something extra. I think it’s his gospel background. Growing up, as Drink puts it, he was “boogalooing on Saturday, hallelujahing on Sunday.” It gives his work on the fretboard a little extra reverence and soulfulness. This set’s a mouth-watering mixture of blues and soul, including James Brown’s “I Feel Good”, T-Bone’s “Stormy Monday” and Drink’s own lusty “I’m In Love With A Grandma”.
1. STORMY MONDAY BLUES (T-Bone Walker)As the title implies, this disc presents blues doctor Small recorded live, playing electric guitar. The venue is a club in Washington, DC, and unobtrusive accompaniment is provided by J.J. Miller on guitar and harmonica, Wayne Mitchum on bass, and Steve Kent on drums.
The date was 1988, prior to Small's two Ichiban LPs, and, not surprisingly, Mapleshade's production values put the leader's voice and guitar a bit more to the fore than did Ichiban's. The sound is commendably clean and natural because, as the notes boast, there was "no mixing board, filtering, compression, equalization, noise reduction, multi-tracking, or overdubbing." Small, touted as "possibly the only major blues singer today with a true basso profundo voice, works his way through a playlist of mostly familiar material, with quite a lot of good-humored monologue extending most cuts. Although he is a sufficiently distinctive singer and guitarist to make even ten minutes of Stormy Monday bearable, Small is too fine a songwriter to be represented by only two originals both of which are quite good.
Because Small's personality comes through so strongly, this is a more entertaining set than might be expected from the song selection. It provides the best showcase yet for his guitar skills, and an entirely solo set might make a worthy companion especially if it featured more original material.

If David Lynch opened a strip joint somewhere between the blues, jazz and the netherworld, Chuck E. Weiss would be its MC.
Chuck is a central figure in the L.A. music scene, and is admired by a wide variety of writers, actors and directors for his heart, soul and commitment to a true style and ethic that many other have abandoned. He is a living legend, a true original.
1. Congo Square At MidnightWith a career work ethic that would shame the slackest slacker--or even Randy Newman--this 2002 release marks just the second album by inveterate L.A. music fixture Chuck E. Weiss (and subject of Rickie Lee Jones's 1979 hit, "Chuck E.'s in Love") in 18 years. And unlikely as it seems, this follow up to his 1999 rough-cut jewel, Extremely Cool, finds Weiss on a creative, if typically slapdash, roll. This gleefully haphazard cocktail of blues, swing, be-bop, and Dixieland still can't escape comparisons with old pal Tom Waits, except that Weiss's self-dubbed "alternative jungle music" is typically more accessible--and infinitely more hilarious--than his better-publicized peer. Typically (and gratifyingly), Weiss approaches this music with all the dignity of a lush at an open bar: slave chants rub shoulders with middle-aged Jew hoodoo ("Congo Square at Midnight"); the tale of "Sweetie-O" swings to a spare hipster groove laid down by guitarist Tony Gilkyson; the patent falsetto-weirdness of "Piggly Wiggly" segues like old grease into the '50s trash-can-rhythm shuffle of "Two Tone Car." The toy piano of "Anthem for Old Souls" and loopy rhymes of "Sneaky Jesus" may also recall the Waits connection, but the goofily heartfelt lament of "No Hep Cats" and smoky jazz of "Blood Alley" argue that Weiss holds his distinctly American bohemian traditions, musical and otherwise, in high regard. As if to underscore the point, Weiss has included "Down the Road Apiece," his 1970 duet with blues legend Willie Dixon, a track that's perhaps the album's most jarringly normal. Also included is a video enhanced bonus track of "Cub Scout Suit (With the Butt Cut Out)" recorded live at L.A.'s Viper Room. A compelling argument that strong roots can nonetheless yield a spectacularly twisted tree.


1. Egypt StrutThe real gems of this prized reissue from Leo Records's Golden Years vault imprint are two previously unreleased tracks. The first features Sun Ra and his Arkestra on an 18-minute "Watusa" from 1984, and the second features a 13-minute piece by Saleh Ragab's Cairo Free Jazz Ensemble, "Music for Angela Davis," from 1971. It's no surprise Sun Ra loved going to Egypt, what with all the astro-mythology he used in the Arkestra. This love shows brightly on "Egypt Strut" and "Dawn," two Ragab tunes played by Ra's band with the Egyptian percussionist sitting in. The early 1980s were a creatively thriving time for Sun Ra, and the band sounds tight, with a weave of percussion backing their every move. "Watusa" sounds like a bootleg, thin in audio but thrilling in execution. It's an unvarnished beauty. As for "Music for Angela Davis," it departs from the other Ragab pieces (there are three others on the CD) in that it's furiously triggered, full of heavy percussion, voices rambling over the top in spots, and tearing horns. For Sun Ra fans, this is a must.

1. Something New2005 Album from the Singer/Songwriter who Rose to Fame with Hits Like "Twist in My Sobriety". It is her Sixth Studio Album and her First Record Since 1998’s "Cappuccino Songs". The Album features 10 Songs and Unique Vocal Collaborations with Nick Lowe (Who Sings on Two of the Tracks). Articulate and Engagingly Self Deprecating, Tanita’s Aims for this Album were Very Simple: "i Wanted to Get Back to Things I Had Forgotten, Fundamental Ideas About Keeping Things Simple and Interesting and Looking at How the Voice Sits with Other Instruments", Says Tanita, "ideas I Felt I Lost but which Maybe I Just Knew Naturally When I was Seventeen."

1. Whatever It IsBen Lee has been a mainstay on alternative rock airwaves; it’s hard to believe the Australian singer/songwriter is still only 26. For album number six he comes full circle on a decade of recordings, working with producer Brad Wood (Liz Phair, Smashing Pumpkins) who spearheaded the sound of Lee’s debut record Grandpaw Would in 1995. Awake… follows a comparable blueprint of 2002’s Hey You Yes You: uncomplicated, unassuming, no-gloss pop songs. But there is evidence of a newfangled wisdom in Lee and his sketches of songwriting dexterity, which include the distinctive pop-rocker ("Catch My Disease"), the persuasive ballad ("Get Gotten"), the adoring folk number ("The Debt Collectors") and an indulgently experimental nine-and-a-half minute opus ("Light"). Code one could be the riff-fully sanguine opener ("Whatever It Is") in which the author proposes we chase our instincts, then verifies on the ensuing 13 songs that he does just that. "They might tell you that you shouldn’t," sings Lee, "But do it. Whatever it is."
------------
From the Artist
"you go to bed one night feeling that you’ve come to a dead end, that everything has been said and done, that there is no magic in the world...but the next morning you wake up - and everything’s changed.
wake up. wake up. wake up. this is an album about waking up."

Hey, why not a soccer motif; after all, it's popular in both England and Jamaica. More mixing tomfoolery with moments of true spaciness and avant-garde styling. Not an essential Scientist recording, but fine indeed.
-------------------
Re-mastered by the hand of God, "Scientist Wins The World Cup" is now back on stadium-friendly CD format with added extra time and bonus balls.
Taking us back to the days when Junjo and Cyril Regis ruled the roost, "Wins The World Cup" is a masterclass of total dub with the trophy-lifting Roots Radics shaking the Channel One studio to the rafters with a woofer-whacking selection of net-busters.
Crucially mixed 'Three Lions of Judah style" by Scientist at King Tubby's, "Scientist Wins The World Cup" now comes complete with six exclusive never-before-issued "stick it up your bollocks" Johnny Osbourne and Hugh Mundell dub plates.
1982 saw the Jamaican supreme team under threat from dub teams from foreign. Yard's finest did not shrink from the challenge and the evidence is on this album. Jah Shaka, Mad Professor, Adrian Sherwood - your boys took one hell of a beating!

1.Beam DownIn addition to boxing fellow engineer Prince Jammy, ridding the world of vampires, and winning the World Cup, Scientist used his early-'80s records to thematically battle computer game foes. But prior to taking on Pac-Man, Scientist first "met" the Space Invaders on this 1981 Greensleeves release. The cosmic theme is well served on ten effects-riddled tracks, with the rockers-style material being littered by all manner of stratosphere-breaking sounds from the mixing board. However, compared to the bustle of earlier efforts like Scientist Rids the World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires, Scientist Meets the Space Invaders comes off sounding lean and steely, strategically adorned with snatches of ghostly echo and pneumatic percussion; it's certainly an appropriate mood for a post-apocalyptic battle involving cartoon machines. And just below this incorporeal layer of sound is the fine and original production work of Linval Thompson (Scientist also mixed cuts by rival producer Henry "Junjo" Lawes) and the stellar playing of the Roots Radics band. A great dub title, which, like Rids the World of the Evil Curse of the Vampires, is one of Scientist's essential recordings. ~ Stephen Cook, All Music Guide

After a stint learning the dub craft from innovator King Tubby in the late '70s, Scientist began mixing his own sessions, coming up with a more wide-ranging and effects-riddled sound than that of his mentor. One of a handful of choice Scientist albums on the Greensleeves label, Rids the World of the Curse of the Vampires (1981) not only ably displays the mix masters varied approach, but clocks in as one of his best outings. While Scientist heeds Tubby's minimalist call with "strictly drum and bass" cuts like "Night of the Living Dead" -- spotlighting tightly wound guitar and organ chords for body -- he also expands things with a sunny mix of horns and bubbly keyboards on "The Mummy's Shroud" (as hard as it is to imagine sunshine with a ghoulish title such as this). Even without horns, Scientist keeps things lively with plenty of reverb and echo-treated percussion, ghostly piano parts, video game sound effects, and other various wobbly interjections from the mixing board. Pointing to his originality, Scientist doesn't just apply a few tweaks here and there, but heavily reworks the basic tracks -- here laid down by the fine Roots Radics band and produced by Henry "Junjo" Lawes (Don Carlos, Frankie Paul) -- then deftly integrates his panoply of effects into the cut-up mix. And adding to the record's expert evocation of the Halloween spirit are some fiendishly voiced intros, the cover art's cartoon potpourri of horror film characters, and the dubious claim made in the liner notes that Scientist mixed it all at midnight on Friday the 13th (reach for the flashlights kids). Along with Keith Hundson's Pick a Dub and Lee Perry's Blackboard Jungle Dub, this excellent Scientist release is one of the essential dub albums available. ~ Stephen Cook, All Music Guide
1 Voodoo Curse (3:48]Scientist is a master reggae singer/mix-master who, in 1981, recorded this deep, dark, spooky set of dub. Dub, for those new to the term, is a style of reggae where a song is deconstructed/reconstructed by the person running the mixing board. Echoes are added, vocals are subtracted, voices and instruments bounce about like balls in a game of pool. The boisterous vocals jump out at you, the bass is heavy enough to rock your insides, the drums reverberate like ghostly footfalls and the other instruments--guitar, horns, keyboards--create earthy yet eerie textures. Don't let the title put you off--RIDS THE WORLD is top-of-the-line dub reggae.

1. Dub FireThe original album 'New Chapter' was Aswad at it it's best; before they went into a more 'Top 40' direction. This is the dub version of that album. If you like dub versions, this is the best ever made. I burned a CD combning both albums on one disc with each original song followed by it's dub version - Fantastic!! Highly recommended.