Rating:
Genre:
Reggae
Release Date: 04/25/1997
Through his work with
the Heptones, and his stint as a session bass player for
Clement "Coxsone" Dodd's
Studio One in the late 1960s and early 1970s,
Leroy Sibbles has been responsible for some of the most versioned rhythms in the history of Jamaican music. After leaving
the Heptones in 1977 and relocating to Canada for some 20 years,
Sibbles returned to Jamaica in 1994, even reuniting with
the Heptones for 1999's
Pressure! album. Just prior to that reunion,
Sibbles recorded this interesting and unassuming set, revisiting several of his classic
Studio One basslines with new lyrics and melodies. Backed by the
Firehouse Crew and with
Bunny Gemini in the producer's chair,
Sibbles exhibits the same sort of easy charisma he always had in
the Heptones, and it's easy to imagine songs like the lead track,
"Jump," or the horn-fed
"Come a Come" being covered by the group.
"Pope Paul" is sung over the famous rhythm that
Sibbles created for
the Mighty Diamonds'
"Pass the Kutchie" (made even more famous when it was covered by
Musical Youth as
"Pass the Dutchie"), while perhaps the best cut here,
"That's How It Is," has an ever-shifting and imaginative backing track, part
dub and part classic
roots reggae. Fans of
the Heptones will feel right at home with this disc, and by sticking to what he has always done,
Sibbles provides ample proof that, indeed, even though a lot of time has passed, it's not over.
~Steve Leggett, All Music Guide
;)
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