One of the great things about reggae’s “version culture” is how getting your mitts on a new tune can reactivate whole swathes of your collection. I stumbled across a storming UK twelve on the Boops riddim recently and spent a very pleasant Saturday afternoon on a version excursion tip, fishing out classics and long forgotten cuts …
Cooler Man – Kanjiwatanye I absolutely love this tune. I like how it manages to be catchy as fuck – even though I have no clue what any of the lyrics are. Full marks for the rockstone delivery also. The video is great, just random stuff that he and his mates are up to in …
Continue reading ‘2005 Ugandan Dancehall Video of the week #7’ »
I don’t spend enough time with my records (who does?). Most of my music listening is done on the walk to and from work. Sitting at home in my cupboard the other night, I discovered that the ace Dug Out label were re-releasing “Hole Up Your Hand” by legendary north London reggae MC Raymond Naphtali …
Continue reading ‘I paid cash money for mp3s – SHOCK CONFESSION’ »
This week’s selection is brought to you by Sweet Kid: In which our hero puts an alarming amount of amorous activity into wooing said Brenda. But she seems almost catatonic in her lack of enthusiasm for his efforts. Give it up mate, she’s more trouble than she’s worth! Sweet Kid is a great name for …
Continue reading ‘2005 Ugandan Dancehall Video of the week #6’ »
Unknown by Unknown. Pah. (Remember when Mixmag or Muzik would have those ridiculous DJ top tens every month, and one of them would always be some drum ‘n’ bass guy boasting about how he had loads of white labels of unknown providence? I swear that’s where Origin Unknown got their name). Nice bit of female …
Continue reading ‘2005 “Ugandan” Dancehall Video of the week #5’ »
This week’s selection from the man like Bobi Wine, the self-styled “President of Uganja”! A tune called “Bam Bam” which isn’t the Toots or Pliers or Sister Nancy ones. Echoes of TOK or Ward 21 with the low backing vocals. Echoes of many JA videos with the visuals. Still a nice track, though – kind …
Continue reading ‘2005 Ugandan Dancehall Video of the week #4’ »
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vDSkQ8XnFiw Thanks to Droid for alerting me to this surprising addendum to the Papa Levi story. So this is an undisputed classic UK MC tune, OK? If you had a Papa Levi acapella in the early 90s, you’d seriously consider doing a jungle relick, right? No brainer! But… would you make it a lounge-jazz …
Continue reading ‘Papa Levi – Mi God Mi King: Jungle Version’ »
Next up is Jamila by Jose Chameleone: This is a bit more lightweight and summery than my previous offerings, a nice combination of African pop and reggae stylings. But don’t let the easy skanking fool you! This tune seems to be about wife-beating and has a disturbing statistic about its prevalence buried within the footage. …
Continue reading ‘2005 Ugandan Dancehall Video of the week #3’ »
1. Zap Pow – The River (Lee Perry production, 1977) 2. Augustus Pablo – East of The River Nile (Augustus Pablo/King Tubby production, 1977) 3. Dr Pablo – North of the River Thames (Adrian Sherwood production, 1984) 4. Digidub – South East of the Thames (Lee Berwick production, 1993) Link 5. Tinie Tempah – South …