At the same time that Neville ‘Bunny Wailer’ Livingston recorded his debut solo long playing masterpiece, ‘Blackheart Man’, he was also creating a series of singles for his own Solomonic label. These records were every bit as good, at times even better, but they have never been released outside of Jamaica. Until now…

An unimpeachable classic considered to be the pinnacle of Rastafarian inspired music. Master drummer Count Ossie’s band, including the incomparable tenor saxophonist Cedric ‘I’m’ Brooks, recreate a Rasta grounation, or gathering, playing and chanting a sublime supplication, including Bible readings, in praise of Emperor Haile Selassie I

A sombre, controversial masterpiece from the legendary ‘Cool Ruler’.An overlooked classic produced in Waterhouse by King Tubby and unjustly neglected since its original release on the aptly entitled Serious Business label.

Celebrated session guitarist, Willie Lindo, steps from behind the scenes and into the spotlight to deliver some top class original compositions and sublime cover versions.

Rare and seriously sought after instrumental album of Gay Feet rocksteady hits from 1968.

Eleven elegant instrumental tracks, and one female vocal, showcasing the tenor sax artistry of master musician Roland Alphonso, ably assisted by Aubrey Adams on organ and the inestimable Lynn Taitt on guitar, interpreting a selection of Mrs Pottinger’s most memorable hits of the era.

Miraculously rare and seriously obscure killer dubs… one of the very few hard core seventies dub albums mixed by Errol Brown.

A selection of solid dubs originally recorded by BB Seaton at Duke Reid’s legendary Treasure Isle studio and mixed in-house by the Duke’s nephew Errol Brown. A radical departure for all concerned this bold dub album was never officially released although a few clandestine copies reputedly did the New York rounds at the time

At the same time that Neville ‘Bunny Wailer’ Livingston recorded his debut solo long playing masterpiece, ‘Blackheart Man’, he was also creating a series of singles for his own Solomonic label. These records were every bit as good, at times even better, but they have never been released outside of Jamaica. Until now…

Superlative 70’s dub masterpiece from the Blackheart Man Bunny Wailer

Subtle interpretations of cuts from Bunny’s ‘Blackheart Man’ album together with contemporaneous Solomonic disco mixes with unsung dub masters Sylvan Morris and Karl Pitterson at the control tower

Guitar genius Ernest Ranglin takes time out from his jazz roots and showcases his fluid skills on a selection of sweet, sensational 1969 style crossover hits… a pivotal year for the international success of Jamaican music.

Ska, Jump Up and Soul! The authentic early sixties sound of the Caribbean

A shimmering showcase of the wonderful work of Jamaica’s first and foremost female record producer, Mrs Sonia Pottinger, featuring the inimitable talents of Oswald ‘Baba’ Brooks and his Recording Band with their 1966 debut album.

An apposite illustration of the golden era of 70’s music

Self produced dub excursion from Dennis Bovell’s Matumbi… early pioneers of authentic UK produced reggae

Aston ‘Family Man’ Barrett is much more than just one of the most renowned reggae bass players of all time. As the bassist of choice for Bob Marley and the Wailers from 1969 up until Marley’s untimely passing, Barrett acted as chief musical arranger and bandleader for the Wailers, greatly altering the course of reggae in the process. He has also been one of the most important Jamaican session musicians, beginning with the Hippie Boys in the late 1960s, and after helping reggae to become better established internationally as a member of Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry’s Upsetters band, he also performed bass duties for a range of noteworthy producers, including Bunny Lee and Keith Hudson, among many others. What is less known, but equally important, is that Family Man produced some of the most challenging and experimental reggae of the 1970s and 80s, issuing unique works in small quantity in Jamaica on a range of short-lived record labels. Soul Constitution collects the best of Family Man’s instrumental and dub output, issued between 1972 and 1982. Aside from a few early tracks recorded at Randy’s studio in the heart of downtown Kingston, much of the work was crafted at the rehearsal room of the original Tuff Gong, based at Marley’s uptown home at 56 Hope Road; some of these works have the very first instances of a drum machine being used in reggae, and all are marked by the supreme musicianship and unorthodox production techniques that has made Family Man’s releases greatly prized by reggae collectors. Several of the tracks are appearing for the first time on long-playing LP and CD format, and most come complete with stripped-down dub counterparts.

Brimmed with the vibes, this un-released killer Ska cover was recorded when Rita Marley and the Soulettes were at their best. Although it had never been released back then, Chris Wilson and the Heartbeat crew compiled this as a part of compilation series in the 90’s. The great Mr. Coxsone Dodd knew what's going on; as a spice, he occasionally released some unpublished materials. Like the name "Soulettes" suggests, this type of Soul music is their specialty and this is a female vocal Ska masterpiece.

The killer Rocksteady-Ska like a vital bridge between both of them, backed with a Mittoo’s nice vocal tune. Throned from the Skatalites to the Soul Vendors, this is the last form of the Studio One Ska and it’s very much like the Soul Vendor’s party piece. Along with the B-side, Jackie Mittoo had directed both and his marvelous creativity can be seen allover. Each of them recorded from the original master-tape.

The true genius Keith Hudson introduced highly mutational sounds and sound effects at the time and this Pablo organ cut of “Peter & Judas” is no exception. Slightly different cut to the one included in “Flesh of My Skin Blood of My Blood” known as the monumental and arguably the first reggae concept album that is rated as important as “Blackboard Jungle Dub” in dub music. This cut is the fat original take mixed prior to the LP.

As Junior Soul, Junior Murvin recorded definitely the greatest Rocksteady tune,「Glendevon Special」 on early days of his recording career. This tune is also unique among Derrick Harriott's catalog and it proves how wide varieties his production was. This song is rare that many collectors have been looking for years.

A selection of magical rocksteady music from one of the masters of the genre…One of the forerunners in Jamaican music from its very beginning, Derrick Harriott, along with a stellar cast, showcases the some superb rocksteady.

12"single from the previously released album 'Rockers: Graduation In Zion 1978-1979 (DSR-LP-001)'. Kiddus I originally recorded 'Fire Burn' in 1973 but the master tape went missing. The song was re-recorded at Tuff Gong in 1978 for his debut album 'Jah Power, Jah Glory' but it remained unreleased. Surprisingly, the track has the same bassline to Bunny Wailer's 'Amagideon' and it is said Bunny adopted it from the 'Fire Burn', which were originally recorded in 1973. The most dreadful song amongst his unreleased material and 9 minutes of jazzy performance is just a miracle. The B-side contains a version to the A-side.

This 12 minute version of 'Give I Strength' is different from the one previously appeared on the album ‘Rockers: Graduation In Zion 1978-1979 (DSR-LP-001)’. Kiddus I recorded the song for his debut album 'Jah Power, Jah Glory' but it remained unreleased. The most of recordings he did at this time was very long and Kiddus I recalls this was possible because he used to 'treat' those musicians in a hospitable manner. This allowed musicians to be very improvisational in their playing on songs written by Kiddus I. The B-side version has an instrumental to the A-side.

Roots rock steady from The Harmonizers recorded around 1967 proclaiming to go back to Africa. Backed with previously unreleased alternative cut.

A radically different take to one of the standout tracks on 'Burnin' the final Wailers album to feature the original line up of Bob, Peter & Bunny. The lyrics are profound without a hint of pretension "Be not selfish in your doing…" and the rhythm runs at a sprightlier pace than the album version. A third version exists with Bob Marley taking the opening verse but this is surely the definitive cut of a truly classic song. "Live for yourself you will live in vain…"

A minor chord killer instrumental - the corpus of all the Family Man sounds. It is also a monumental piece of the Wailers Band. Like Eastern Memphis, this is one of the most talked about Family Man masterpiece. It clearly shows Family Man’s musical versatility not only as a bassist, but as a master musician. Although funnily enough it was the time when Jamaica was largely dominated by Deejays and Dancehall, the world famous Wailers Band never betrayed their fans by tightly keeping their “Wailers Sound”. It is a pleasure to listen to the strong belief and confidence in their music.

Marcia Griffiths' fine cover of Paul McCartney classic. Essential for fans of UK lovers.

Sharp and sophisticated reggae soul funk instrumental backed with “Traveling On”.

The Jamaican lovers masterpiece by Sharon Forrester and UK lovers classic.

Ken Khouri’s Federal Records gave Jamaica its musical identity The Federal Record Manufacturing facility was the first pressing plant in Jamaica... their studio gave birth to mento, ska, rock steady and reggae of the highest calibre. This album features an astonishing selection of well known classics and rarities transferred straight from their master tape

American rhythm & blues fervour, boosted by a multitude of sound systems playing 78rpm records on increasingly larger sets, gripped Jamaica from the late forties onwards but, towards the end of the decade, the American audience began to move towards a somewhat softer sound. The driving rhythm & blues discs became increasingly hard to find and the more progressive Jamaican sound system operators, realising that they now needed to make their own music, turned to Kingston’s jazz and big band musicians to record one off custom cut discs. These were not initially intended for commercial release but designed solely for sound system play on acetate or ‘dub plates’ as they would later be termed. These ‘specials’ soon began to eclipse the popularity of American rhythm & blues and the demand for their locally produced music proved so great that the sound system operators began to release their music commercially on vinyl and became record producers. Clement ‘Coxsone’ Dodd, Duke Reid ‘The Trojan’ and Prince Buster, who operated his Voice Of The People Sound System, were among the first to establish themselves in this new role and the nascent Jamaican recording industry now went into overdrive.

In 1954 Ken Khouri had numbered among the first far sighted entrepreneurs to produce mento records with local musicians (mento is Jamaica’s original indigenous music) before progressing to opening Jamaica’s first record manufacturing plant. Three years later he moved his operation to Foreshore Road (later renamed Marcus Garvey Drive) where, with the assistance of the inestimable Graeme Goodall, he updated and upgraded his recording studio. The importance of this enterprising move was critical to the development of Jamaican music and its influence both profound and far reaching.

Superior rock steady from the vaults of Federal Records

The third edition in this universally acclaimed series including giant of the genre, Hopeton Lewis, and a scintillating selection of hit records and previously unreleased material.