Wednesday, February 08, 2012

Medley Train

This is going to be the last medley-themed post for a while. It's a double helping of deejay goodness over backing tracks featuring Ken Boothe and the Cables. First up is 'Rhythm Train', a slick U Roy toast over the first part of Ken Boothe's 'Six In One' (a.k.a. 'The Great Ken Boothe'), which originally came out on Aquarius. The rhythm track is a really polished mash-up of 'Train Is Coming', 'I've Got To Tell You Goodbye' and another tune I can't quite put my finger on. It's the perfect stage for a bit of showing off, and U Roy doesn't disappoint: this is a masterclass in the art of toasting. I Roy used the second half of the same medley for his 'Ken Boothe Special', which is good, but not quite as good. 

The other tune, 'Roots & Soul' is a bizarre deejay, bongo and whistling cut of a Cables medley that features 'Baby Why', 'What Kind Of World' and 'Salt Of The Earth'. It's records like this that keep me interested in Jamaican music: endlessly inventive and a lot of fun.

Anyway, here are some of the original vocals used in these two singles - I hope you enjoy them.

Sunday, January 15, 2012

More Medley

Here's a nice little medley from the Clarendonians (well, Peter & Ernest - seems like Freddie couldn't make it) - a guided tour of some of their biggest hits. There are a couple of tunes in there that I can't quite put my finger on, so it'd be nice to get a list of all seven. This record came out on 'Green Door' in the UK, but I've always preferred the artwork of this Jamaican release.

So here it is, 'Seven In One (Medley)'. I hope you enjoy.