I wanted to check in with you since i haven’t touched base in a few weeks.  Here’s  wanted to keep you in the know about the Reggae news that is exciting me these days.  The first news I have is great news for the World of Reggae but does make me eat my words from my post claiming that the Damian Marley and Nas album would never manifest.  Honestly, I’ve never been happier to be wrong.  The duo will be debuting their new African themed project titled “Distant Relatives” while headlining the famed “Rock The Bells” tour this summer.  Though there is plenty to read about the project, they have yet to release any audio from the album due to drop in just a few weeks (June 23rd).  I haven’t even seen any camera videos from the exclusive listening party they had in LA.  I am very excited to hear that Damian has done the bulk of the production with help from brother Stephen of course and maybe even guests such as Alchemist.  I’m not sure how much longer I can wait.. There is no doubt that this is going to take the music world by storm.  Click here for more information on this project.

The other big new is the long awaited release of Reggae’s newest star, Alborosie with his Greensleeves debut.  His album is scheduled to drop next Monday June, 15th.  We have come to expect a few things from Alborosie since he dropped Herbalist several years ago:  1)  He is consistent and never lets you down if you are looking for the hard hitting one drop Rub a dub style 2)  There is always an Alborosie track that you have never heard.  This project is no different and doesn’t feature any of the tracks that have made him famous.

Check out the track listing:
01. America
02. No Cocaine
03. Mama She Don’t Like You Feat. I.Eye
04. Global War
05. Money
06. Irusalem
07. I Can’t Stand It Feat. Dennis Brown
08. Real Story
09. Good Woman
10. Dung A Babylon
11. One Sound Feat. Gramps Morgan
12. Humbleness
13. Promise Land
14. Mr. President
15. Operation Uppsala
16. Likkle Africa 

Jah Bless – One Lovell

I wanted to give you a n installment of new music to check out as promised in the last post.  There are several albums that have recently released that I am very excited about.  As a Reggae fan I am used to getting excited by singles or new artists and rarely get the joy of three all new albums from seasoned veterans.

The first album I want to talk about is Jah Cure’s Universal Cure.  It is his first installment of new studio music since being released from prison several years ago.  We have enjoyed songs recorded while he was incarcerated but I know that I speak for all Reggae fans when I say that this album  highly anticipated.  Over the course of his career Cure has crafted some of Lovers Rock’s sweetest melodies as well as hard hitting one drop anthems.  This album is no exception.  As always there are the tracks on popular Jamaican riddims such as Sticky, Journey, Forever, Call On Me, and Green Grass but other notable cuts on the album are a heartfelt cover of Bob Marley’s “Burnin’ and Lootin,” as well as a monumental collaboration with Mavado, Junior Ried, and rapper Flo-Rida on “Hot Long Time.”  Mavado and Flo-Rida were added to this track for the album version.  Another favorite of mine is the single Mr. Jailer where Jah Cure explains to the jail keeper that he is as much of a prisoner.  He took his time but this album was definitely worth the wait.

I know that a new Sizzla album isn’t exactly a surprise since he releases no less than 3000 albums per month but this latest installment released of the legendary Greensleeves Record Label is an instant classic. Recorded with his touring band the Fire House Crew, this album brushes off recent flops (such as “Addicted”) and returns to the roots in the best way possible.  The single released several months ago was “Black Man In the White-house” where Sizzla praises President Barack Obama as an inspiration to all black people of the world.  It helps to set the tone for the positive and uplifting release from Conscious Dancehall’s biggest star.  The album is produced particularly well and experiments rather successfully with autotune pitch correction.  Personal favorite tracks of mine are “Jah Love,” “Stop It Right Now,” “Open Up The Doors,” and the token Nyabinghi chant track “Babylon Ease Off.”  This is a refreshing offering from Sizzla who has been known to take some drastic stylistic risks.  Give thanks, this will certainly stay locked in the deck for the coming months.

The reason I save this album for last is to make sure that is is fresh on your mind.  The latest releases from Sly and Robbie’s Taxi Label is the best Reggae album of the year but I might go as far as to say that it is the best pure Reggae album to be released in the last several years.  The rhythm twins are at it again and at their best as they craft smooth flowing classic sound to match to retro Bitty McLean.  After sharing this album with my parents and some older friends of mine I realized that many of these tracks are actually covers of classic soul songs which accounts for the classic vibe of the overall project.  It is also notably different musically from the hard hitting singles “Let Them Talk,” “The Real Thing,” and “Lately.”  My favorites are “Games,” “Lost Love,” “So In Love,” and “Jahovia” featuring Johnny Osbourne but honestly this is a cover to cover installment.  Seriously, press play and sit back and appreciate the craftsmanship and experience that went into making this album.  Literally thousands of songs produced and recorded by Sly and Robbie…  all leading to this.  You can check out an entire hour long concert by Bitty Mclean and the Taxi Gang on myspace.

In other news, my favorite newcomer Alborosie has been signed to Greensleeves records and will be releasing his long awaited debut album titled “Escape from Babylon.”  It’s sure to include several of his hits that have made him one of the most highly requested Deejay and producer but this Ras always seems to have a new track up his sleeve so it’s not to be missed.  Happy listening…. Give thanks.

Jah Bless   –   One Lovell

Hey there Reggae fans.  As you may or may not know, I am fortunate enough to be employed at Rhapsody.com as a “producer,” managing the content submitted by record labels and distributors.  Now that I have worked there for a few months, I have been able to fully manage all of the Reggae that we have available on the service.  I take pride in the fact that we don’t have multiple listings of guys like Gregory Isaacs and Michael Rose that have recordings released in several versions of their names.  It’s not perfect but it’s a work in progress.  I can also say that if you are a Reggae fan, a Rhapsody membership is worth it because I have been digitally crate digging for 7 months every day and still have not explored everything that we have.  Fortunately I was able to also take over the Reggae “Channels” that we have available that is essentially a commercial free music stream that is available at Rhapsody.com.  I will be constantly updating these stations with quality tracks that I find throughout our vast library and make sure that you stay up to date on new releases and rising artists.

Reggae Essentials:

This is where all the hot One Drops go down…  You know I am a huge fan of the classic one drop made famous by the Wailers and every roots band that followed them such as Steel Pulse, Black Uhuru, Dennis Brown and the list goes on.  That is the back drop with a strong representation of the new school roots movement.  I really feel passionate about the up and coming Reggae music that has evolved into hard hitting anthems from the likes of Gentleman, Richie Spice, Sizzla, Capleton, I Wayne, Warrior King, Gyptian, and of course the Marley Brothers always leading the charge.  There is over 1000 songs in rotation on this channel so there is always something new to hear.  Definitely check this out.

Dancehall:

Most people associate Dancehall with the pulsating Soca like feel, but Dancehall is so much more.  When I think of the Dancehall I think of the originators.  Guys like Barrington Levy, Cocoa Tea, and Michigan and Smiley. So I did a major overhaul of this station and added a more classic feel.  Of course there are plenty of tracks from the major stars such as Shaggy, Sean Paul, Shabba Ranks, Rihanna, Busy Signal, Buju Banton, and many others.  I have held back on the amount of tracks from artists such as Elephant Man, Vybz Kartel, and other controversial artists though they do have some tracks that I felt fit the atmosphere that I wanted to create.  I’m also considering doing an overhaul on this station and turning it into a station that also features Hip-Hop collaborations.  Please check it out and let me know what you think.

Dub Wise:
This is my baby.  I did an overhaul on the the other stations and made them my own, but Dub Wise is a One Lovell original.  I thought that it would be a good fit for people who are at work and need some instrumental music to check vibe out to.  I tried not to make it too slow and repetitive but I think that it really came together once I got enough different artists involved that fit.  Of course we have Lee “Scratch” Perry, King Tubby, Augustus Pablo, Sly and Robbie, Dean Fraser and many classic pioneers of dub but I also included selections from Thievery Corporation, Gorillaz, Zenzile, and other electronic artists to change up the feel of the playlist.  As I have grown older, my appreciation for dub has steadily increased and now is a major influence in my life.  The simplicity is calming and humbling…

I really feel blessed to be given the opportunity to share my passion for Reggae music for a living so please take full advantage of these FREE music streams.  Music is and always be for sharing and we are developing more and more ways to do that.  That is my mission.  In the spirit of sharing, I’ll be back to share some fantastic new releases soon.

Jah Bless    –   One Lovell