Greensleeves Vinyl & CDs

Review: Sicilian-born, Jamaica-raised reggae artist Alborosie presents a brand new EP charting an LP-length set of dub variations, 'Embryonic'. Coming to legendary reggae outfit Greensleeves, who've been operating since 1975, it's an impressively oozy dub album, staying true to the title and evoking the sound of what a reggae tune might be like as it develops in the womb. That said, it's still as weighty and system-pummelling as could be, in part thanks to its recording at Kingston's Shengen Studios.

Review: Legendary UK outlet Greensleeves Records has joined forces with Roots Defenders of Notting Hill Carnival for this deep dive into the work of Channel One Sound System. Down in The Dub Vaults is promised to be a one time only and limited edition pressing of some serious roots and dubs gems that have been dug out of the vaults by the crucial selector that is Mikey Dread. These have all, at some point over the year's been deployed at maximum volume through the unique and hand built Channel sound system. The likes of Wailing Souls, Michael Prophet, Linval Thompson and Hugh Mundell all more all feature.

Review: A fine selection of Cool Ruler Classics get some new life breathed into them here by the one and only King Jammy. He upgrades the Gregory Isaacs Kingston 11 catalogue with a truly a-list selection of talent from Jamaica including Sean Paul, Shaggy, Alborosie, Jesse Royal, Bounty Killer and several more. They all bring the down style to the material and some of Gregory Isaacs's finest performances. These are hardcore dubs with killer riddims at their heart and the sort of tunes that are super fresh but also utterly timeless.

Review: The Evil Curse Of The Vampires remains an all-time classic in the pantheon of early 80s dub albums. There have been some wranglings between Greensleeves and Scientist, commonly credited to this album which he mixed, but now the credit rests with Henry 'Junjo' Lawes who was credited as producer. Either way, the music remains unchanged, resting heavy on Channel One's sharp-shooting Roots Radics band to lay down the tracks, and with a second disc carrying some brilliant vocal turns from Michael Prophet, Wayne Jarrett, Johnny Osbourne and many more. Seminal stuff for anyone who takes their dub seriously.

Review: As the digi sound crept into Jamaican music in the 80s, King Jammy's productions became an essential ingredient in the progression of dancehall, and this compilation highlights a solid 31 classics that prove the point. The hitlist is heavy, with the likes of Dennis Brown, Johnny Osbourne and Sugar Minott all heard singing over Jammy's sprightly riddims. What binds these tunes together is the message - the universal cry out against social injustice, which has always given roots reggae, dancehall, digi and more its power and urgency. There are too many essential tunes to count, so don't sweat it and simply stick it on.

Review: The legendary producer King Jammy rounded up 32 of his most masterful tunes for the CD version of this collection, Cries From the Youth, while nine of them make the cut on this vinyl version. His revolutionary super power sound reinvigorated reggae with fresh energy and charged up 80s dancehalls with all new vibes. He managed to shine a light on the new generation coming through on the shoulders of the 70s originators while also reminding the world about those early talents - Dennis Brown, Junior Delgado and Junior Murvin plus Admiral Tibet, Kentucky and Johnny Osbourne all feature.

Review: There is frankly an endless amount of dub music from the one and only King Tubby to explore, with both solo albums and collabs all offering bottomless depths in which to get lost. Dub From The Roots was actually the legendary dub technician's first ever exploration of the long-player format and it proved to be one of his best. It is crafted from 14 rhythms by Bunny Striker Lee and then transformed and translated on the mixing desk by Tubby who took it into futuristic and heady new sound worlds with endless chambers of echo.

Review: Blowing With The Wind is the second August Pablo album to get the reissue treatment this month following on from 1986's Rising Sun. This one came in 1990 when the legendary dubber had fully updated his original sound with more modern aesthetics and digital techniques. It picked up rave reviews and proved to be one of the artists' most successful records since the seventies. It is defined by a mix of nyahbinghi drumming and hardcore steppers that was fully embraced by the sound system culture of the tie and took Pablo to new heights in the Far East, culminating with a tour of Japan.

Review: They might be juvenile but you can't beat a nice loud ganja anthem on a hefty system in the sun. Which makes this new collection of such things from Greensleeves - on nice translucent green wax, no less - utterly unmissable. It features plenty of rootsy tooting-anthems and stoner classics from the dub swagger of 'Pass The Kutchie' to Wayne Smith's darker and more paranoid 'Under The Sleng Teng.' John Holt's 'Police In Helicopter' will always be well received by any crowd and Billy Boyo's 'One Spliff A Day' is a great tune a well as being advice to live by.