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Original Cool Jamaican Ska Review by Richie Unterberger

Something to clarify right off the bat: although Laurel Aitken was responsible for the majority of the 15 tracks issued on the 1964 LP titled Original Cool Jamaican Ska (also known as After Sunset), this 2009 CD does not have the same contents. In this case, that's a good thing, as this 29-track disc has -- in addition to all nine Aitken songs that appeared on the original Original Cool Jamaican Ska -- no less than 20 bonus cuts from the same era, most taken from the 1963-1964 singles listed in the booklet's discography. 

So it serves as a bountiful survey of the period in which Aitken was establishing himself as a major ska artist, though he'd already recorded quite a bit of material before 1963.

 The Skatalites back Aitken on many of these sides, most of which were written by the singer. While much of them are merry rhythmic odes to romance and good times, there are also hints of the declarations of independence and spirituality that would inform much later reggae music, especially in "Freedom Train," "Zion City Wall," "Let My People Go," and "One More River to Cross." Aitken might not have been the greatest of ska singers, and his songwriting not the most diverse that the style's major talents had to offer. But he was among the most consistent of the genre's figureheads, and occasionally he did depart from an approach that could verge on the formulaic, getting into more soul-oriented balladry on "You Left Me Standing" and particularly rousing group vocal interplay on "Jericho.

" The liner notes aren't perfect, but give a great deal more detail about the material than many a reggae reissue, including a discography of his Island/Rio/Columbia/R&B/Decca recordings in 1963 and 1964.

Tracklist:

1.Fire

2.Freedom Train

3.Peace Perfect Peace

4.Bad Minded Woman

5.Devil Or Angel

6.You Are My Sunshine

7.(Going Back To My) Hometown

8.Life (Will Be Sweeter)

9.Adam And Eve

10.Mary

11.I Shall Remove

12.We Got To Move

13.What A Weeping

14.Zion City Wall

15.One More River To Cross

16.Lion Of Judah

17.Remember My Darling

18.The Saint

19.Go Gal Go

20.Rock Of Ages

21.You Left Me Standing

22.Bag A Boo

23.Jericho

24.Yes Indeed

25.Let My People Go

26.Bachelor Life

27.You Was Up

28.Don't Stay Out Late

29.Be Mine

DLWD

 

Pioneer ska singer Laurel Aitken returned to Jamaica in 1963. He recorded a dozen tracks with the Skatalites (except for trombonist Don Drummond), premier instrumentalists who performed on many important early ska recordings. The musicians had little rehearsal time and the tracks were recorded in only two days, including mixdown, at Khoury Studio on Foreshore Road in West Kingston; consequently, the music has a loose feel that sometimes resembles a jam session. Since the original masters were not available, these tracks were remastered and produced from original vinyl (by Unicorn Records U.K., which licensed the music to ROIR). This collection holds considerable historical interest for fans of early ska music, but it is not recommended to those who want an introduction to early ska or only the best work of Aitken's and the Skatalites's respective careers.

Track List:

01. Bad Minded Woman

02. Mary

03. Adam and Eve

04. Hometown

05. Devil and Angel

06. Sunshine

07. Freedom Train

08. Life

09. Remember My Darling

10. Fire

11. The Saint

12. Peace Perfect Peace

13. One More River To Cross

14. In My Soul

15. Lion of Judah

DWNLD

 Widely hailed as the Godfather of Ska, Laurel Aitken dominated Jamaica’s recording industry throughout its infancy, enjoying a series of hugely popular mento and Jamaican R&B hits during the latter half of the 1950s. Early the following decade he relocated to London, where, over the years that immediately followed, he recorded for every Afro- Caribbean record company of note.

While his ska and rock steady recordings ensured Laurel remained a firm favourite among Jamaican ex-patriots, the reggae explosion of 1969 exposed his work to a wider audience, with productions for Doctor Bird, Pama and Trojan Records establishing him as a musical hero for many of Britain’s young, white working-classes, notably those that had adopted a fashion style dubbed by the national press as ‘skinhead’. This 5CD set collects the entirety of the singer-songwriter-producer’s output that saw issue on 7” singles between 1969 and 1970, with the set including big sellers alongside long lost rarities and unissued tracks that make their CD debut.

While Laurel’s own considerable singing skills take centre stage, the collection also features recordings he produced for other UK-based artists, their number including such celebrated acts as Rico, Winston Groovy, Pama Dice, the Pyramids, the Cimarons and the Rudies. Among the 138 tracks collected here, two are previously unreleased and a further 68 unavailable on any format for decades, ensuring this celebration of fast and furious boss sounds is an essential acquisition for any self-respecting fan of vintage reggae.

Tracklist:

CD1:
01. Laurel Aitken - Fire (In Your Wire)
02. Laurel Aitken - Quando Quando Quando
03. Laurel Aitken - Rice & Peas
04. The Classics - Worried Over Me
05. Laurel Aitken - Reggae Prayer
06. Laurel Aitken - Deliverance Will Come
07. Laurel Aitken - The Rise and Fall (of Laurel)
08. Laurel Aitken - If You're Not Black
09. Laurel Aitken - Heile Heile (The Lion)
10. Seven Letters - Call Collect
11. Laurel Aitken - Carolina
12. Laurel Aitken - Kingston Town
13. Laurel Aitken - Donkey Man
14. Laurel Aitken - Woppi King
15. Laurel Aitken - Mr. Soul
16. Laurel Aitken, Girlie - Suffering Still
17. Laurel Aitken - Reggae 69
18. Laurel Aitken - Hailes Selaise
19. Laurel Aitken, Girlie - Blues Dance
20. Laurel Aitken, Girlie - Lawd Doctor
21. Laurel Aitken, Girlie - Big Fight in Hell Stadium
22. Laurel Aitken - Run Powell Run 
23. Laurel Aitken, Rico - A Message to You
24. Laurel Aitken - Save the Last Dance
25. Laurel Aitken - Walk Right Back
26. Laurel Aitken - Don't Be Cruel
27. Laurel Aitken - (Sloop) John B

CD2:
01. Winston Groovy - Island In The Sun
02. Winston Groovy - Work It Up
03. Winston Groovy - (My Girl) Josephine
04. Winston Groovy - Champagne And Wine
05. Laurel Aitken, Rico - Babylon Gone
06. Laurel Aitken - Shoo Bee Shoo Bee
07. Laurel Aitken - Landlords and Tenants
08. Laurel Aitken - Everybody Sufferin'
09. Laurel Aitken - Jesse James
10. Laurel Aitken - Freedom
11. Laurel Aitken - Pussy Price Gone Up
12. Laurel Aitken - Gimme Back Me Dollar
13. Laurel Aitken - Skinhead Train
14. Gruvy Beats - Kent People
15. Laurel Aitken - Bendwood Dick
16. Laurel Aitken - Apollo 12 (Skinhead Invasion)
17. Laurel Aitken, Girlie - Scandal in a Brixton Market
18. King Horror - Frankenstein
19. Winston Groovy - I Can't Stand It
20. Laurel Aitken - Stupid Married Man
21. Girlie - Madame Streagge (Soul Jerker)
22. Laurel Aitken - Think Me No Know
23. Rico - Trombone Man
24. Laurel Aitken - Pussy Got Thirteen Life
25. Laurel Aitken - Single Man (Why)
26. Laurel Aitken - Skinhead Wreck The Town
27. Laurel Aitken - Moon Rock
28. Winston Groovy - Merry Xmas

CD3:
01. Laurel Aitken - Sin Pon You
02. Laurel Aitken - Every Night
03. Winston Groovy - Cut Up Munno
04. King Horror - The Vampire
05. King Horror - Cutting Blade
06. Winston Groovy - Leaving Me Standing
07. Winston Groovy - Little Girl
08. King Horror - The Hole
09. Laurel Aitken - Loch Ness Monster
10. Rico & The Visions - Zion I
11. Winston Groovy - Funky Chicken, Pt. 1
12. The Cimarons - Funky Chicken, Pt. 2
13. Winston Groovy - Funny, Version 1
14. The Cimarons - Funny, Version 2
15. Pama Dice - Sin, Sun And Sex
16. Pama Dice - Honky Tonk Popcorn
17. Pama Dice - Bongo Man
18. Pama Dice - Reggae Popcorn
19. Pama Dice - The Worm, Pt. 1
20. Pama Dice - The Worm, Pt. 2
21. Laurel Aitken - Only You
22. Winston Groovy - I Can't Go On
23. Dice The Boss - Funky Monkey, Version 1
24. Dice The Boss - Funky Monkey, Version 2
25. Trevor Lloyd - Give Me Back Your Love
26. Trevor Lloyd - Hold Me
27. Trevor Lloyd - Chinee Brush
28. Dice & Cummie - Real Collie
29. King Horror - Loch Ness Monster (Alternative Take)

CD4:
01. Pama Dice - The Worm
02. Winston Groovy - You Can't Turn Your Back On Me
03. Dice The Boss - Funky Duck
04. Dice The Boss - Funkier Than Duck
05. King Horror - The Naked City
06. King Horror - Wood In The Fire
07. Laurel Aitken - Mr. Popcorn
08. Laurel Aitken - Share Your Popcorn
09. Laurel Aitken - I Got to Have Your Love
10. Laurel Aitken - Blue Mink
11. Laurel Aitken - Souls of Africa
12. Laurel Aitken - Dallas Texas
13. Winston Groovy - Standing On The Corner
14. Winston Groovy - You Send Me
15. Laurel Aitken - Nobody But Me
16. Laurel Aitken - Baby Please Don't Go
17. Winston Groovy - Yellow Bird
18. Winston Groovy - For Your Love (The Best I Can)
19. Laurel Aitken - I'll Never Love Another
20. Laurel Aitken - Take Me Back
21. Laurel Aitken - Reggae Popcorn
22. Winston Groovy - Here Is My Heart
23. Gruvy Beats - Birds And Bees (Young Gifted And Black)
24. The Freedom Singers - Election
25. Fleece & The Live Shocks - Tomorrow's World
26. The Versatiles - Pick My Pocket
27. The Freedom Singers - Freedom
28. Laurel Aitken - The Outlaw

CD5:
01. The Classics - So Much Love
02. The Classics - Same Old Feeling
03. Joe Lace - Nobody Else But You
04. The Live Shocks - Version Of Nobody
05. Laurel Aitken - Baby I Need Your Lovin'
06. Laurel Aitken - Think It Over
07. Tiger - Musical Scorcher
08. Tiger - Three Dogs Night
09. Laurel Aitken - Sex Machine
10. Laurel Aitken - Since You Left
11. Winston Groovy - Groovin'
12. Winston Groovy - (Sweet) Sugar Mama
13. The Inner Mind - Witchcraft Man
14. The Inner Mind - Night In Cairo
15. The Inner Mind - Pum Pum Girl
16. The Inner Mind - Freedom
17. The Classics - History Of Africa
18. The Classics - Honey Bee
19. Laurel Aitken - Pachanga, Pt. 1
20. Laurel Aitken - Pachanga, Pt. 2
21. Winston Groovy - Tennessee Waltz
22. Winston Groovy - Old Man Trouble
23. Laurel Aitken - Why Can't I Touch You
24. Laurel Aitken - Can't Turn Your Back On Me
25. Laurel Aitken - Mary's Boy Child [03:25]
26. Sonny Binns, The Rudies - Mary's Boy Child (Instrumental)

DDL

This Laurel Aitken disc provides something of an audio tour of early Jamaican music history. Covering the years 1957-1966, the selections take in the island's popular musical styles of the period, including calypso, mento (Jamaican folk music with calypso strains), Jamaican R&B, and ska. A mix of calypso and mento numbers kicks things off, some including hand drums and proto-Rastafarian lyrics inspired by Jamaica's popular gospel revival churches ("Mas Charlie (Prisoner Song)," "Nebuchadnezzar"). The topical bent of calypso is well represented too, with songs covering both politics ("Ghana Independence (They Got It)") and sports ("West Indian Cricket Test"). Aitken indulges in several Jamaican R&B numbers in the middle of the disc, showing how island musicians turned the U.S. R&B beat inside out; standout tracks in this style include "Going Back to Kansas City" and "Mash Potato Boogie." Also in the R&B vein are gospel tunes like "Judgement Day" and "I Believe," the latter featuring an infectious New Orleans shuffle-blues beat. The last third of the program is dedicated to some excellent ska, including such standouts as "We Shall Overcome," the joyously manic "Green Banana," and "Bachelor Life" ("A life without a wife is like a kitchen without a knife"). Contributing to the fine musical backing heard throughout are tenor saxophonists Val Bennett and Stanley Ribbs, guitarist Ernest Ranglin, and trombonist Rico Rodriguez. This is a great title for students and fans of early Jamaican music. For listeners expecting a program of just ska and/or rocksteady, though, the good number of calypso and R&B tunes here might be a turn off.

Track List:
A1 Ghana Independence (They Got It)   
A2 Mas Charlie (Prisoner Song)   
A3 Nebuchadnezzar   
A4 Baba Kill Me Goat   
A5 Tribute To Collie Smith   
A6 Aitken's Boogie   
A7 Mary Lee   
B1 If It's Money You Need   
B2 Low Down Dirty Girl   
B3 Railroad Track   
B4 Judgement Day   
B5 Zion   
B6 Mary Don't You Weep   
B7 You Was Up   
B8 Green Banana

DDL

Laurel Aitken & House Of Rhythm - LIVE at SKA SPLASH FESTIVAL 1996
Track List :

Alcapone
Mad About You
Jesse James
Caledonia
Sally Brown
Skinhead Train
Skinhead
Head Charge
Nothing In Life
Rudi
Sigh Of The Time
Hor's Empire
Rockford Rock
Riddim

DDL

01 - Intro
02 - Untitled
03 - Perfidia
04 - Mad about you
05 - Bartender
06 - Stand by me
07 - Boogie in my bones
08 - Al Capone

DDL 

Iniciamos con algo de ska de parte de laurel aitken sin duda uno de nuestros idolos en estos tiempos ,laurel aitken retoma algunas melodias ya grabas hace algunos años atras pero con un toque de ska realmente no tengo mucha informacion de estos temas pero si lo tienes puedes hacermelo saber espero que lo disfruten

CONTRASEÑA - F.S.F
DESCARGALO AQUI