`Dub I' was originally released in 1975 on the Micron label in Jamaica, but at the end of last year, top reggae reissue label Pressure Sounds got around to remastering and re-issuing it. I have listened to a lot of dub albums over the years, and frankly there are not many that can be digested in one sitting without slipping into a coma. sounds harsh, but true. Thankfully`Dub I' isn't in that category, this very enjoyable indeed.
Produced by Jimmy Radway - hardly a household name within his genre, produced a modest quantity of excellent tracks during the mid `70's period. A pick of the vocal cuts ended up on a great compilation entitled `Keep The Pressure Down' which came on Jimmy's Fe-Me-Time label just a few years back.
What makes this dub album worthwhile is that the rhythms are great, and the mixing by Errol Thompson is superb, varying from subtle - by letting the rhythms run with little mixing, to traditional dubbing-it-out style, utilising the mixing board to full effect. Also, there are a lot of versions to familiar songs such as `Warning' - Desmond Young (aka Desi Roots), `Black Cinderella', `Mother Lisa' and `Happiness is My Desire' both by Leroy Smart. I can't work out what versions of African Brothers `Lead Us Father' - which I believed to be a Sugar Minott production - and Glen Brown's `Slaving' rhythm are doing on here? I am sure there is a good reason, as reggae production credits are a notoriousy complicated matter. Answers on a postcard please.
The CD has 5 bonus tracks. Listen to samples here. Below is a clip of a great Jimmy Radway production. A dub version can be found on the album.
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