Within any musical style, there are a few select works that resonate so strongly with audiences that they come to define the genre itself, taking on a mythical quality that transforms the album into something greater than the sum of its individual parts. Meets Uptown Rockers, the 1976 collaboration between producer instrumentalist Augustos Pablo and visionary dub engineer Osbourne “King Tubby” Ruddock, is one of those historic releases. The album, which features Pablo playing melodica, clavinet, piano and organ, contains some of the greatest dub songs of all time, including Jacob Miller’s “Baby I Love You So,” and the darkly seductive title track. The chemistry between Pablo’s beautiful “Far East” signature sound and King Tubby’s meticulous attention to sonic detail results in an album the Virgin Encyclopedia of Reggae says is “regarded by many as one of the greatest dub albums of all time.”
A1. Keep On Dubbing A2. Stop Them Jah A3. Young Generation Dub A4. Each One Dub A5. 555 Dub B1. Braces Tower Dub B2. King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown B3. Corner Crew Dub B4. Say So B5. Skanking Dub B6. Frozen Dub
A classic album from the Upsetter himself, the incomparable Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry. Widely considered the first full-length dub LP, “Blackboard Jungle Dub” pairs Perry with another Jamaican legend—engineer King Tubby-- and embodies the Upsetter’s loose, instinctive sonic approach, with instrumentals stripped down to the bare elements and then brilliantly reassembled as only he can do.
A1. Blackboard Jungle Dub (V.1) A2. Rubba, Rubba Words A3. Cloak A Dagger A4. Dub From Africa A5. Dreamland Dub A6. Pop Goes The Dread Dub B1. Fever Grass Dub B2. Sin Semilla Kaya Dub B3. Moving Forward B4. Blackboard Jungle Dub (V.2) B5. Kasha Macka Dub B6. Setta Iration Dub
Placed within legendary reggae producer Lee “Scratch” Perry’s prolific discography, The Upsetters Chapter 1 stands out as one of the eccentric genius’s most interesting, adventurous works. Using a combination of established collaborators and new musicians, Perry creates a classic dub record that pulses with deep bass, echoing percussion and dissonant sound effects. Spiritual cuts (“When Jah Come”) are balanced by grand dub productions (“Tighten Up”), creating a cohesive, infectious sound that rivals the Upsetter’s finest material.
A1. Scratch The Dub Oranizer A2. Who You Gonna Run To A3. Tighten Up A4. A Serious Joke A5. Little Flute Chant B1. When Jah Come B2. Scratch Walking B3. Come Along B4. Bush Weed Corn Trash B5. Curley Dub