NATTY REBEL

NATTY REBEL: EXTRA VERSION compiles tracks from NATTY REBEL (1976), JAH SON OF AFRICA (1978), and a live 12" recorded at The Lyceum, London in 1976. Personnel includes: U Roy (vocals); Ranchie, Rad Bryan (guitar); Bubbler, Richard Ace (piano); Lloyd Parks (bass, background vocals); Robbie Shakespeare (bass); Sly Dunbar, Horsemouth Wallace (drums); Scully (congas); Sticky (percussion); Barrington Spence, Flip Wilson, Ken Booth, Gladiators, Brent Dowe, Judy Mowatt (background vocals). Producers include: Tony Robinson. Compilation producer: Trevor Herman. NATTY REBEL is one in a string of acclaimed albums that U Roy made with producer Tony Robinson. Robinson was known for taking rocksteady classics and running them through a dub-inflected studio treatment--stripping vocals and re-mixing levels, while adding studio musicians and backing singers. Robinson's bag of tricks provided the perfect context for the infamous toasting of U Roy, and NATTY REBEL finds him in fine form, both lyrically and vocally. A host of guest musicians, especially "Riddim Twins" Sly & Robbie (bassist Lloyd Parks replaces Robbie Shakespeare on some tracks), helps define the sound of the record. Deep, buoyant bass and drum grooves lay the groundwork for Robinson's studio wizardry and U Roy's half-sung/half-spoken raps. Old-school nuggets like the Wailers' "Soul Rebel" (reprised here as "Natty Rebel") are given exuberant revisions, with U Roy reeling off Rastafarian messages in his conversational, precisely rhythmic style. From "Babylon Burning," a reggae-fied version of "Proud Mary," straight through to a funky take on John Holt's "Wear You to the Ball," NATTY REBEL is a fine example of roots-reggae toasting at its best.