Stand High Patrol – Midnight Walkers

Stand High Patrol formed just over 10yrs ago in Britany (France) when two guys, Rootystep (selecta) and MacGyver (operator), decided to create a sound system so they could share their passion for roots and early digital reggae. They were soon joined by MC Pupa Jim and started touring their homeland, building their reputation and gradually developing their own style and sound through several releases on 7 and 12inch and now have just unleashed their début eclectic, dynamic and varied long player..


To find out more visit.........

Lee Perry and The Upsetters - High Plains Drifter

Lee Perry has had his works collated and represented on umpteen compilations over the years but this brand new album from Pressure Sounds, featuring the Upsetters and covering the period from 1968 to 1973, is probably the first shall we say new collection of his work many will have heard for a long time. The reasons for this is that despite these cuts being around 40years old what we have are 20 undocumented singles (including one dub plate) that for whatever reason never made it out of Jamaica.

find out more about this excellent album at ......

THE CAROLOREGIANS - FAT IS BACK NEW ALBUM & UK TOUR

The Caroloregians will be making a super-rare return to the UK in March'12 to promote their brand new album 'Fat Is Back'.  

If you want to sample their almighty soundclash of pounding rhythm & soul vs finger-licking funkified reggae, a bit like "The Meters vs The Upsetters" and see why they are considered Europe's no1 band and the choice backing band for: Ken Boothe, Alton Ellis, The Pioneers, Rico and Dave & Ansel Collins and more you can catch ‘em at the following

March 2012:  

02 Oxford Skylarkin @ The Cellar  01865 244761

03 Newcastle Cluny  0191 230 4474

04 High Wycombe Nags Head Blues Loft 07572 452 221

06 London The Workshop  (under Roadtrip Bar/Diner), 243 Old St, London album release party

05 Cardiff The Globe  07590 471 888

07 Harlow The Square 01279 305 000

08 Blaneau Fsteninog Cellb 01766832001

09 Leeds Wardrobe 0113 383 8800

10 Manchester Band On The Wall 01618341786

CD:  out on 5 March'12 - Available now on Do The Dog Music from www.londoninternationalskafestival.co.uk/shop

Digital:  out now on Phoenix City/Cherry Red - available at all good outlet including itunes & Amazon

Listen to the track 'Donna Donna' at YOUTUBE

Mungo's Hi Fi - Dutty Diseases Riddim

This ones duuuuutty! Mungo's are launching into the new year with a set of 7 inches featuring their cut of the classic riddim diseases. It is a certified soundsystem party starter and a staple of Mungo's Hi Fi sets for the last year.

The release features choice cuts from YT, Mr. Williamz, Daddy Freddy, Daddy Scotty and Sister Carol accompanied by the clean riddim.

All the tracks fuse a conscious reality message with a serious dance vibe.

If you’re into your vinyl then visit Scotch Bonnet Records quick as there are only a limited number available.

Speedometer featuring Martha High 'The Shakedown'

Speedometer are one of the groups to have spearheaded the resurgence in deep, gritty funk and soul over the last decade with their strong, original material, as well as working with legends Eddie Bo, Sharon Jones, Billy Wooten, and Sir Joe Quartermain.

One of the recorded highlights of their many collaborations are the two juicy nuggets of sweet soul music sitting on either side of this fantastic single, featuring as it does the mainstay of the James Brown live shows for over 30 years, and Maceo Parkers current vocalist, Martha High.

Freestyle Records are to release these sides not only to celebrate the February 2012 UK tour Speedometer are embarking on, with Martha High leading from the front as only she can!

They are also immensely proud to announce that Martha will be releasing a new album with them this year, produced by Speedometer main man Leigh Gracie. The Shakedown (Say Yeah) is an almost criminally infectious groove with massive blasts of brass, growling organ, crisp drumming, snappy guitar and the bonus of added vocals from UK soul man Myles Sanko, providing the answer to Marthas' call to action!.

Flipside, Dragging Me Down evokes the spirit of Motown, long sweaty nights at Northern Soul venues like The Wigan Casino and The Twisted Wheel!

If you are looking for a quality download of this cracking new single they heartily recommend you grab it from Juno Download RIGHT HERE!

You can also catch the band and Martha LIVE at the following shows in

February 2012 including a headline show at the legendary Ronnie Scotts Club, London:

NEWCASTLE -  HOOCHIE COOCHIE - FEB 23RD.

LEEDS - THE WARDROBE - FEB 24TH.

MANCHESTER - BAND ON THE WALL - FEB 25TH.

LONDON - RONNIE SCOTTS - FEB 26TH

Meet By The Rivers

By The Rivers were formed in Leicester in the Spring of 2010 by Nile Barrow and Jordan Birtles, who have been friends since birth. The band quickly became a 6 piece, inspired by all genres of music.

This outfit of talented youngsters write and perform catchy songs in a reggae style. A music they have an obvious passion for. They sing songs full with social comment and positive messages that affect the youth of today. This band speaks truth about modern living through their brand of Roots Reggae for a new generation!


Read more about them in an interview at.........

Visit their web site at:  www.bytherivers.co.uk/

and join them at: www.facebook.com/bytherivers  &  twitter.com/#!/bytherivers

Sly & Robbie Present TAXI

This album fantastic album serves as something of a gateway in to the changes that were about to happen in reggae with electronic touches here and there plus Sly’s use of syndrums. The songs, with the exception of instrumental ‘Hot You're Hot’, have lasted well against the test of time and its great to see it get released on CD as part of Spectrum's 'Originals' range.

read more and hear sound bites at...........

Early Worm - Natty Droid Free Download

Dubmatix is back again giving away free albums. This time though it is not one of his but one from his own Renegade Media label signings Early Worm (Earlyw~rm), the Toronto-based dub artist with whom he has been friends with for many years.

The album, his debut and titled ‘Natty Droid’, is described as Future Dub and of being “Dub that has travelled across the Galaxy and landed on Earlyworm’s Terra Firma laptop”.

There is no doubt he has his own individual style so visit Soundcloud.com to join him on his cosmic journey. 

Phoenix City Records To Release Ska Tributes

Phoenix City Records the Ska and Rocksteady imprint of Cherry Red Records have announced that they are to release two tribute albums to the ska and rocksteady periods.

First up is an album from one of UK's most loved ska bands the Dualers who will present their tribute to king of Ska Prince Buster in their own highly stylised mix of ska and reggae. The album will include versions of Chinaman Ska, King of Kings, Orange Street and Enjoy Yourself amongst others.

The Dualers have previously entered the UK charts on three occasions with ‘Truly Madly Deeply’, ‘Don’t Go’ and ‘Kiss On My Lips’, shifted over 35,000 albums and sold out London's O2 Indigo four times.

The second album will be from the Phoenix City All-Stars and will be titled ‘2 Tone: Ska & Rocksteady Special’. This band of as yet unnamed musicians will feature the vocals of stars old and new including Dave 'Double Barrel' Barker and Michie One who has performed with the likes of Pama International, will be presenting unique twist as they repatriate some of 2 Tone's greatest hits to the 'Sounds of Young Jamaica' in a what is reported as being “a blazing 60's Ska - Skatalites style and the sweetest sounding rocksteady & reggae”. Songs included for a re-working include The Specials ‘Too Much Too Young’, which was originally based around Lloydie & The Lowbites ‘Birth Control’, ‘Stereotype’ and the iconic ‘Ghost Town’, then there is The Selecter’s self-titled theme song, originally the B-side to The Specials ‘Gangsters’ and a version of Elvis Costello’s ‘I Can't Stand Up For Falling Down’, a 2-Tone rarity as it was given away free a gigs after publishing issues, featuring the afore mentioned Mr Barker.

Both albums will be launched at The London Intl Ska Festival in May and CD versions can be pre-ordered now (Phoenix All Stars Friday, Dualers Saturday) with tickets from www.londoninternationalskafestival.co.uk/tickets and picked up at the festival, or alternatively if you can’t make this both will be available on CD and download formats from itunes, Amazon and other usual outlets after the event.

Club Reggae Re-released

Out again one of Trojan’s best selling reggae collections. If you owned this album the first time around then it’s a no brainer way to update one of your prized assets and if you didn’t it still makes for a solid compilation that captures a thriving time in UK reggae history when just about every teenager in the UK had at least one of reggae record in their musical collection.

find out more at......

King Stitt - A Boss DJ

Legendary deejay Winston Sparkes AKA King Stitt has passed away on the 31st January, after having been ill for sometime with both prostate cancer and diabetes which led to him being admitted to hospital late last month.

King Stitt was often referred to as the Ugly One, due to facial disfiguration from birth, but he did not let this hold him back and in fact turned it into something of an asset. Born in 1940, his musical career began at the age of 17 when he came to the attention of Coxsone Dodd and his Downbeat Sound. Here he honed his style appearing behind the likes of Count Machuki and Red Hopeton to rave reviews. When Machuki retired Stitt‘s popularity had grown to such an extent that he ended up being the star turn with U Roy following behind.

Despite spending such a long time with Coxsone it wasn’t until 1969 that he put his talent on vinyl, recording such classics as ‘Lee Van Cleef’, ‘Herbman Shuffle’, ‘Vigorton 2’ and ‘Dance Beat’ for producer Clancy Eccles, with The Dynamites supplying the backing. His greatest hit though is probably ‘Fire Corner’, for although many people outside of reggae circles may not be familiar with his name many will have heard his prophetic words “No matter what the people say, these sounds leads the way”, the opening gambit to the song that has been sampled by many over the years.

Stitt, although not prolific on the recording front, continued to work and appeared at last years Garance Reggae Festival plus was with  producer Chester Synmoie in Brazil in October on a series of engagements when the producer sadly passed away in the airport on the way home. King Stitt will be greatly missed and was a leading light who showed the way too many.

Slip N Slide Yabass Yaba Radics

Slip N Slide

Yabass Yaba Radics

Early 1980s dub re visited

From the Come Fi Conquer Imprint 2 versions of the same album !

The Download Album 

The CD/Tape Album

Already at download stores is the first version of the album which features 2 spoof style radio mixes of 15 minutes each in length entitled The Gold Side and The Platinum Side put together by Springline's "Gibsy Rhodes" the album also features 2 bonus tracks

Coming early February is the CD and Tape version of the album which features 6 straight cuts only of which 3 feature on the download album version. Variety is the spice of life as they say and the Come Fi Conquer stable are putting every effort into keeping that philosophy alive and well!

Dub engineer and multi instrumentalist Yabass has been part of the underground reggae and dub scene since day one, considered by many as one of the foundation underground artists he's already released the album 'Back A Yard Dub' on Cherry Red Records which was followed recently with his 'Guns Down The Obeah At OK Corral Centrale' album on SpringlineRecords. This latest venture with Springline's Gibsy as producer has a heavily western themed vibe to the album.

Full website presentation of Slip N Slide will be arriving shortly at

Springline Records . com 

Jimmy Castor

It is with deep sadness that we here at Springline have heard that Jimmy Castor the New York funk and soul saxophonist, singer and songwriter has died of apparent heart failure in a Las Vegas hospital.

He was born on the 23^rd of June 1947 in New York and began his musical career as a doo-wop singer when he wrote and recorded "I Promise to Remember" in 1956. He then went on to replace Frankie Lymon in The Teenagers in 1957 before switching to the saxophone in 1960. It is with this instrument he is probably best known as he became leader of his own disco/funk band The Jimmy Castor Bunch with whom he scored his biggest hit single, 1972’s million seller, "Troglodyte (Cave Man)". Before then he also had a solo hit with "Hey Leroy, Your Mama's Callin' You" on Smash Records in 1966 and played sax on Dave "Baby" Cortez's hit "Rinky Dink."

As leader of The Jimmy Castor Bunch in the 1970s, and also as a solo artist, he released several successful albums and singles. The group reached the peak of their commercial success in 1972 with the release of their album, It's Just Begun, which featured two hit singles: title track and the afore mentioned "Troglodyte (Cave Man)," which peaked at #6 in the US Billboard Hot 100. The track stayed in the chart for 14 weeks and was a million seller by 30 June 1972, and received a gold disc award from the R.I.A.A.
Castor continued the trend in 1975 with "The Bertha Butt Boogie" and later recorded "E-Man Boogie," "King Kong," "Bom Bom," and "Potential”. The Castor band included keyboardist/trumpeter Gerry Thomas, bassist Doug Gibson, guitarist Harry Jensen, conga player Lenny Fridle, Jr., and drummer Bobby Manigault. Thomas, who simultaneously recorded with the Fatback Band, left in the '80's to exclusively record with them. Castor recorded as a solo performer from 1976 until 1988. He had one of his bigger hits in many years with a 1988 revival of "Love Makes a Woman," which paired him with disco diva Joyce Sims.
Many of the Castor Bunches tunes have been heavily sampled in films and in hip-hop with the saxophone hook and groove from "It's Just Begun" with the Jungle Brothers, ‘On The Run’ springing to mind  in particular as well as the spoken word intro from "Troglodyte" , namely “What we're gonna do right now is go back….”.

His son, Jimmy Castor Jr., 45, a filmmaker from Redondo Beach, California, told The Associated Press “he's seen instant recognition hundreds of times at the first sax chords of "It's Just Begun" - even before the lyrics begin. No matter what country you're in, no matter what language you speak, everyone knows it." 

Ska Madness 2

Out Now!…. is 'Ska Madness 2'  another one of those collections of classic Ska and Rocksteady sounds that helped inspire the 2-Tone movement that rose to prominence in the UK in late 1979. 

As you will derive from the title this is the follow up to 2010’s 'Ska Madness!' which collected together a selection of the original tunes that the 2-Tone bands, such as The Specials, The Selecter and The (English) Beat had covered during their time. This time however the collection, compiled by Rhoda Dakar (The Special A.K.A and Bodysnatchers), focuses more on tracks which influenced the original bands, were favourites on the tour buses during the various Two Tone package tours and were used to fill the interludes between the bands at these gigs. Amongst the 20 tracks featured are 7 Top 10 UK Chart hits including Desmond Dekker’s #1 Israelitesfrom March 1969, a #9 from June 1970 Love Of The Common People by Nicky Thomas and from an artist who recently ventured some way back to his roots with his‘Sacred Fire’ E.P is Jimmy Cliff’s excellent Wonderful World, Beautiful People which surprisingly only peaked at #6 in October of ’69. Also there are some tunes that maybe aren’t so well known from these type of compilations such as Wear You To The Ballfrom The Paragons, Ali Baba by John Holt, The Jamaicans Ba Ba Boom Time and UK act Symarip’s Skinhead Girl.

This may just sound like more of the same to some but the original 'Ska Madness!' has now sold over 115,000 copies and was the 4th biggest selling budget album of that year and at last count was the 6th biggest selling budget album of 2011! So it just goes to show that there is still, thankfully, great interest in these old songs. So if you are one of the people who brought volume one then this is its must have companion and if you are new to these sounds then this is as good as place as any to start and explore what drove these great bands on….oh and don’t forget to give volume one ago while you’re at it!

Full Track list
01. Israelites – Desmond Dekker
02. Monkey Spanner – Dave & Ansell Collins
03. Pressure Drop – Toots & The Maytals
04. Elizabethan Reggae – Boris Gardiner
05. Cherry Oh Baby – Eric Donaldson
06. The Tide Is High – The Paragons
07. Sweet Sensation – The Melodians 
08. Ba Ba Boom Time – The Jamaicans
09. Wear You To The Ball – The Paragons
10. Ali Baba – John Holt
11. Return Of Django – The Upsetters
12. Skinhead Girl – Symarip
13. Red Red Wine – Tony Tribe
14. Tighten Up – Untouchables
15. If It Don’t Work Out – Pat Kelley
16. Wonderful World, Beautiful People – Jimmy Cliff
17. Young Gifted And Black – Bob & Marcia 
18. Love Of The Common People – Nicky Thomas
19. Black Pearl – Horace Faith
20. Wear You To The Ball – John Holt & U Roy

Available at AMAZON

Dubmatix "Atomic Subsonic" Made Available For Free Download

As a great way to start the New Year Dubmatix has, for a limited time, made his 2006 follow up to Champion Sound Clash available for free download. 

This 12 track album features various reggae styles from straight roots and its dub to steppers and electro dub. It also features a host of artists including Freddie McGregor, Anthony B,  Howie Smart, Raffa Dean, Fredlocks, Rasta Rueben, Treson plus Treasure Chest Productions.

To get yourself a free copy of this album visit Soundcloud now