Joe Gibbs Productions (Roots Culture DJs and the Birth of Dancehall) (Soul Jazz, 2003)

*GUEST REVIEW*
Joe Gibbs and Errol Thompson work in a supermarket in North Parade Kingston. Joe owns the business but should be better known for his tunes as opposed to his tomatoes. Joe Gibbs Productions is a compilation of his material released between 1975 and 1983. They cover a broad base including early dancehall, dub and roots. Even those ignorant of Joe Gibbs will probably recognise some tunes. Most tracks rework classic Studio One riddims adding in replacement vocals, a dubbier production and the classic Sly and Robbie treatment. The strength of the tracks presented here is their simplicity. It's nice that a themed compilation can include dancehall alongside earlier material from the same producer. Some tracks here are quite well known (e.g. "Two Sevens Clash") while others deserve a wider audience for their sense of fun. Can you honestly resist the Steptoe and Son approach of Snuffy and Wally's "Dreader Mafia"? This is a nice addition to the Soul Jazz imprint, a fun introduction to the work of Joe Gibbs and a great companion to their Studio One series.

- ragudave 

Scorchers from the Mighty Two (VP, 2008)

Scorchers from the Mighty Two could very well be the best Joe Gibbs compilation to date, although you truly need a box set to capture the amazing body of work that he produced between the late '60s and early '80s -- granted, as the linter notes state, he took credit for early work done by Lee "Scratch" Perry, Winston "Niney the Observer" Holness and Errol Thompson. It's the latter who's included with Gibbs in the moniker "the Mighty Two," and as such, Scorchers from the Mighty Two limits itself to the collaborations between these two co-producers. Whoever was the driving force behind the scenes, this 2-CD set gathers a great sampling of Gibbs-involved material during the Golden Age of Reggae, with hardly a flat track amongst the 40. It strikes a nice balance between established classics ("Two Sevens Clash," "Uptown Top Ranking," "Money in My Pocket," "I'm Still in Love With You," "Rockers a Nuh Crackers," "Heavy Manners") with lesser-known tunes ("Jah Golden Pen," "Rope In," "Ina Jah Children," "When I Think of You," "Just Like a River") that don't ease up on the quality even a bit. In fact, some of the very best tracks come from smaller-named talent Lloyd Parks (the tender love song "Officially," a re-recording of his own tune) and Dennis Walks (the towering righteous anthem "Almighty I"). Other hidden gems include Cornell Campbell's dancehall-infused "Rope In" (which rides the classic riddim popularized by Michigan & Smiley's "One Love Jamdown"), Chalice's "Good to Be There" (surprisingly straightforward, righteous roots from a group that is largely known as a pop reggae band), "Golden Pen" (a roots gem that makes you wonder why there's not more from Sylford Walker), "Ina Jah Children" (from the rare female roots singers from the '70s, Dhaima), "I'm a Natty" (an early version of Inner Circle's "I'm a Rastaman"), "No Competition" (a vigorous tune that should be considered amongst Freddie McGregor's best) and Mighty Diamonds' "Identity" (a thoughtful rumination on the loss of identity and unity). Bonus: The liner notes are excellent, recounting not only Gibbs' career, but also providing details on all 40 songs, helping to decipher the always-confusing array of remakes and offshoots that make up reggae.