|
|
| Jonny Greenwood Is the Controller (Trojan/Sanctuary, 2007) On the heels of DJ Spooky's stint plucking tunes from the Trojan oeuvre comes Radiohead guitarist Jonny Greenwood turn as "controller." Unlike Spooky's volume, there's only one disc here, and Greenwood's choices aren't quite as obscure -- which, depending on your point of view, may or may not be a good thing. Longtime reggae heads won't find much here that they haven't heard (indeed, you'd think there isn't much in the Trojan vaults that remains unreleased), but even if the selection is familiar, the quality of these songs is beyond reproach. The first half in particular is packed with niceness: the yearning "Never Be Ungrateful" (AKA "Promise Me") has always been one of my favorite Gregory Isaacs tunes, while Marcia Aitken's cover of Alton Ellis's "I'm Still in Love" (younger kids will know it as "that Sean Paul song") is an intriguing slice of history in that this 12" mix includes Trinity's hit "Three Piece Suit" tacked onto the end, a song that in turn led to the even bigger hit response, "Uptown Top Ranking" by Althea & Donna. Also, The Heptones' "Cool Rasta" is one of the legendary trio's best tunes, and Derrick Harriott's rendition of "Let Me Down Easy," which seems to be a rarity, is sweet and soulful, although it doesn't differ much from the more well-known Dennis Brown cover. It's a bit odd, though, that Greenwood would repeat any artists, as he does with Lee "Scratch" Perry, who has two tunes here, plus two collaborations with Junior Byles. "Bionic Rats" and "Dreader Locks" are even both takes on the same song: "Curly Locks." I doubt dub fans will complain, though, about having multiple doses of Perry in "Bionic Rats" and "Black Panta," in addition to a dose of Scientist on "Flash Gordon Meets Luke Skywalker" and the more obscure (although it's been included on a couple of Trojan compilations) "Right Road to Dubland" by the Jahlights. Despite the presence of Desmond Dekker, Marcia Griffiths, Delroy Wilson, and Johnny Clarke, the second half of Jonny Greenwood Is the Controller falters a bit in comparison to the first, highlighting the difficulty of coming up with songs that are great and yet not overly familiar. Still, on the whole, the song choice on this album is solid and displays a genuine knowledge of the genre by not relying on the most obvious selections. It'll be interesting to see if there's another installment; let's hope it's not Right Said Fred Is the Controller. |
| Track Listing 1. Dread Are the Controller -- Linval Thompson 2. Let Me Down Easy -- Derrick Harriott 3. I'm Still in Love [12" Mix] -- Marcia Aitken 4. Never Be Ungrateful -- Gregory Isaacs 5. Bionic Rats -- Lee "Scratch" Perry 6. Cool Rasta -- The Heptones 7. Flash Gordon Meets Luke Skywalker -- Scientist & The Roots Radio Band 8. Black Panta -- The Upsetters 9. Fever -- Junior Byles 10. Beautiful and Dangerous -- Desmond Dekker & The Aces 11. Dread Dub -- Lloyds All Star 12. Gypsy Man -- Marcia Griffiths 13. A Ruffer Version -- Johnny Clarke 14. Right Road to Dubland -- The Jahlights 15. Dreader Locks -- Junior Byles & Lee "Scratch" Perry 16. This Life Makes Me Wonder -- Delroy Wilson 17. Clean Race -- Scotty |
 |