Reggae Greats (Island, 1985)

Linton Kwesi Johnson is probably the best-known, most popular dub poet (aside from Mutabaruka), which makes sense, since he practically invented this sub-genre.  His brazen, straightforward lyrics cover an admirable variety of cultural and sociopolitical subjects (particularly evident in his protest against police violence, "Sonny's Lettah"), and this short "best of" collection groups together select tracks from his 3 Island albums, Forces of Victory, Bass Culture, and Making History.  Dub poetry as a whole is certainly an acquired taste, and frankly, I have yet to fully acquire it. With Oku Onuora's works being the major exception, I have yet to hear much dub poetry that has really struck me.  Johnson's works here seem typical of the genre: forceful, deliberate, conscious lyrics spouted in a semi-rhythmic talking/borderline DJ chatting beat poet style.  This style is a major hang-up for me because it's neither as smooth as singing nor as rhythmic as chatting.  It actually sounds like bad hip-hop rapping at times, and it's painful enough to seriously distract me from the song.  Still, this aside, stronger music would've helped considerably (I mean, much of the appeal of many of Lee "Scratch" Perry's tunes are the music alone, since his maniacal vocals are a bit too, well, maniacal.), but the rhythms on this album -- provided by LKJ and Dennis Bovell -- aren't as consistently good as they should be.  Being dub poetry, the music should be able to stand alone as a dub, but I think that only about half of these would be solid dubs, particularly "Bass Culture," "Sonny's Lettah," and "Reggae Fi Radni," with its swimming, Godfather-esque guitar.  On only a few tracks, however, does the music both appeal to me and manage not to be overpowered by the awkward-sounding vocals, most notably in "Di Great Insohreckshan," on which the vocals are more subdued, and "Making History," on which the vocals are more rhythmic, thus flowing better. Certainly, a lot of people do enjoy LKJ's material, but it's just as certain that these songs won't satisfy every reggae fan's palate.