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| Version Dread: 18 Dub Hits from Studio One (Heartbeat, 2006) In the world of reggae, a "version" is basically an instrumental version of a vocal track. Versions became popular in the late '60s, taking up residence on the B-side of single 45 records and eventually adopting the echoed vocals and sound effects that came to identify what we now call dub. Version Dread is a crucial compilation of early versions/dubs from the Studio One vaults, none of which have previously been available on CD. Since most of these tracks come from the early days of dub, there aren't a whole lot of the experimental, digital dub effects that we've come to expect, but the music is so classic, you really don't need all the (literal) bells and whistles. While the musical tracks are credited to more obscure acts, the vocal originals on Version Dread come from some of the biggest names of Studio One's heyday: Horace Andy, Burning Spear, Wailing Souls, Heptones, Ken Boothe, Cornell Campbell, and The Abyssinians, to name a few. Quite a bit of the music should be recognizable to casual Studio One fans -- particularly classics like The Abyssinians' "Declaration of Rights" ("Declaration Version"), Burning Spear's "Creation Rebel" ("Creation Version"), and Willie Williams' "Armagideon Time" ("Armagideon Version"), while "Version Dread" and "Zion Lion" are dubs of DJ tunes that utilize famous rhythms (Larry Marshall's "Throw Me Corn" and Marcia Griffiths' "Melody Life," respectively). Furthermore, the dramatic music from The Heptones' "Give Me This Version" ("Give Me the Right") was parlayed into '90s hits such as Prezident Brown's "Micro Chip," while the rhythm on "Please Be True Version" is perhaps more recognizable from Johnny Osbourne's "Sing Jah Stylee" than from Alexander Henry's "Please Be True." The more rare ditties don't disappoint, as bouncy, soulful numbers like "Born to Dub" and "Hold Me Baby, Pt. 2" may cause more than one listener to go seek out the original vocal tracks, "I Was Born to Be Loved" by The Righteous Flames and "Hold Me Baby" by Basil Daley, respectively. "Fire Version" (Clifton Gibbs & The Selected Few's "Brimstone & Fire"), meanwhile, is a buoyant organ-flooded gem, "It Deep Pt. 2" unleashes a funky, bass-kicking dub of Lloyd Robinson's "It Deep," and "Natty Rub a Dub" actually sounds like it was mis-recorded, as Cornell Campbell's vocals become so muffled and distant you can barely hear him, but this type of rugged dissonance actually helps make the dub a beautiful mess. |
| Track Listing 1. Why Oh Why Version -- Ernest & The Sound Dimension 2. Fire Coal Version -- Sound Dimension 3. Creation Version -- Winston & The New Establishment 4. Please Be True Version -- The Sound Dimensions 5. Armagideon Version -- Willie & The Brentford Rockers 6. Born to Dub -- The Soul Vendors 7. Pick Up Version -- Sound Dimension 8. It Deep, Pt. 2 -- Lloyd Robinson & Brentford Disco Set 9. Version Dread -- Sound Dimension 10. Declaration Version -- Sound Dimension 11. Things a Come Up to Dub -- The Soul Vendors 12. Zion Lion -- Sound Dimension 13. Natty Rub a Dub -- Cornel & The Brentford Rockers 14. Give Me This Version -- The Heptones & Sound Dimensions 15. Fire Version -- The New Establishment 16. Hold Me Baby, Pt. 2 -- Basil Daley 17. Train is Coming, Pt. 2 -- Sound Dimension 18. New Broom, Part 2 -- The New Establishment |
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