 The Heptones Utterly cool, through-and-through cool, roots reggae that'll make you grateful for the day you finally decided you needed more reggae CDs than just Legend. Actually, on the path toward cool reggae that usually starts with Legend, you probably won't stumble across the Heptones until pretty far into the forest, but they are truly the Scarecrow, and Jah is the Wizard. Could I have cooked up a more half-baked assortment of metaphors there? Well, no need to listen to me when you can be listening to the Heptones and their supersweet, heavenly harmonies. Cool Rasta is a stone classic in every sense – tight playing, delightful singing, thoughtful lyrics, and moreover, just a vibe that is more and more scarce these days as Shaggy takes over the world. They're not too far off from the Gladiators, so if you dig Trenchtown Mix-Up, you will surely love this. If you haven't heard either, get both. Now. Come on! Don't worry, you won't necessarily turn into a hippie. The sound is sort of like Fine Young Cannibals Sr., soulful and catchy, with lots of 60s-style melodies – in fact, the whole thing sounds like it was recorded in 1966, but actually it was more like 1973. I wonder if "The X-Files" ever did an episode about the time vortex in Kingston? The CD reissue adds 9 tracks to the original 10, and surprisingly, the added material (mostly dubs) is entirely as strong as the album itself. Best songs are the killer "Autalene," and "Black on Black," which has about the best chorus of any reggae song ever, very "Israelites." A fun way to listen to reggae is, whenever they say "Jah Jah," to imagine the song is about Jar-Jar Binks.
Review by Ed Orleans |