Daddy G - DJ Kicks

Reggae-matic are these grooves to those of us who remember their influence on big city radio and the music industry. For the rest of you, pull your chairs up to the bench, bar or dancehall floor, listen, move, and enjoy. "Daddy G," part of the DJ-Kicks series on the Berlin-based! K7 Records, simply jams seventeen tracks that will be rocking you, rocking you, Mon!

This sound first gained widespread acceptance fifteen years ago thanks to the late Frankie Crocker. He had just returned from about a month stint of shows on WBLS FM, New York City, "live" from London, England on Capitol FM. Among his stack of "pirate plates" was the group Massive Attack (one of the bands included here); Soul II Soul was just blowing-up – he was the first to bring them to the States as well.

This CD represents those years that have become the foundation for much of the ensuing hip-hop and dance music we now often take for granted. It is a familiar collective for Jah massive!

Daddy G is hugely responsible for Massive Attack, for they were among those born from his Wild Bunch Sound System whose other members are Mushroom and 3-D. However, before I get too far ahead of myself and you think this is a Massive Attack album, rewind – this CD includes some very crucial, influential rhythms from artists like Willie Williams, Melaaz, Johnny Osbourne, Mos Def, Foxy Brown (revisiting a Toots and the Maytals classic), and The Meters. Boombastic and funtastik!!

There are several previously unreleased or hard-to-find dub versions like Shri's "Signs," and Barrington Levy on "Here I Come."

It is no coincidence that Aretha's "Rock Steady" (featuring Bernard "Pretty" Purdie on drums) is included, given that rock-steady is a Jamaican dance style that came out three decades ago. Bigg upps!

In a way, jams like these were instrumental in bridging the gap between the Marley, Heptones, Burning Spear reggae music and the Sean Paul and Elephant Man hits we rock to here in the future. I'm not hip to the "Bristol" connection, and I tried to reach out to them for the 411, to no avail... guess the request was chaliced.

Put this on at you party, bar background, store or picnic and get maximum respect.