Let The Music Oracles Speak: The January Vinyl Spin Challenge Thread

January 14: Shakira

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Café Tacvba - Cuatro Caminos

Shakira began a bit more on the "rock en español" side of things before becoming the international pop juggernaut we know her as now, so I'm going to play a group that also takes the sounds of their homeland (Mexico) and mixes it with whatever sounds they feel like throwing in the genre blender that day.

As a fun international journey, I first heard a song from this album in a taxi when I was living in Argentina, then stumbled on and bought the album at a Best Buy in Minneapolis upon returning to the States. ¡Globalización!

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January 18: Bob Marley

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Bob Marley, born on February 6, 1945, in Nine Mile, Jamaica, emerged as a musical luminary whose influence extended far beyond the boundaries of reggae. A charismatic and passionate figure, Marley's early life was marked by poverty, yet he rose above adversity to become a global symbol of resistance and unity through his music.

In the 1970s, Bob Marley and The Wailers gained international recognition, with albums like "Catch a Fire" and "Burnin'" solidifying their reputation. Marley's distinctive voice and songwriting prowess, often inspired by Rastafarian beliefs, resonated with audiences worldwide. His music transcended genres, incorporating elements of ska, rocksteady, and reggae, creating a unique and compelling sound.

One of Marley's most enduring contributions was his ability to infuse his lyrics with messages of love, peace, and social justice. Songs like "One Love," "Redemption Song," and "Buffalo Soldier" became anthems for those advocating for equality and human rights. Marley's commitment to addressing societal issues through his art left an indelible mark on the world of music.

His influence extends far beyond the realm of music, as he is revered as a symbol of cultural identity and social activism. The posthumous release of compilation albums like "Legend" further cemented his status as one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Bob Marley's impact on reggae and global music culture remains immeasurable. His timeless songs continue to inspire new generations, making him not only a musical icon but a powerful force for positive change and unity on a global scale.

As many of you know, I'm a die-hard reggae fan. I've been playing in reggae bands since I was 15 years old, and have been fortunate enough to open for several reggae legends who were influenced by Mr. Marley. Spin something today by or influenced by Bob, another reggae album, or anything else this card embodies for you!
 
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January 16: Jimi Hendrix

Representing the bootlegs. Found this at a record show way back in my college daze...

Not this particular show (much better sound on the LP) but the same era.

Can you imagine seeing this live in 1968?



The Jimi Hendrix Experience - Pipe Dream Recorded On Stage In Amsterdam 1968

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The Amazing Kornyphone Record Label did some fine work.
 
Day 18

For the longest time, Marley was the beginning and end of my reggae listening and collection. I’m honestly not sure that I own any CDs that are reggae outside of a handful of Marley titles. I fell into the trap of it all sounded the same. Even having a very basic knowledge of Peter Tosh and Burning Spear, this was the case for years. I was fairly fascinated by Dancehall in the nineties but not enough to buy even a Shabba Ranks album.

VMP actually did quite a bit to educate me on classic reggae. I still don’t quite understand the nuances of the genre. I can tell the difference between like dub and dancehall, but I couldn’t tell you if a song was ska, rocksteady or roots reggae.

Those of you that know my musical taste know that Soul tends to be a go to genre for me. It’s a reason I am a champion of Colemine Records. Daptone and Big Crown are just under Colemine in modern labels that I hold in high regard. These two labels have informed my knowledge of more modern Reggae acts through my fanaticism for their product and outstanding releases by acts like The Frightnrs and Liam Bailey (Colemine has had a role in this too - see Jr Thomas).

American Soul and Reggae have ties that I am still exploring and learning. Those ties have been significant to my learning about and appreciation of Reggae.

Today discogs tells me I have 45 releases that can be classified as Reggae. That’s more than a handful and a larger percentage of my 2500 vinyl slabs than 5 or 6 of my 5000 CDs.

Victor Axelrod has ties to Daptone that date back to the Desco days (which means he also is a player with Big Crown). This has been in my to be played pile (if I started the challenge today, this would definitely be an additional layer to the challenge instead of an occasional subtheme). It is a compilation of tracks (a couple unreleased) that he has worked on since 2007, I believe, for Daptone. It features Reggae artists like The Frightnrs alongside Reggae takes on songs from the more familiar names from the Daptone Roster (like Sharon Jones):
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Victor Axelrod - If You Ask Me To… (Victor Axelrod Productions for Daptone Records)
 
I should also shout out VMP and the forums for introducing me to Desmond Dekker which was an important discovery for my interest in the genre. His music, especially the You Can get It If You Really Want album, was a bit of a Rosetta Stone in my appreciation of the genre. I know that the stuff I like the most now tends to be Ska even if I’m not able to definitively say a tune is Ska when I hear it.
 
January 18: Bob Marley

One good thing about music
When it hits you feel no pain
So hit me with music
Hit me with music now
Hit me with music
Brutalize me with music

Doubling up today with a fantastic live set from Bob Marley, and then following it up with another cover of Redemption Song.

Bob Marley & The Wailers ~ Live at the Rainbow / Eddie Vedder & Beyonce ~ Redemption Song.

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Lee Newman said:
Day 18

For the longest time, Marley was the beginning and end of my reggae listening and collection. I’m honestly not sure that I own any CDs that are reggae outside of a handful of Marley titles. I fell into the trap of it all sounded the same. Even having a very basic knowledge of Peter Tosh and Burning Spear, this was the case for years. I was fairly fascinated by Dancehall in the nineties but not enough to buy even a Shabba Ranks album.

VMP actually did quite a bit to educate me on classic reggae. I still don’t quite understand the nuances of the genre. I can tell the difference between like dub and dancehall, but I couldn’t tell you if a song was ska, rocksteady or roots reggae.

Those of you that know my musical taste know that Soul tends to be a go to genre for me. It’s a reason I am a champion of Colemine Records. Daptone and Big Crown are just under Colemine in modern labels that I hold in high regard. These two labels have informed my knowledge of more modern Reggae acts through my fanaticism for their product and outstanding releases by acts like The Frightnrs and Liam Bailey (Colemine has had a role in this too - see Jr Thomas).

American Soul and Reggae have ties that I am still exploring and learning. Those ties have been significant to my learning about and appreciation of Reggae.

Today discogs tells me I have 45 releases that can be classified as Reggae. That’s more than a handful and a larger percentage of my 2500 vinyl slabs than 5 or 6 of my 5000 CDs.

Victor Axelrod has ties to Daptone that date back to the Desco days (which means he also is a player with Big Crown). This has been in my to be played pile (if I started the challenge today, this would definitely be an additional layer to the challenge instead of an occasional subtheme). It is a compilation of tracks (a couple unreleased) that he has worked on since 2007, I believe, for Daptone. It features Reggae artists like The Frightnrs alongside Reggae takes on songs from the more familiar names from the Daptone Roster (like Sharon Jones):
View attachment 193151
Victor Axelrod - If You Ask Me To… (Victor Axelrod Productions for Daptone Records)
Click to expand...

Lee Newman said:
I should also shout out VMP and the forums for introducing me to Desmond Dekker which was an important discovery for my interest in the genre. His music, especially the You Can get It If You Really Want album, was a bit of a Rosetta Stone in my appreciation of the genre. I know that the stuff I like the most now tends to be Ska even if I’m not able to definitively say a tune is Ska when I hear it.
Click to expand...

Loved reading these. Please continue on this reggae journey! I think you might like Beres Hammond. His brand of "lovers rock" and soulful reggae helped inspire a whole subgenre. Give him a listen sometime!

 
Day 18: Bob Marley
The Upsetters - Return Of The Super Ape
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I have a few Bob Marley records but I decided to use the opportunity to spin this since I have been sitting on it since Black Friday. It’s a Jamaican repress from 1992 and I was stoked to pick it up. Unfortunately, I tend to spend more time with Reggae and Dub music during the summer months so I am glad this challenge has provided the motivation needed to drop this on the turntable in January.

 
TenderLovingKiller® said:
Day 18: Bob Marley
The Upsetters - Return Of The Super Ape
View attachment 193166
I have a few Bob Marley records but I decided to use the opportunity to spin this since I have been sitting on it since Black Friday. It’s a Jamaican repress from 1992 and I was stoked to pick it up. Unfortunately, I tend to spend more time with Reggae and Dub music during the summer months so I am glad this challenge has provided the motivation needed to drop this on the turntable in January.
Click to expand...

Looks like we are sync’d up today!


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I personally love this version. It's spacey, polished, fatter bass and definitely dubbed out.

"As referenced by the new album’s title, Returns To Conquer is a contemporary reworking of Perry’s 1976 dub masterwork Super Ape, put together by the American electronic dub collective Subatomic Sound System, who have backed Perry on live dates in the US for the last seven years. The original album, recorded at the Black Ark when Perry was at the peak of his powers, remains one of the greatest dub albums of all time. It drew from the various recording projects Perry was then working on with The Heptones, Max Romeo, Prince Jazzbo and The Full Experience female harmony trio, the tracks all being completely deconstructed to their drum and bass dub core, bolstered by heavily-processed layers of custom effects, including the Mutron phaser and Roland Space Echo that characterised the peak-period Ark sound. Now, over four decades later, Subatomic has painstakingly recreated the rhythms in a way that stays relatively faithful to the original, yet aims towards younger ears that may not be acquainted with the original. And Perry’s lyrics are completely new.

“As sound system culture continues to expand globally, I wanted to create DJ-friendly, heavyweight versions of Scratch material that makes sense in the 21st century, and represents what we have successfully been building with him live,” says co-producer Emch Subatomic, who has recently moved his studio and base of operations from New York to Los Angeles. “So it sounds like the classic Black Ark vibes in the high frequencies, but in the low end it has the weight and punch of electronic music, dubstep and hiphop. I also wanted to show that Scratch was 40 years ahead of his time with Super Ape, and at 81, more relevant to youth culture than ever. He’s the original Burning Man, the original producer as artist, the guy who laid the blueprint for reggae and dub, that inspired punk artists and electronic producers worldwide. Keith Richards called him the Salvador Dali of Music, Bounty Killer recently hailed him as the greatest Jamaican artist of all time, and Basquiat called him a significant inspiration for his paintings too. He transcends not just reggae, but even music. And he’s still at it!”

.... I'm going to spin a lot of reggae today.
 
Lee Newman said:
Day 18

For the longest time, Marley was the beginning and end of my reggae listening and collection. I’m honestly not sure that I own any CDs that are reggae outside of a handful of Marley titles. I fell into the trap of it all sounded the same. Even having a very basic knowledge of Peter Tosh and Burning Spear, this was the case for years. I was fairly fascinated by Dancehall in the nineties but not enough to buy even a Shabba Ranks album.

VMP actually did quite a bit to educate me on classic reggae. I still don’t quite understand the nuances of the genre. I can tell the difference between like dub and dancehall, but I couldn’t tell you if a song was ska, rocksteady or roots reggae.

Those of you that know my musical taste know that Soul tends to be a go to genre for me. It’s a reason I am a champion of Colemine Records. Daptone and Big Crown are just under Colemine in modern labels that I hold in high regard. These two labels have informed my knowledge of more modern Reggae acts through my fanaticism for their product and outstanding releases by acts like The Frightnrs and Liam Bailey (Colemine has had a role in this too - see Jr Thomas).

American Soul and Reggae have ties that I am still exploring and learning. Those ties have been significant to my learning about and appreciation of Reggae.

Today discogs tells me I have 45 releases that can be classified as Reggae. That’s more than a handful and a larger percentage of my 2500 vinyl slabs than 5 or 6 of my 5000 CDs.

Victor Axelrod has ties to Daptone that date back to the Desco days (which means he also is a player with Big Crown). This has been in my to be played pile (if I started the challenge today, this would definitely be an additional layer to the challenge instead of an occasional subtheme). It is a compilation of tracks (a couple unreleased) that he has worked on since 2007, I believe, for Daptone. It features Reggae artists like The Frightnrs alongside Reggae takes on songs from the more familiar names from the Daptone Roster (like Sharon Jones):
View attachment 193151
Victor Axelrod - If You Ask Me To… (Victor Axelrod Productions for Daptone Records)
Click to expand...
 
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