Dub/Ska/Reggae

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Dub, Ska and Reggae are related forms of Jamaican music that have always had a close association with jazz and fusion. Ska arose in the early 60s and involved the intersection of American RnB and Caribbean rhythms. Many professional ska musicians were out of work Jamaican jazz musicians who brought their jazz background and sensibilities to ska recordings. The highly influential Skatalites are a good example of an early jazzy ska band.

Reggae grew out of ska and featured slowed down relaxed rhythms, rasta lyrics and African rhythms. The rhythms of reggae have a had a major influence on jazz, as well as the entire world of music.

Dub is reggae music stripped down and re-mixed into mostly instrumental tracks in which individual instrumental parts are constantly shifting in and out of the mix. Dub style mixing has had a huge influence on modern groove based music and can show up in almost any genre. Modern jazz and fusion musicians have often gravitated towards dub as a style to work with and solo over. Some well known dub fusion musicians include Bill Laswell, Jah Wobble, Graham Haynes and Nils Petter Molvaer. Originators of the dub approach include King Tubby, Sly and Robby, Prince Jammy and Scientist. In the jazz and fusion world, dub has been a major influence on nu jazz and acid jazz.

dub/ska/reggae top albums

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PRINCE JAMMY Kamikazi Dub Album Cover Kamikazi Dub
PRINCE JAMMY
5.00 | 2 ratings
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BILL LASWELL Baselines Album Cover Baselines
BILL LASWELL
4.62 | 4 ratings
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BILL LASWELL Invisible Design Album Cover Invisible Design
BILL LASWELL
4.50 | 4 ratings
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EKSTASIS Wake Up and Dream Album Cover Wake Up and Dream
EKSTASIS
4.50 | 3 ratings
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JAH WOBBLE Heaven & Earth Album Cover Heaven & Earth
JAH WOBBLE
4.48 | 3 ratings
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AUGUSTUS PABLO East Of The River Nile Album Cover East Of The River Nile
AUGUSTUS PABLO
4.50 | 2 ratings
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SCIENTIST Dubbin With Horns (Meets Roots Radics) Album Cover Dubbin With Horns (Meets Roots Radics)
SCIENTIST
4.50 | 2 ratings
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THE BEAT (THE ENGLISH BEAT) I Just Can't Stop It Album Cover I Just Can't Stop It
THE BEAT (THE ENGLISH BEAT)
4.50 | 2 ratings
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THE BEAT (THE ENGLISH BEAT) Wha'ppen? Album Cover Wha'ppen?
THE BEAT (THE ENGLISH BEAT)
4.50 | 2 ratings
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THE SKATALITES Ska Authentic Album Cover Ska Authentic
THE SKATALITES
4.50 | 2 ratings
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THE SKATALITES The Legendary Skatalites In Dub Album Cover The Legendary Skatalites In Dub
THE SKATALITES
4.50 | 2 ratings
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BILL LASWELL Imaginary Cuba Album Cover Imaginary Cuba
BILL LASWELL
4.33 | 3 ratings
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dub/ska/reggae Music Reviews

MATERIAL Hallucination Engine

Album · 1994 · Dub/Ska/Reggae
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FunkFreak75
Another adventurous multi-tradition fusion attempt pulled together by Bill Laswell under his Material moniker, and this one is a good one. In fact, this is one of the more successful fusions of Middle Eastern/Indian traditions with Bill's own penchant for raw urban jazz funk. Though the production is great, there are a few questionable sound engineering choices and there are some under-developed or unfinished feeling compositions, but overall this is a delightful collection of funk-infused World Music fusion from top notch musicians. 1. "Black Light" (7:33) a soprano sax-led pop jazz tune that reminds me of a funked up song from smooth jazz operators, Spiro Gyra. (8/10)

2. "Mantra" (8:44) opens with lots of spacey percussives and sound effects before developing into a Persian horn led tabla-rock song. (9/10)

3. "Ruins" (8:54) another awesome cross-mix of Middle Eastern sounds and with funky metro-pop grooves capped by the awesome violin play of Shankar. The song drags on a bit with the slow, stepped down, atmospheric middle section while retaining an edgy chord and melody structure. Could be an amazing soundtrack piece. (8.5/10)

4. "Eternal Drift" (7:35) opens with some nice atmospherics before guitar arpeggio establish a cool chord progression on which to build the song?but first more sacred/folk ethnic voicings. The actual song that settles in the third minute is faster paced, more bass- and sax-driven than anticipated, but the contributions of the myriad other musicians is awesome. The only flaw is I wished it would settle into one of the many lines and themes offered?especially the grooving ones. (9/10)

5. "Words of Advice" (3:58) William S. Burroughs speaking over a nice jazzy urban groove. Not sure of the value of William's rather cynical advice. (8/10)

6. "Cucumber Slumber" (7:30) contains a great Tony-Levin-like funky jazz bass with didgeridoo and table base. Nice rhythm guitar parts while other percussionists, Bill's bass, Wayne Shorter, and Bernie Worrell play off each other. Could almost be a modern Weather Report song. (9/10)

7. "The Hidden Garden / Naima" (13:00) orchestrated with an Indian foundation before it gets into some serious funky rock'n'roll territory. Stellar fusion! The bass stands out but the ensemble of Indian musicians here are so welcome! The final several minutes are slowed down atmospheric and gorgeous. (10/10)

8. "Shadows of Paradise" (9:45) a tabla-based jam set up to showcase Shankar's virtuosity on the 10-string electric violin. Bass, guitars, and lineup of percussionists do an awesome job in support but it's really Shankar's show (even though he's mixed a little back in the mix. (9/10)

A great urban jazz-meets-Asian/World fusion album that deserves more attention. Laswell and crew could've done better, gotten more structured "finished" compositions, but I'm not sure they could have gotten any better performances from the non-American performers.

4.5 stars; a near-masterpiece of progressive music.

GEIR SUNDSTØL The Studio Intim Sessions vol. 1

EP · 2022 · Dub/Ska/Reggae
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js
Every now and then you come across an album on which every note is so perfectly placed that it sparkles like a rare gem. Such is the case with Geir Sandstol’s “The Studio Sessions Volume 1”. Geiris is a very popular session musicians who specializes in a variety of string instruments such as guitar, dobro, pedal steel, banjo and the Indian Shankar guitar. He occasionally releases solo albums which are usually sparse ambient affairs that reflect the wide open spaces of Norway, but his new album reveals something entirely different, dub reggae from Jamaica. The Nordic guitar work is still there, but everything is backed with very well played dub riddims.

This music is attractively somber and melancholic, often reminding one of early Bill Laswell albums such as “Hear No Evil” and “Hallucination Engine”, and also Ry Cooder’s sparse slide guitar work for the “Paris Texas” soundtrack. This is music for reflection that reaches deep into your soul. Every track is thoughtful and essential, there are no wasted moments on here. Album opener, “Gem”, features the purest dub, while other tracks are closer to dub fusion similar to the work of Laswell again, and Jah Wobble. The Indian Shankar guitar blends with the pedal steel guitar providing nice tone colors on “Dogg”. On “Snik”, Geir plays the stringed harp producing an exotica styled melody. Sampled choir gives album closer, “Whole” a spiritual impact. The top track though may be “C’est Vide en Ville”, on which Middle eastern melodies alternate with a folk melody sung in French. Throughout the entire album the expected dub style ambient breaks and psychedelic effects add to the soundscapes.

THE BEAT (THE ENGLISH BEAT) Wha'ppen?

Album · 1981 · Dub/Ska/Reggae
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js
The Beat’s (English Beat in the US) first album, “I Just Can’t Stop It”, was a high energy ska punk barn burner infused with politically savvy lyrics, and it was a huge success in England and all around the entire world. Conventional wisdom would dictate that they should keep the same formula for their follow up album, but instead The Beat decided to challenge themselves, and their followers, by changing course for their follow up, “Wha’ppen”. The Caribbean rhythms from drummer Everrette Morton were still there, but instead of just high speed ska, The Beat delved into a wide variety of additional ‘riddims’ including dub, calypso and various hybrids that were their own creation. Likewise, their lyrics delved more into personal relationships and a certain malaise where disappointment in relations intersect with political concerns creating a more somber mood. Critics were quick to pan this album claiming The Beat had lost their way, but the band had not lost any creativity or integrity with this second opus as repeat listens reveal an interesting mix of island rhythms and art pop ambitions. The art pop leanings were no accident as band leaders Dave Wakeling and Ranking Roger were just as much into David Bowie as they were into the Skatalites.

Yes, “Wha’ppen” is not the exuberant dance fest of their first outing, but as a deeper listening experience, in many ways it is the better album, critics be damned. If I may indulge a bit here, I had just lost a girlfriend when this album came out and it became the perfect soundtrack as I came to terms with the fact that it was indeed all over. I wonder what the guys in The Beat were going through that pushed them in this direction, possibly similar failed partnerships, disillusionment with musical stardom, restless youth back home dealing with terminal unemployment and the growing menace of a possible nuclear war. All of these concerns come together in the lyrics in which personal troubles combine with political apprehension in ways that make it hard to separate the two.

It may sound like this album is just one big downer, but it is not. The song writing is excellent and the syncopated Jamaican rhythms celebrate life no matter what the obstacle. I think many critics missed the boat on this one, its definitely not a repeat of the first album, but it is one of the best art pop albums of the 80s, easily challenging the best work by Bowie, Prince or The Police during this same time period.

VIN GORDON African Shores

Album · 2019 · Dub/Ska/Reggae
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js
Back in the late 70s, when a record said ‘dub’ on it, you knew what you were going to get, audio heaven usually, but during the onset of the digital ice age, dub became all sorts of very un-dubby things, finally hitting rock bottom with the horrendous ‘dub-step’. Are you looking for the real deal, then look no further than Vin Gordon’s new album, “African Shores”. Everything on here was played by real humans on analog instruments and recorded with analog tape and equipment. The effects sound analog as well, and quite possibly not computer aided. The end result is pure natural dub, the kind that was prevalent during the reign of Prince Jammy, King Tubby and Scientist. Speaking of those great masters, more than likely Gordon played trombone with them all, plus other greats like the Skatalites and Bob Marley. If his name is not familiar to you, then possibly you know him by his other name, Don Drummond Jr, named after famous trombonist, Don Drummond.

Although some classic dub tunes would get into pop type chord changes and melodies, “African Shores” is in a different style, much more stripped down and hypnotically repetitive. Every song is in a dry minor key, and there are few chord changes. Some songs stay on a single minor chord skank, but that is the style Vin and his crew are going for on here. There is plenty of variation in rhythmic approaches and ensemble make up with some tracks featuring full horn arrangements, while others just short melodic snippets from Gordon’s horn. Many of the tracks on here are done in two versions, with the second one being more dubbed out than the first. The icing on the cake is the jazzy and sometimes ‘out there’ solos from Vin, David Fulwood on trumpet and a couple of saxophone players too. Some top cuts include, “Spill Over” with its infectious funk drive, and the up tempo, “Dubbing Style”, which true to its title carries the most creative and rhythmically connected dubbing effects on the album.

MANU DIBANGO Gone Clear

Album · 1980 · Dub/Ska/Reggae
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Matt
Released in 1980, recorded in Jamaica on Chris Blackwell’s label, Island Record’s , with quite a few big names included and not only from Jamaica but the U.S.A as well with the Brecker brothers included with Michael on sax and Randy on trumpet with Joe Faddis, Mike Lawrence supporting and Gwen Guthrie being one of the backing vocalists.. Plenty of big Jamaican names also with Ansell Collins, Sly and Robbie, Mikey Chung with a few others from the area as well for Manu Dibango’s Reggae excursion with the album “Gone Clear” which has also been re released on the French label Sonodisc in 1990 under the name “Rasta Souvenir” on two discs which does include Manu’s following Reggae release on Island “Ambassador” on each disc respectively albeit with a slight track order change the albums are still separate in their entirety on each of the discs.

“Full Up” puts the Reggae beat straight to the fore with Manu’s sax riding right over it all on this great album opener being primarily an instrumental with just the backing vocalists repeating the title on occasion. Funk and fairly quick moving is the basis for the highly enjoyable instrumental “Goro City” with some great sax input from Dibango’s sax being all over it and some wonderful band backing. More full on Reggae beat in “Doctor Bird” where we finally get to hear Manu adding those deep vocals and jive he usually does in French and the delight just keeps coming in another great take on his most famous number the Makossa where this time it’s the “Reggae Makossa” and good it is, being delivered in quick time. “Frozen Soul” is vibe time for Manu with a highly similar time to “Full Up” but no matter it is Reggae and the album finishes up with one of its highlights, for me anyway with it s loopy opening and more of those backing vocals and saxes just keeping a firm reminder of the time this music was made in being the late 70’s and early 80’s with that Manu Dibango stamp.

Lovely groover to have on and even if Reggae is not your thing try this as it only fairly mild with its influence and basically it’s still Dibango presenting his style of Cameroonian French influenced African Music but still I really don’t know too many African music fans that don’t like Reggae anyway.

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