1074 - Mojo Special 13. Duke Reid's Treasure Chest: Treasure Isle Rock Steady (1964-1970)

Track Listing

Disc: 1

1. We Are in the Mood [Take 2] - Royals
2. Come on Little Girl [Take Two] - The Melodians
3. Things You Say You Love - The Jamaicans
4. Tide Is High - The Paragons
5. You Don't Need Me - The Melodians
6. Rock Steady - Phyllis Dillon
7. Soul Style - Duke Reid's Group
8. Can't Stand It - Alton Ellis, Lloyd Williams
9. Queen Majesty - The Techniques
10. Heartaches - Vic Taylor
11. Midnight Hour - The Silvertones
12. Midnight Hour - U-Roy
13. My Best Girl - The Paragons
14. Loving Pauper - Dobby Dobson
15. I'll Get Along Without You - The Melodians
16. I'll Never Fall in Love - The Sensations
17. Traveling Man - The Techniques
18. Don't Stay Away - Phyllis Dillon
19. La-La (Means I Love You) - Alton Ellis
20. Hey Leroy, Your Mama's Callin' You - Honey Boy Martin

Disc: 2

1. No Good Rudie [Take Three] - Justin Hinds & Dominoes
2. Everybody Bawling - U-Roy
3. Ba Ba Boom - The Jamaicans
4. Cry Tough [Extended Version] - Alton and the Flames
5. You Have Caught Me - The Melodians
6. Perfidia - Phyllis Dillon
7. Those Guys - The Sensations
8. Ranglin on Bond St. - Ernest and Tommy
9. Girl I've Got a Date [Alternate Version] - Alton Ellis
10. How I Wish It Would Rain - The Techniques
11. It's Raining - The Three Tops
12. Love Is a Treasure - Freddie McKay
13. You Done Me Wrong - Tyrone and the Slickers
14. Right Track - Phyllis Dillon, Hopeton Lewis
15. Everyday Is a Holiday - The Sensations
16. Holiday Version - Winston Wright
17. Come Back My Darling [False Start] - Girl Satchmo
18. Come Back My Darling - Girl Satchmo
19. Mother's Tender Care [Take Two] - The Ethiopians
20. My Girl - The Techniques
21. Moonlight Lover - Joya Landis

Review

Now we've moved away from Ska on the Jamaican Music Mojo Specials and into Rock Steady, the more sultry development of Jamaican music, somewhere between Ska and Reggae. This is a pretty nifty collection of tracks.

The album is named after the producer of all these tracks, Duke Reid, who really gives them his own sonority. In fact you can really divide Jamaican music as much by producers as by musicians, as the music often reflects the producer's ethos as much as the musicians.

I particularly like some versions of well known songs in Rock Steady rhythm here, such as La-La (Love You) or Midnight Hour, but then there are plenty of classic originals such as Tide is High, famously covered by Blondie or We Are in the Mood. This is much more dancy music than ska and while it does not have anywhere near the edge of Prince Buster it is pretty good "pop", or an equivalent of pop, which makes the covers particularly adequate. Great Stuff.

Track Highlights

1. La-La (Love You)
2. Tide is High
3. We Are in the Mood
4. Midnight Hour

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

After serving 10 years as a Jamaican Police Officer, Reid left the force to help his wife Lucille run the family business, The Treasure Isle Grocery and Liquor Store.

He made his way into the music business first as a sound system (outdoor mobile discothèque) owner, promoter and disc jockey. He quickly overtook Tom the Great Sebastian and his sound system as the most popular sound system in Jamaica. Soon he was also sponsor and presenter of a radio show, Treasure Isle Time. A jazz and blues man at heart, Duke chose 'My Mother's Eyes' by Tab Smith as his theme tune. Other favourites of his included Fats Domino, a noticeable influence on the early Duke Reid sound.

Tide is High by the Paragons:

1073 - Mojo 82. Small Faces - Small Faces (1967)

Track Listing

1. (Tell Me) Have You Ever Seen Me
2. Something I Want To Tell You
3. Feeling Lonely
4. Happy Boys Happy
5. Things Are Going to Get Better
6. My Way Of Giving
7. Green Circles
8. Become Like You
9. Get Yourself Together
10. All Our Yesterdays
11. Talk To You
12. Show Me The Way
13. Up the Wooden Hills to Bedfordshire
14. Eddie's Dreaming

Review

First things first, when looking for this album do not mistake it for the other self-titled Small Faces album from 1966, this is the 1967 one and it is a much better one. You will have to look for it by track listing rather than by the title.

You really get the feeling that the Small Faces are quite a bit ahead of the game here, more so than in their more popular albums like Ogden's Nut Gone Flake. At moments throughout this they seem to be prefiguring Glam by a handful of years, listen to the second or third track and you can see Bowie coming a mile away.

Another interesting thing about this album is the way in which songs are surprisingly short, in fact many are below the 2 minute mark and many scarcely go over it. There is an almost Ramones-like impatience to the music, they have a new idea to show you next and so they just move on. All of this together with some great tracks like MY Way of Giving makes this album essential.

Track Highlights

1. My Way of Giving
2. Green Circles
3. Feeling Lonely
4. Something I Want to Tell You

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

At the time of the release of this album, an unofficial second album From the Beginning was released by Decca. Small Faces had transferred to the Immediate label headed by Andrew Loog Oldham.

My Way Of Giving:

1072 - Mojo 81. Pearls Before Swine - One Nation Underground (1967)

Track Listing

1. Another Time
2. Playmate
3. Ballad To An Amber Lady
4. (Oh Dear) Miss Morse
5. Drop Out!
6. Morning Song
7. Regions of May
8. Uncle John
9. I Shall Not Care
10. The Surrealist Waltz

Review

Some more folk rock on the list, and while it is quite good and it does have quite a bit of variety to it, it never quite dazzles the way it might. There is one particular detail that makes it less than appealing and that is the fact that Tom Rapp has a bit of a lisp.

However you soon start to be able to live with the speech impediment and learn to enjoy the album. As I said there is quite a bit of variety here from the ballady first track to the aggressive Uncle John. However this is sometimes too much variety for one album and it seems a bit haphazard at times.

There is a very clear Bob Dylan influence to all this, particularly on the second track where even Rapp's voice seems to emulate Dylan. However he is never as consummate as Bob and so the comparisons become unfair to him... but he is the one which identifies with Dylan.

Track Highlights

1. The Surrealist Waltz
2. Another Time
3. Playmate
4. (Oh Dear) Miss Morse

Final Grade

8/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

"Another Time" is an acoustic song, the first that Rapp ever wrote, based on his experience in a car crash where he walked away unscathed, and, with "Morning Song", represents the most characteristic example of Rapp's later writing style. In contrast, "Drop Out !" and "Uncle John" are youthful protest songs. "(Oh Dear) Miss Morse" spells out in Morse code the word F-U-C-K, accompanied by banjo and organ.

Another Time:

Mojo 80. The Monkees - Headquarters (1967)

See Review

Mojo 79. Donovan - Sunshine Superman (1967)

See Review

Mojo 78. The Beatles - Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Heart's Club Band (1967)

See Review

1071. Mojo 77. Tim Hardin - Tim Hardin 2 (1967)

Track Listing

1. If I Were a Carpenter
2. Red Balloon
3. Black Sheep Boy
4. Lady Came from Baltimore
5. Baby Close Its Eyes
6. You Upset the Grace of Living When You Lie
7. Speak Like a Child
8. See Where You Are and Get Out
9. It's Hard to Believe in Love for Long
10. Tribute to Hank Williams

Review

So we revisit some songs that Bobby Daring was singing on this list not that long ago, but now we do it with the original songwriter doing it. This usually makes things better, and this album is no exception.

The only exception here is Black Sheep Boy, there is a version by Scott Walker which is just as good if not better, but then you can't really compete with Scott Walker, can you?

If I Were a Carpenter sounds more heartfelt here, particularly because Hardin has much more fragile voice, which makes it all the more touching. It also needs to be said that Hardin is a pretty great guitarist and his use of acoustic guitar throughout is pretty great, so he beats Bobby Darin hands down. Hardin's lyrics are great, as is his singing and playing... what else do you need?

Track Highlights

1. If I Were a Carpenter
2. Black Sheep Boy
3. Red Balloon
4. Tribute to Hank Williams

Final Grade

9/10

Trivia

From Wikipedia:

Allmusic stated "Tim Hardin 2 is probably his best single album, on which he eschewed blues nearly entirely and forged a distinctive folk-rock voice..."

If I Were a Carpenter: