Sound Dimension - Jamaica Soul Shake Vol.1 [2LP Silver]

Soul Jazz Records

£31.95
~~£34.18~~

Format: 2xLP, silver vinyl
Catalogue No.: SJRLP127C
Barcode: 5026328801278
Release Date: 03 Nov 2023
Genre: Reggae

'The word timeless is applied way too often in music, but here it is entirely justified.' Fact

New one-off press limited edition silver coloured double vinyl edition of Soul Jazz Records long unavailable 'Jamaica Soul Shake' collection of tracks from The Sound Dimension, probably the funkiest reggae groups to ever to exist on the planet! Features classic tracks recorded at Studio One.

This is the first ever collection of the music of The Sound Dimension - a mixture of classic tracks alongside super-rare singles only ever released in Jamaica.

Alongside The Skatalites, The Sound Dimension were perhaps the most important group in the history of reggae music. That they remain relatively unknown is explained by the fact that they mostly functioned as the in-house studio group at Studio One Records performing anonymously behind the stars of the day - the reggae equivalent of Motown’s Funk Brothers.

In their relatively short-lived career, the group’s unique sound came to define reggae music.

During this period the group played on literally hundreds of hits with Jamaica’s finest vocalists - Alton Ellis, John Holt, Cornell Campbell, Dennis Brown, Horace Andy, The Heptones, Bob Andy, Marcia Griffiths, Freddie McGregor and many more!

Even more importantly their countless addictive, super-tight, classic tracks at Studio One became the foundation rhythms of all reggae music, countlessly replayed in new forms by an endless list of Dancehall artists from the 1970s onwards as producers such as Joe Gibbs, Sly & Robbie, Steely & Clevie re-interpreted these seminal tunes.

The group’s fluid line-up itself features a roll call of Reggae legends -Jackie Mittoo, Leroy Sibbles, Cedric Brooks, Vin Gordon, Ernest Ranglin, Leroy Horsemouth Wallace and others.

" A funky disc, full of great, skanking rhythms and fine playing by some of Jamaica's most revered musicians. It’s difficult to believe that this is the first compilation devoted solely to the Sound Dimension, the group who reshaped the signature Jamaican afterbeat of ska and rocksteady into the sturdy, versatile riddims of reggae, and the instrumentals they created are still being used as the basis of scores of songs to this day.” PITCHFORK

" The Sound Dimension was simply one of the great rhythm sections of all time, playing with the same paradoxical tightness and tensile give-and-take found in the recordings of legendary groove brethren Booker T and The MGs. It bears repeating that the SoulJazz collections have set a high standard for audio quality, and this is no exception to that. Indeed, those responsible for re-mastering these tracks seem to have found (and released) most of the punch, rumble, and majesty still held within aging original magnetic oxides and vinyl grooves." DUSTED

'These guys were the equivalent of the mighty Stax all stars or Motown's Funk Brothers. This selection unites a rake of seminal cuts with lesser-known cuts that were only available on Jamaica pre-releases.' SNC

'Another first-rate selection from the Soul Jazz label. The Sound Dimension rich, deep rhythms filled a large number of all time classics.' Echoes

'Killer comp from the reissue kings' Uncut

A
1. Heavy Beat
2. Federated Backdrop
3. Baby Face
4. Rathid
B
1. Bitter Blood
2. Love Land
3. Full Up
4. Upsetters Dream
C
1. Soul Shake
2. The Thing
3. My Heart In Rhythm
4. Man Pon Spot
D
1. Holy Moses
2. Doctor Sappa Too
3. Hail Don D
4. Solas