The Upsetters: Double Six - 1974

Reggae underwent huge changes around 1973-74. Gone was the ska-influenced, upbeat stomping of skinhead reggae and the orchestrated strings of UK pop reggae. 

Albums such as Big Youth's late 1972 Screaming Target paved the way for hundreds of DJS/chanters to grunt and growl over heavy, bassy riddims and the ground-breaking single from 1974, Rupie Edwards' Ire Feelings, had the same effect. I remember hearing it for the first time and thinking "wow, this is something really different".

This album provided the bridging point, showcasing DJ chanters like U-Roy and I-Roy on Double Six (U-Roy), Stick Together (U-Roy), High Fashion (I-Roy) and Hail Stones (I-Roy); there was also melodious vocals and rockers-style riddims on David Isaacs' We Are Neighbours and Just Enough (To Keep Me Hanging On) and a crossover take on a soul classic in Lee "Scratch" Perry's Soul Man. 

In between these vocal cuts there were Upsetters instrumentals, but, as opposed to the material on Clint Eastwood, Many Moods, Africa's Blood and Battle Axe, they were not skinhead stomps, but mysterious creations featuring odd keyboard noises and spacey breaks such as on Kentucky Skank, Long Sentence and In The Lash. Even slightly more traditional skanks such as Jungle Lion are different, the fairground-style organ giving way to brass breaks and a much heavier, throbbing bass.

Ironside introduces listeners to Scratch's newly developed style of weird, experimental instrumentals, something that provided a big influence on subsequent dub recordings. . Make no mistake, this was a seriously crucial release in reggae's continuing, always-changing metamorphosis.

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