Motown

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Click on the images to read the reviews -
The Temptations
The Four Tops
D. Ross/Supremes
Stevie Wonder
Marvin Gaye
Jackson 5
Jr. Walker
Diana Ross
Gladys Knight/Pips
Isley Brothers
Michael Jackson
Martha Reeves
The Supremes
Undisputed Truth
Commodores
Jimmy Ruffin
Eddie Kendricks
David Ruffin
Marvelettes
Velvelettes
Lionel Richie
Jermaine Jackson
Edwin Starr
Syreeta
Smokey Robinson
Mary Wells
Bobby Taylor
Rare Earth
Rick James
Thelma Houston
Sups/Tempts
Sups/Four Tops
The Spinners
The Originals
Yvonne Fair
Kiki Dee
Chris Clark
Brenda Holloway
M Gaye/T Terrell
E Starr/Blinky

The Complete Motown Singles Box Set reviews - 
1963
1964
1965
1966
1967
1968
1969
1970
1971a
1971b
1972a
1972b

Motown Chartbusters Series
Volume 1
Volume 2
Volume 3
Volume 4
Volume 5
Volume 6
Volume 7
Volume 8
Volume 9
Volume 10
Volume 11
Volume 12

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The Beat: You Just Can't Beat It: The Best Of The Beat

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Joni Mitchell: Don Juan's Reckless Daughter - 1977

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  This was a somewhat sprawling, very experimental acquired taste of a double album here from Joni. It was made so, to a great extent, by the side long and possibly indulgent (only in places, I might add) of  Paprika Plains , which is probably eight or so minutes too long, at sixteen of them. I love the superb rock drums and clarinet bit fourteen minutes in though! Knock eight minutes off and you have a great track. Mitchell said of it - "....the Improvisational, the spontaneous aspect of this creative process – still as a poet – is to set words to the music, which is a hammer and chisel process. Sometimes it flows, but a lot of times it's blocked by concept. And if you're writing free consciousness – which I do once in a while just to remind myself that I can, you know, because I'm fitting little pieces of this puzzle together – the end result must flow as if it was spoken for the first time...." Ok, now I get it, Joni 😕 Other than this, the music largely contin
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Joni Mitchell: For The Roses - 1972

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Trojan Presents Classic Reggae

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There are certainly some fine collections in this series from the legendary Jamaican Trojan label but this is arguably the best, functioning as a sort of compressed, bite-size history of reggae itself. It also has remastered its many classic cuts outstandingly well.  Let's look at what's on offer - Disc One The collection kicks off by including an original ska number in Byron Lee & The Dragonaires' joyful  Jamaica Ska . Ska was where it all began, of course, before the rock steady rude boys came along.... Desmond Dekker & The Aces' 007 (Shanty Town)  is  Rude Boy Heaven. The song became a hit in the UK. Its James Bond/007 message is unclear, he is only mentioned in one line, but the rest of the song would seem to be another anti-Rude Boy condemnation. "Rude Boy him a weep and a-wail" . Continuing the rude boy theme, Dandy recorded the original of A Message To You Rudy , memorably covered by The Specials. Rico Rodriguez, who played on The Specials'
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Burning Spear: Man In The Hills - 1976

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  After its cult-status predecessor (certainly in UK reggae-punk crossover circles) this was a credible follow-up, although it was noticeably more pastoral, relaxed and chilled-out than its incendiary and righteous forebear.  This is highlighted by the title track, Man In The Hills , which champions a rural existence over an urban one, just as Jacob Miller did with his "Rasta c'yaan live in no tenement yard" sentiment.  Door Peep , released as Spear's first, unsuccessful single, actually dated from back in 1969, when Winston Rodney, after a surprise meeting with Bob Marley while out waking in the fields, decided to go to Studio One to promote his work.  Other highlights are No More War, Lion, People Get Ready and Black Soul . I like this album a lot, it has a nice sound quality to it, melodic basslines and a subtle vibe that is infectious. Not sure about the strange green head cover though! 
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Bruce Springsteen: Greatest Hits

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Burning Spear: Marcus Garvey/Garvey's Ghost - 1975

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  Burning Spear (Winston Rodney) gave the world one of the great roots reggae albums here. Burning Spear’s  Marcus Garvey  was released at the end of 1975 and was at the forefront of the black consciousness movement within reggae. It was a veritable foundation stone of the whole roots reggae movement.  It was tied in, of course, with Rastafarianism, and the Jamaican Rasta hero prophet.  Marcus Garvey  gives his name to the album’s title and, indeed its powerful, horn-driven title track that opens the album. This is very much a militant, issue-led album, with a dual attack of religious devotion and cultural awareness, as was so often the case with roots albums. As with the others, too, this does not detract from the appealing, tuneful sound of the album, however. This pretty much applies to all the roots reggae albums of the period. The mid to late seventies were fertile years for authentic roots reggae.  Slavery Days  is an iconic song with clear references - “ Do you remember the days
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Burning Spear: Dry And Heavy - 1977

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Even more full of ganga-inspired, bucolic bliss is the bright and optimistic sound of this excellent album.  Once again, musically, it is top notch and while the bass is deep, dubby and heavy (as of course it should be) it doesn't vibrate your speakers and move the pictures on your wall. It seemed as if Spear had settled down considerably by now, a lot of the righteous ire of Marcus Garvey had been diluted, no doubt by more time in the hills grinding coffee and enjoying the invigorating qualities of the sacred herb.  It was an album that showed that roots reggae, even within its stylistic limitations, could be sonically attractive and at times deceptively beautiful. This is a fine-sounding reggae album.  Highlights are Black Disciples, Dry And Heavy, Shout It Out, Throw Down Your Arms, Any River and The Sun . Also mighty crucial from Burning Spear are Marcus's Children from 1978 and Living Dub from 1979.
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Burning Spear: Social Living - 1978

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By 1978, Burning Spear (Winston Rodney) was three years away from what was rapidly becoming his seminal album in  Marcus Garvey  and his previous two albums, 1976's  The Man In The Hills  and 1977's  Dry And Heavy  had witnessed a lighter touch to Spear's music - lighter vocals, more lilting guitar work, bucolic lyrics and a general chilled-out vibe.  So, it was a bit of a surprise to find that this album is his heaviest, densest, rootsiest offering to date. While the  Marcus Garvey  album had, notoriously, been re-mixed by Island Records to render it more palatable to UK listeners (not really necessary because a lot of UK reggae fans loved their hard-core roots), this release underwent no such tinkering. By 1978, it seemed, people realised that the heavier and the dubbier the album was the better it would be received.  What we get here, therefore, are a series of dense, grinding roots grooves that rumble along without a huge amount of hooks and Spear's vocals becoming
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