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| Various Artists |
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| Toots And The Maytals: Pressure Drop; Jimmy Cliff: The Harder They Come; Gregory Isaacs: Night Nurse; Third World, Junior Marvin, Dillinger, Black Uhuru, others. |
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| 1 Israelites - Dekker, Desmond |
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| 2 Viet Nam - Cliff, Jimmy |
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| 3 You Can Get It if You Really Want - Dekker, Desmond |
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| 4 Pressure Drop - Toots & Maytals |
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| 5 The Harder They Come - Cliff, Jimmy |
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| 6 Country Road - Toots & Maytals |
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| 7 King Tubby Meets the Rockers Uptown - Pablo, Augustus |
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| 8 Country Boy - Heptones |
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| 9 Carry Go Bring Come - Dominoes |
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| 10 War ina Babylon - Romeo, Max & Upsetters |
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| 11 Man in the Hills - Burning Spear |
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| 12 One Step Forward - Romeo, Max & Upsetters |
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| 13 Police and Thieves - Murvin, Junior |
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| 14 Cokane in My Brain - Dillinger |
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| 15 Sufferer's Time - Heptones |
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| 16 Roast Fish and Corn Bread - Perry, Lee |
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| 17 Bionic Dread - Dillinger |
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| 18 Dreadlocks in Moonlight - Perry, Lee |
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| 19 To Be a Lover (Have Mercy) - Faith, George |
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| 20 Now That We Found Love - Third World |
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| 21 Social Living [Extended Mix] - Burning Spear |
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| 22 Mondays [U.S. 12" Remix] - Black Uhuru |
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| 23 The World Is Troubled - Brown, Dennis |
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| 24 Chill Out [U.S. 12" Remix] - Black Uhuru |
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| 25 The Bed's Too Big Without You [Extended Mix] - Hylton, Sheila |
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Album Review
Part of Hip-O Records' extensive Gold series of best-of compilations, "Reggae Gold" is one of the more definitive volumes in the series, rounding up 30 songs that truly are some of the best reggae ever. Granted, there are some major omissions. For instance, where's Bob Marley, or how about his fellow Wailer Peter Tosh? And what about the ragga revolution of the '80s, let alone the dancehall era that followed? You'll have to look elsewhere to find that music. None of it's here, unfortunately. But Hip-O does a commendable job, given its vault -- the huge Universal vault, that is, which most prominently includes the extensive Island Records catalog. "Reggae Gold" stretches from 1969 (Desmond Dekker & the Aces' "Israelites") to 1983 (Toots Hibbert's cover of Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing"), and features many of this era's top songs and, consequently, the era's top artists. There's a few of the early crossover singles that put reggae on the map in the first place, namely Dekker's "You Can Get It If You Really Want," Toots & the Maytals' "Pressure Drop," and Jimmy Cliff's "The Harder They Come" (all three from the epochal "Harder They Come" soundtrack). There's also a good serving of prime-era Lee Perry productions: Max Romeo's "War Ina Babylon" and "One Step Forward" as well as Junior Marvin's "Police And Thieves" and two of Perry's own, "Roast Fish And Corn Bread" and "Dreadlocks In Moonlight." In addition, you get represenative songs by some of reggae's most legendary artists: Augustus Pablo ("King Tubby Meets The Rockers Uptown"), the Heptones ("Country Boy," "Sufferer'S Time"), Burning Spear ("Man In The Hills," "Social Living"), Dillinger ("Cokane In My Brain," "Bionic Dread"), Third World ("Now That We Found Love"), Black Uhuru ("Mondays," "Chill Out"), Dennis Brown ("The World Is Troubled," "Love Has Found Its Way"), the Mighty Diamonds ("Pass The Kouchie"), and Gregory Isaacs ("Night Nurse"). This should be enough to give you a well-rounded sample of the best reggae of the '70s and early '80s. There could have been a greater representation of artists if Hip-O had limited each to one song, since about half of the featured artists get two songs apiece. But that's a minor quibble since all the songs are so stellar. "Reggae Gold" may not be as all-inclusive as the billing may seem -- again, you're missing Marley and most everything from 1980 onward -- but it's a great compilation nonetheless. Those who already have a deep reggae collection probably won't need much of what's here, but on the other hand, those just beginning a reggae collection will find "Reggae Gold" to be a great starting point. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide
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