AA VV – Rocksteady Taking Over Orange Street 1966-1968

(Rocksteady took over Orange Street, Kingston, Jamaica around 1966, the same time that an extreme heat wave hit the Jamaican Island. Some say the previous jerky ska rhythms proved too strenuous of an activity to partake in during the all night sound systems, so it proved a winning formula to slow the beat down to a more leisurely pace. Whatever the reasons were, this two-year period that ran until 1968 would see some of the power escape from the big three producers — Clement “Coxsone” Dodd, Prince Buster, and Duke Reid — who up to that period ruled the airwaves. It was time to make room for a new wave of up-and-coming producers who also had something to offer the people. So sit back and enjoy some rocksteady straight from the dances of Jamaica. Includes tracks by Roy Shirley, Glen Adams, Lester Sterling, Uniques, Errol Dunkley, George Dekker, Don T. Lee, Webber Sisters, Alva Lewis. CD includes two bonus tracks: “Wall Flower” by Ken Rose and “I Remember” by Glen Adams)