by Jo-Ann Greene
"She's Millie Small, vivacious, bubbling, singing sensation from the land of sunshine and calypso," the sleeve notes explain. Not that there was really any need for an introduction, for indeed the tiny, vivacious Jamaican singer had taken Britain by storm, launching the Blue Beat boom and rocketing ska into the U.K. chart with her debut U.K. single "My Boy Lollipop." An album was the obvious next step, and Small set about recording with all the excitement of a child set loose in a candy store. And, in a way, that's exactly what the 16-year-old was. Her exuberance positively bleeds from the grooves, you can just about hear her grinning. Across ten covers and two co-written numbers, Small belts out the songs, with the backing sessionmen blending in big band sounds all set to an insistent jumped-up beat. And that was what it was really all about. So whether she's covering
Fats Domino
's "I'm in Love Again,"
Neil Sedaka
's "Since You've Been Gone," or the old folk song "Tom Hark," it's all ska, pure and simple, and the album never flags. Most of the songs are suitably fluffy, and generally about boys, of course, from "Blue Louey" to "Sweet William," and on to "Sugar Dandy," where Small reaches unimaginable heights of ecstatic shrillness. And while that shrill, adenoidal voice was charming on a single, it can become a little wearing across an entire album. However, the Blue Beat Girl, as she was known, is working so hard to make us like her -- it seems cruel to complain -- and for fans this was a sheer firecracker of a record.

Althea & Donna, <em>Uptown Top Ranking</em><br />

Tracks recorded at Island Studio London, B.B.M.C. Studio London.
Voiced at B.B.M.C. Studio & Music Mountain Studio Jamaica.
Mixed at Music Mountain & Harry J. Studio.
Manufactured by Tree Roots Records, Jamaica.
All Lyrics (c) 1986 Reproduced by kind permission of Tree Roots Music Publishing Co.
We give thanks and praise to Jah Rastafari for making this album possible.
Credits:
Arranged By – Ijahman Levi
Bass – Caswell Swaby, Robbie Shakespeare
Drums – Keith Deacon, Sly Dunbar
Executive-Producer – T. A. Sutherland
Lead Guitar – Ijahman, Stephen Wright
Mastered By – John Dent
Mixed By – Bunny Tom Tom, Michael Riley, S. Morris
Organ – C. Hewie
Percussion – Ijahman, Sidney Wolfe
Photography By – Fitzroy Sang
Piano – Bunny Hilton
Producer – Ijahman Levi
Recorded By – Cha Cha Brown, David Rowe, P. Smitly, Sid Bucknor
Rhythm Guitar – Ijahman, L. Jarrett

Cover [Illustration] – Natasha Cunningham
Cover [Image] – Nkosi Gomez
Creative Director – Jason Panton
Executive-Producer – Eric Smith, Lem Oppenheimer, Michael Goldwasser
Layout – Leni Oppenheimer, Thomas Macdonald
Producer – Jesse Royal
Phonographic Copyright ℗ – Easy Star Records
Copyright © – Easy Star Records
Manufactured By – Disc Makers
Manufactured By – Easy Star Records
Distributed By – Easy Star Records

雷鬼大师Jimmy Cliff的一张精选。

In 1973, when the movie The Harder They Come was released, reggae was not on the radar screen of American pop culture. The soundtrack went a ways toward changing that situation. It is a collection of consistently excellent early reggae songs by artists who went on to thrive with reggae's increased popularity and others for whom this is the most well-known vehicle. Jimmy Cliff is both the star of the movie and the headliner on the soundtrack. He contributes three excellent songs: the hymnal "Many Rivers to Cross," "You Can Get It If You Really Want," and "The Harder They Come" (the latter two are repeated at the end of the album, but you probably wanted to hear them again anyway). Interestingly, the better production values of his songs actually seems to detract from them when compared to the rougher, but less sanitized, mixes of the other tracks. All the songs on this collection are excellent, but some truly stand out. Toots & the Maytals deliver two high-energy songs with "Sweet and Dandy" and "Pressure Drop" (covered by the Clash among others). Scotty develops a mellow, loping groove on "Stop That Train" (not the same as the Wailers' song by the same name) and the Slickers prove on "Johnny Too Bad" that you don't have to spout profanity or graphic violence to convey danger. The Harder They Come is strongly recommended both for the casual listener interested in getting a sense of reggae music and the more serious enthusiast. Collections don't come much better than this.

Bob Marley, <em>Burnin</em>'<br />

Limited Edition Japanese pressing of this album comes housed in a miniature LP sleeve. Universal. 2006.

Bob Marley（鲍勃・马利）是牙买加的民族英雄。他正直的品格、对理想的执着、和对牙买加以及世界流行音乐的贡献，使他站到了最伟大的音乐家的行列里。

Part of the 'Bob Marley Memorial Remaster Series'. Japanese remastered reissue of 1979 album. Packaged in a limited edition miniature LP sleeve. Includes the bonus track 'Ride Natty Dread' (12 inch version).