Various Artists: Niney The Observer Presents Jah Fire, 2CD

• Numerous tracks new to CD.
• Features some of the biggest reggae stars of the era.
• Includes many of the finest roots reggae tracks of the 1970s.

By 1976, Niney The Observer was widely acknowledged by journalists and record buyers alike as one of the most accomplished and inventive record producers on the Jamaican music scene. Over the previous six years he had recorded a succession of major hits featuring an assortment of major stars, including Dennis Brown, Ken Boothe, Delroy Wilson, Junior Byles, Big Youth and Max Romeo, while also championing local up-and- coming performers, notably Michael Rose, Junior Delgado and Glasford Manning, all of which recorded seminal works under his direction.

This desire to work with established stars and relative unknowns continued over the years that immediately followed, so further solidifying his reputation as not just a producer of considerable talent and invention, but also as a man of the people.

This 2CD set collects his finest works from the golden age of classic roots music, with highlights ranging from classics from the likes of Gregory Isaacs, Cornel Campbell, Junior Byles and Horace Andy to long forgotten rarities, a number of which are made widely for the first time in almost 50 years.

This is roots reggae at its very best, performed by many of Jamaica’s most accomplished artists and produced by a legendary music-maker whose inventiveness and skill in the recording studio was arguably only matched by that of his good friend and rival, Lee ‘Scratch’ Perry.

TRACK LISTING

DISC ONE
1 Rock On – Gregory Isaacs
2 I Heart Is Clean – Cornel Campbell
3 Gate Number – Clint Eastwood
4 I Am Still Thinking – Junior Delgado
5 On A Saturday Night – Christine
6 I’m In Love – Horace Andy
7 I Soon Know – Niney as The Messiah
8 Psalms 68 – Horace Andy
9 Mr. Rich Man – Leroy Smart
10 Oh Jah Man – The Rockstones
11 Point Blank – I Roy
12 6 Dead Nineteen Gone To Jail – Big Youth
13 Slave Master – Gregory Isaacs
14 Flat Foot Hustling – Dillinger
15 Zion Trip – I Roy
16 I Soon Know – Niney
17 Run Run – Junior Byles
18 Sister Maggie Breast – I Roy
19 One Lick – The Jewels
20 Rasta No Pickpocket– Niney
21 Moses – Jacob Miller
22 Step On The Dragon – I Roy

DISC TWO
1 Weeping – Junior Byles
2 Water Rate – I Roy
3 Materialist – Horace Andy
4 Hold Not Thy Peace Oh Jah – Hubert Ford
5 Can You Feel It – Junior Byles
6 Natty Dread Come Over – Little Bop
7 Camp Road Skanking – I Roy
8 Dem Never Tell I – Horace Andy
9 I Got A Feeling – Tyrone Taylor
10 Zimbabwe – The Soul Syndicate
11 Jamaican Girl – I Roy
12 What Kind Of World – Junior Byles
13 Burn Me Out – The Rockstones
14 Jah Fire – Niney
15 Sufferation – Tyrone Taylor
16 Roll River Jordan – Niney
17 Jah Come Here – I Roy
18 Jah Jah I – Dhaima
19 Head Shot – Bobby Ellis & The Observers
20 King Of Babylon – Junior Byles
21 Nebuchadnezzer – Dillinger
22 Confusion In A Babylon – The Messiahs
23 Native Land – I Roy