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Personnel: Roland Alphonso, Cedric Brooks (tenor saxophone); Vin Gordon (trombone). Liner Note Author: Steve Barrow. Recording information: Jamaica Recording Studio, Kingston, Jamaica. Photographers: John Williams & the Tick Tocks ; C.S. Dodd. For the fourth volume in their highly popular Studio One series, London's Soul Jazz Records have assembled 16 vintage DJ cuts from the legendary studio at Brentford Road. As Steve Barrow's typically excellent liner notes point out, label owner Clement "Coxsone" Dodd failed to cut tunes for either I-Roy or Big Youth, two toasters who managed to record for nearly every other producer on the island during the 1970s. Regardless of this oversight, many crucial DJ performances found their way onto the Studio One and Coxsone imprints, from the early reggae era to the dawning of the dancehall style. Though series compiler Mark Ainkley avoids strict chronology in favor of overall listenability once again, the progression of the DJ form can still be traced on this release. The set kicks off with DJ originator Count Machuki's enthused jive stylings over the Bassies' "Things Come Up to Bump." Subsequent cuts showcase important early innovators like the great Dennis Alcapone ("Power Version"), '70s practitioners like Big Joe ("Version of Rights") and Prince Jazzbo ("Crime Don't Pay"), and dancehall chatters Lone Ranger (two fine versions of the "Answer" rhythm) and Brigadier Jerry ("Every Man a Me Brethren"). Longtime fans already familiar with a percentage of the tunes will be satisfied by lesser-known workings of classic rhythms by Prince Francis, Prince Far I, Jah Buzz, and Jah Jesco. Even the weakest selections are driven by some of the finest rhythms reggae has produced, making this another set to be recommended for collectors and novices alike. ~ Nathan Bush
