u-roy was a true reggae pioneer, dubbed the originator for good reason. bursting onto the jamaican scene in the earliest 1970s, he pioneered the vocal approach called ôtoasting,ö which in addition to branching out jamaican music into a new era, was also heavily influential on an american genre in its infancy: rapping. on dread in a babylon, his third full-length, he stretches out over traditional roots grooves provided by the soul syndicate and skin, flesh & bones bands, riffing on topics including love (ôrunaway girl,ö a 1975 single released in the uk on virgin records), the bible (ôthe great psalmsö), walking the straight and narrow (ôlisten to the teacherö), and even his take on governmental policy goals (ôchalice in the palaceö). the album finishes with an instrumental version of bob marley & the wailersÆ ôtrench town rock,ö for good measure. u-royÆs style and charisma are always on display, and û as with all of his classic records û the groove rules all. presented on black vinyl with a poster of the glorious, ganja-drenched cover art, itÆs the perfect chance to revisit one of the more underrated voices in jamaican musical history.