a review- REGGAE- 'THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION' red box series.

We've all seen them in superstores and places like Woolworth's, CD collections of songs of every genre claiming to be the last word in collections. The uncountable amount of PUNK CD'S that came out a few years ago (that featured a pool of about 4o song's that was shared between all of them) being a good example.
There has also been many made about every era of music you can think of and usually they do what the punk ones did and just repeat the same songs on every CD from the ROCK'N'ROLL ones to the SOUL and HITS OF THE SEVENTIES and CROONERS, the list goes on.
The CD I'm featuring is part of that collection craze but for a change it is a well worth the money. The collection, called REGGAE, THE ULTIMATE COLLECTION. by its very title puts its self on a shaky pedestal, and that is not helped by the corny shot of the back of a woolly hatted rasta's hat and head as he looks out towards blue water and clear skies in what looks like a Jamaican beach, it is a stereotype image that looks like it started life on the front cover of a 1980's travel brochure.
And its packaging can only put off people I'm sure, but that is a shame because this 4 CD set is one of the best i have seen in a long time and has a really good selection of reggae that covers the reggae period from its early ska days to the dub of the 70's as well as the more commercial 'lovers rock' side as well in equal portions that are some of the best tunes of their style, and to keep up the good selection of tunes over a four CD set in equal measures is no mean feat. and it can be picked up in any order instead of it being a straight ska-to-dub history of the genre. It has the tunes mixed so that the different styles seem to fit in together without hardly any obvious jarring moments as the music goes from style to style.
Although the CD set hidden sits hidden away along with others in a big display box with the likes of the EVERLY BROTHERS and DIANA ROSS etc, don't be embarrassed picking one out but do have a try, i recommend it whole heartedly. Altogether this 4CD set is worth buying if you see it at your local supermarket or Woolworth's, and the mad thing about the CD set is its price, i have seen the set going for £4 and have also seen it as cheap as £2 at the same time, but four quid is the most i have seen it for. So if you are a fan of pre-dance hall reggae of any or all kinds and plus the songs having come from the vaults of the TROJAN and the CREOLE record labels make sure you are hearing the best of the music changing era's. And if you also want to hear some of the tracks that you saw on TOP OF THE POPS when you were a kid then this is the CD set to buy, and being four CD'S long it has a whopping 72 tracks to it, surly worth two to four quid for any reggae fan,the set sits in a red display box along with CD'S with the EVERLY BROTHERS , DEAN MARTIN and DIANA ROSS on the covers!