The most marvellous party..., 21 Jan 2007
The Heptones had been together since the '60s, and they made some terrific sides for Coxsone at Studio One (the immortal "Pretty Looks Isn't All, perhaps the best). But this is their finest hour. Teaming up their fantastic harmonies and head 'Tone Leroy Sibble's songwriting and arranging skills with the master of the Black Ark, Lee "Scratch" Perry's peerless production is a masterstroke.

Those familiar with the dense, yet soft and sweet Black Ark sound will love this, as will those who love great Jamaican harmony singing. It's a timeless sound. Anyone with any interest in roots reggae at all should own this wonderful record. Particular highlights are the title track, "Mr President", "Sufferer's Time" and "Crying Over You". Their take on "I Shall Be Released" isn't half bad either.

The most marvellous party..., 21 Jan 2007
The Heptones had been together since the '60s, and they made some terrific sides for Coxsone at Studio One (the immortal "Pretty Looks Isn't All, perhaps the best). But this is their finest hour. Teaming up their fantastic harmonies and head 'Tone Leroy Sibble's songwriting and arranging skills with the master of the Black Ark, Lee "Scratch" Perry's peerless production is a masterstroke.

Those familiar with the dense, yet soft and sweet Black Ark sound will love this, as will those who love great Jamaican harmony singing. It's a timeless sound. Anyone with any interest in roots reggae at all should own this wonderful record. Particular highlights are the title track, "Mr President", "Sufferer's Time" and "Crying Over You". Their take on "I Shall Be Released" isn't half bad either.


Studio One heaven, 29 Jul 2007
The Heptones excelled in several ways: they were arguably the greatest of the 3-part harmony groups that emerged in the rocksteady era, rivalled only by The Paragons; in leader Leroy Sibbles they had one of the best songwriters in the genre; and Sibbles also became Studio One's first choice session bass player during the late 1960s, originating many of the most enduring basslines in reggae and playing on most though probably not all the tracks on this CD.

As a compilation this is not perfect, in that there are some major omissions (e.g. Get In The Groove, Party Time or their amazing version of Curtis Mayfield's Choice Of Colours) which to my mind might have replaced some of the (relatively) weaker tracks such as Barry Llewellyn's Sad Songs if this was intended to be a definitive single CD compilation of The Heptones' Studio One recordings.

But this is to damn with faint praise a fabulous CD which makes a wonderful listening experience, featuring a mixture of well-known classics - Baby, the proto-roots Equal Rights, the title track, Pretty Looks Isn't All etc. with less exalted but almost equally fine material such as gospel tune Glory Land, In Love With You, It's Like Heaven and the startlingly misogynist Tripe Girl. Some tracks are described as previously unissued stereo mixes, however the stereo is, thankfully, not obvious. Two tracks, Let's Try and the Temptations cover Message From A Black Man, are extended versions featuring the song segued into a later dub mix; while many examples of this format at Studio One suffer from dubious editing or simply uninteresting dub mixing, these are both excellent, with even the 10 minute Let's Try not outliving its welcome.
Credit should also be given to the backing musicians, who perfectly complement The Heptones' superb harmonies. The mastering is also of a high quality, taking into account the shortcomings of the original recordings and the inevitable deterioration of the tapes 40 years on.

Even though it makes no attempt at a definitive selection, this is arguably the strongest compilation of The Heptones' Studio One work (and therefore of their entire career) released to date - and that means that it ranks very high indeed among reggae of the late 1960s, or indeed among Jamaican music of any period.

The most marvellous party..., 21 Jan 2007
The Heptones had been together since the '60s, and they made some terrific sides for Coxsone at Studio One (the immortal "Pretty Looks Isn't All, perhaps the best). But this is their finest hour. Teaming up their fantastic harmonies and head 'Tone Leroy Sibble's songwriting and arranging skills with the master of the Black Ark, Lee "Scratch" Perry's peerless production is a masterstroke.

Those familiar with the dense, yet soft and sweet Black Ark sound will love this, as will those who love great Jamaican harmony singing. It's a timeless sound. Anyone with any interest in roots reggae at all should own this wonderful record. Particular highlights are the title track, "Mr President", "Sufferer's Time" and "Crying Over You". Their take on "I Shall Be Released" isn't half bad either.


Studio One heaven, 29 Jul 2007
The Heptones excelled in several ways: they were arguably the greatest of the 3-part harmony groups that emerged in the rocksteady era, rivalled only by The Paragons; in leader Leroy Sibbles they had one of the best songwriters in the genre; and Sibbles also became Studio One's first choice session bass player during the late 1960s, originating many of the most enduring basslines in reggae and playing on most though probably not all the tracks on this CD.

As a compilation this is not perfect, in that there are some major omissions (e.g. Get In The Groove, Party Time or their amazing version of Curtis Mayfield's Choice Of Colours) which to my mind might have replaced some of the (relatively) weaker tracks such as Barry Llewellyn's Sad Songs if this was intended to be a definitive single CD compilation of The Heptones' Studio One recordings.

But this is to damn with faint praise a fabulous CD which makes a wonderful listening experience, featuring a mixture of well-known classics - Baby, the proto-roots Equal Rights, the title track, Pretty Looks Isn't All etc. with less exalted but almost equally fine material such as gospel tune Glory Land, In Love With You, It's Like Heaven and the startlingly misogynist Tripe Girl. Some tracks are described as previously unissued stereo mixes, however the stereo is, thankfully, not obvious. Two tracks, Let's Try and the Temptations cover Message From A Black Man, are extended versions featuring the song segued into a later dub mix; while many examples of this format at Studio One suffer from dubious editing or simply uninteresting dub mixing, these are both excellent, with even the 10 minute Let's Try not outliving its welcome.
Credit should also be given to the backing musicians, who perfectly complement The Heptones' superb harmonies. The mastering is also of a high quality, taking into account the shortcomings of the original recordings and the inevitable deterioration of the tapes 40 years on.

Even though it makes no attempt at a definitive selection, this is arguably the strongest compilation of The Heptones' Studio One work (and therefore of their entire career) released to date - and that means that it ranks very high indeed among reggae of the late 1960s, or indeed among Jamaican music of any period.

Studio One heaven, 29 Jul 2007
The Heptones excelled in several ways: they were arguably the greatest of the 3-part harmony groups that emerged in the rocksteady era, rivalled only by The Paragons; in leader Leroy Sibbles they had one of the best songwriters in the genre; and Sibbles also became Studio One's first choice session bass player during the late 1960s, originating many of the most enduring basslines in reggae and playing on most though probably not all the tracks on this CD.

As a compilation this is not perfect, in that there are some major omissions (e.g. Get In The Groove, Party Time or their amazing version of Curtis Mayfield's Choice Of Colours) which to my mind might have replaced some of the (relatively) weaker tracks such as Barry Llewellyn's Sad Songs if this was intended to be a definitive single CD compilation of The Heptones' Studio One recordings.

But this is to damn with faint praise a fabulous CD which makes a wonderful listening experience, featuring a mixture of well-known classics - Baby, the proto-roots Equal Rights, the title track, Pretty Looks Isn't All etc. with less exalted but almost equally fine material such as gospel tune Glory Land, In Love With You, It's Like Heaven and the startlingly misogynist Tripe Girl. Some tracks are described as previously unissued stereo mixes, however the stereo is, thankfully, not obvious. Two tracks, Let's Try and the Temptations cover Message From A Black Man, are extended versions featuring the song segued into a later dub mix; while many examples of this format at Studio One suffer from dubious editing or simply uninteresting dub mixing, these are both excellent, with even the 10 minute Let's Try not outliving its welcome.
Credit should also be given to the backing musicians, who perfectly complement The Heptones' superb harmonies. The mastering is also of a high quality, taking into account the shortcomings of the original recordings and the inevitable deterioration of the tapes 40 years on.

Even though it makes no attempt at a definitive selection, this is arguably the strongest compilation of The Heptones' Studio One work (and therefore of their entire career) released to date - and that means that it ranks very high indeed among reggae of the late 1960s, or indeed among Jamaican music of any period.

The most marvellous party..., 21 Jan 2007
The Heptones had been together since the '60s, and they made some terrific sides for Coxsone at Studio One (the immortal "Pretty Looks Isn't All, perhaps the best). But this is their finest hour. Teaming up their fantastic harmonies and head 'Tone Leroy Sibble's songwriting and arranging skills with the master of the Black Ark, Lee "Scratch" Perry's peerless production is a masterstroke.

Those familiar with the dense, yet soft and sweet Black Ark sound will love this, as will those who love great Jamaican harmony singing. It's a timeless sound. Anyone with any interest in roots reggae at all should own this wonderful record. Particular highlights are the title track, "Mr President", "Sufferer's Time" and "Crying Over You". Their take on "I Shall Be Released" isn't half bad either.


Studio One heaven, 29 Jul 2007
The Heptones excelled in several ways: they were arguably the greatest of the 3-part harmony groups that emerged in the rocksteady era, rivalled only by The Paragons; in leader Leroy Sibbles they had one of the best songwriters in the genre; and Sibbles also became Studio One's first choice session bass player during the late 1960s, originating many of the most enduring basslines in reggae and playing on most though probably not all the tracks on this CD.

As a compilation this is not perfect, in that there are some major omissions (e.g. Get In The Groove, Party Time or their amazing version of Curtis Mayfield's Choice Of Colours) which to my mind might have replaced some of the (relatively) weaker tracks such as Barry Llewellyn's Sad Songs if this was intended to be a definitive single CD compilation of The Heptones' Studio One recordings.

But this is to damn with faint praise a fabulous CD which makes a wonderful listening experience, featuring a mixture of well-known classics - Baby, the proto-roots Equal Rights, the title track, Pretty Looks Isn't All etc. with less exalted but almost equally fine material such as gospel tune Glory Land, In Love With You, It's Like Heaven and the startlingly misogynist Tripe Girl. Some tracks are described as previously unissued stereo mixes, however the stereo is, thankfully, not obvious. Two tracks, Let's Try and the Temptations cover Message From A Black Man, are extended versions featuring the song segued into a later dub mix; while many examples of this format at Studio One suffer from dubious editing or simply uninteresting dub mixing, these are both excellent, with even the 10 minute Let's Try not outliving its welcome.
Credit should also be given to the backing musicians, who perfectly complement The Heptones' superb harmonies. The mastering is also of a high quality, taking into account the shortcomings of the original recordings and the inevitable deterioration of the tapes 40 years on.

Even though it makes no attempt at a definitive selection, this is arguably the strongest compilation of The Heptones' Studio One work (and therefore of their entire career) released to date - and that means that it ranks very high indeed among reggae of the late 1960s, or indeed among Jamaican music of any period.

Studio One heaven, 29 Jul 2007
The Heptones excelled in several ways: they were arguably the greatest of the 3-part harmony groups that emerged in the rocksteady era, rivalled only by The Paragons; in leader Leroy Sibbles they had one of the best songwriters in the genre; and Sibbles also became Studio One's first choice session bass player during the late 1960s, originating many of the most enduring basslines in reggae and playing on most though probably not all the tracks on this CD.

As a compilation this is not perfect, in that there are some major omissions (e.g. Get In The Groove, Party Time or their amazing version of Curtis Mayfield's Choice Of Colours) which to my mind might have replaced some of the (relatively) weaker tracks such as Barry Llewellyn's Sad Songs if this was intended to be a definitive single CD compilation of The Heptones' Studio One recordings.

But this is to damn with faint praise a fabulous CD which makes a wonderful listening experience, featuring a mixture of well-known classics - Baby, the proto-roots Equal Rights, the title track, Pretty Looks Isn't All etc. with less exalted but almost equally fine material such as gospel tune Glory Land, In Love With You, It's Like Heaven and the startlingly misogynist Tripe Girl. Some tracks are described as previously unissued stereo mixes, however the stereo is, thankfully, not obvious. Two tracks, Let's Try and the Temptations cover Message From A Black Man, are extended versions featuring the song segued into a later dub mix; while many examples of this format at Studio One suffer from dubious editing or simply uninteresting dub mixing, these are both excellent, with even the 10 minute Let's Try not outliving its welcome.
Credit should also be given to the backing musicians, who perfectly complement The Heptones' superb harmonies. The mastering is also of a high quality, taking into account the shortcomings of the original recordings and the inevitable deterioration of the tapes 40 years on.

Even though it makes no attempt at a definitive selection, this is arguably the strongest compilation of The Heptones' Studio One work (and therefore of their entire career) released to date - and that means that it ranks very high indeed among reggae of the late 1960s, or indeed among Jamaican music of any period.

A Jamaican soul classic, 16 May 2001
The Heptones are perhaps the best example of Jamaican vocal harmonies. Imagine Curtis Mayfield and the Impressions in a reggae stylee and you'll not be too far adrift. Sea of Love is my particular Heptones favourite but anything they did with Studio One should be snapped up. A special mention for Leroy Sibbles...surely his entry into the pantheon of great soul singers is assured. A Heptones anthology by Soul Jazz Records strikes me as a pretty good idea.