VP Records has been unusually quiet lately, at least when it comes to new releases. Aside from Romain Virgo's 'The Gentle Man', the past year has seen little more than reissues of iconic classics. Thankfully, King Jammy is here to break the silence! In 2022, he treated us to the flu-busting 'Destroys The Virus With Dub', and now he's back with 'King Jammy's Unites the Nations With Dub'.
By Jah Rebel
How much of this project Lloyd ‘King Jammy’ James personally handled is unclear, as much of the heavy lifting appears to have been done by his son John John, engineer Romeo ‘Shemmo’ Facey and musicians Andre Dennis, I Sax and Brandon Harris.
The album is packed with laid-back dubs featuring titles that allude to the United Nations. The odd nod to the past, of course, is inevitable. For example, ‘African Queen’ echoes ‘Queen of the Minstrel’, Larry Marshall’s ‘Nanny Goat’ is revisited as ‘Dub For Peace’, and Dennis Brown’s influence shines through in both ‘Winds For Change’ (a rework of ‘Revolution’) and ‘Security Council Dub’ (a reinterpretation of ‘To The Foundation’).
Whether intentional or not, the album artwork, designed by Ellen G from Israel’s My Lord Sound, immediately reminded us of the slightly saccharine illustrations often found in The Watchtower, the magazine distributed by Jehovah’s Witnesses.
That said, this is a thoroughly enjoyable instrumental dub release. And from a veteran like King Jammy, would we expect anything less?
Founder alongside Jah Shakespear who transitioned to this role in late 2014. Previously worked as critic and reporter, balancing passions for music and Haile Selassie spirituality.
December 31, 2024