"Let's Start Getting Happy Now...Yeah Yeah Yeah...."
Mark Barry at Reckless Records, Lon | UK | 09/30/2008
(4 out of 5 stars)
"Sporting artwork you'd hide from your ailing Auntie Flo and her dodgy ticker, "Skinhead Moonstomp" has always been something of a misunderstood beast. Many people thought the reprobates depicted on the front alleyway cover 'were' Symarip and maybe for that reason, the album never received the attention its deserved outside of the white British working class 'skinheads' who embraced this hugely influential 1970 reggae album with near religious fervour. The group (pictured on the rear) is actually the Jamaican 7-piece THE PYRAMIDS under their nickname. They were also known as SEVEN LETTERS, THE BEES and for touring purposes SYMARIP and THE SKINHEADS. Hopefully this fabulous and bravely chosen 29 September 2008 DELUXE EDITION 2CD reissue will change all that. This album isn't about racism or violence - it's about Reggae Music...
There's a lot on here - so let's gets to it.
DISC 1 (63:10 minutes):
Tracks 1 to 12 are the album "Skinhead Moonstomp" by SYMARIP issued April 1970 in the UK on Trojan Records TBL-102
(13 to 23 (with 1 and 2 on Disc 2) are BONUS 7" singles issued in 1969 on the Trojan affiliated "Doctor Bird" Label with the group credited as SEVEN LETTERS.)
Track 13 is "The Fit" [aka "Wish"], Doctor Bird DB-1208 [B]
Tracks 14 and 15 are "Please Stay" and "Special Beat", DB-1194 [A & B]
Tracks 16 and 17 are "Flour Dumpling" and "Equality", DB-1195 [A & B]
Tracks 18 and 19 are "Mama Me Want Girl" and "Sentry, DB-1206 [A & B]
Tracks 20 and 21 are "Soul Crash" and "Throw Me Things", DB-1207 [A & B]
Track 22 is "There Goes My Heart", DB-1208 [A]
Track 23 is "Bam Bam Baji", DB-1209 [A]
DISC 2 (69:16 minutes):
Track 1 is "Hold Him Joe", DB-1209 [B]
Track 2 is "Tomorrow At Sundown", DB-1306 [B]
(the album track "Fung Shu" is the A-side, Track 11, Disc 1)
Tracks 3 and 4 are "Parson's Corner" [aka Vindication] and "Redeem", Treasure Isle TI-7054 [A & B]
Tracks 5 and 6 are "La Bella Jig" and "Holiday By The Sea", Treasure Isle TI-7055 [A & B]
Track 7 is "I'm A Puppet", Attack ATT-8013 [A], Track 3 above as "Vindication" is its B]
(Tracks 8 to 18 credited as THE PYRAMIDS)
Tracks 8 and 9 are "Feel Alright" and "Telstar", Trojan TR-7755 [A & B]
Track 10 is "Geronimo", Duke DU-80 [A]
Tracks 11 and 12 are "To Sir With Love" and "Reggae Shuffle", Trojan TR-7770 [A & B]
Track 13 is "All For You", Trojan TR7803 [A]
Track 14 is "Stingo", Trojan TR-7814 [B]
Tracks 15 and 16 are "Mosquito Bite" and "Mother's Bath", Creole CR-1003 [A & B]
Tracks 17 and 18 are "Can't Leave Now" and "Teardrops", Creole CR-1006 [A & B]
Tracks 19 to 23 are PREVIOUSLY UNRELEASED - 23 is credited to ROY ELLIS & RICO'S BAND
(3 to 18 are BONUS 7" singles issued between 1970 and 1971 on the affiliated Trojan labels listed above - and along with 13 to 23 on Disc 1 - all are non-album tracks)
The 20-page detailed booklet has an essay on the band, the album's history and the scene surrounding it by LAURENCE CANE-HONEYSETT co-author of the superb book "Young, Gifted & Black - The Story Of Trojan Records". Front and rear cover are reproduced on the front and back pages in colour, there's pictures of those lovely and rare UK 7" labels that get collectors weak at the knees, unique foreign picture sleeves, industry adverts, a complete singles and album discography from 1969 to 1971 - and even interviews with the band's principal songwriters MONTY NEYSMITH and ROY ELLIS. Both discs reflect the original Trojan label design and there's a collage of photos of the band reproduced beneath the two see-through trays - all of it very nicely done. (It's also not a BOX SET as Amazon says - it's a DELUXE EDITION 2CD set in the now familiar plastic wrap for the series with a four-way foldout digipak beneath.)
The tapes have been mastered by TIM DEBNEY at Fluid Mastering and the sound quality is similar to the "Tighten Up" DELUXE EDITION in August of 2008 - a mixed bag of the fantastic and the cruddy. This is not audiophile territory - it's reggae music - recorded on a shoestring and all the more gritty and wonderful for it. Having heard this LP on battered vinyl for years, I found most tracks a revelation.
Musically, this is party time. The chugging brass and Ska groove of "Phoenix City" is utterly irresistible and you can just 'hear' the roots of the mod/ska UK group THE SPECIALS in "Try My Best". The extras are cleverly chosen too - not only are they very rare 7"s (many making their CD debut) - they're anthems of the time for that scene. Almost all of the singles have the same MO - a sung A with an instrumental B - both of which are killer. The cover version of the Joe Meek/Tornadoes classic "Telstar" on the back of "Feel Alright" is a typically cool example. At 46 tracks, I'll be dipping into this for years.
Summing up - coupled with the 2CD set of "Tighten Up Volume 1" from August of this year (see separate review), someone in Universal is making damn good choices. It's just so good to see great Reggae and Ska get the DELUXE EDITION treatment it has always deserved. A highly recommended purchase and a voyage of discovery you will want to make.
PS: the title of this review is the spoken intro to the dancefloor filler "Skinhead Moonstomp" - the album's lead track"
Point of interest
Mark Barry at Reckless Records, Lon | 01/18/2003
(3 out of 5 stars)
"Just broke this album out of storage after 20 years. Great version of Hazelwood's "These Boots Are Made For Walking," otherwise fairly generic ska of the late '60's. It is mono, and the audio quality is not great."
Track Listings (23) - Disc #1