‘Afro-Harping is filled front-to-back with sumptuous and hypnotic grooves. Its African percussion, soulful orchestrations, in-the-pocket rhythms — and Dorothy’s virtuosity — take it far beyond jazzy mood music (as sampling by Pete Rock, Kendrick Lamar, Dilla, Madlib and co bears ample witness).
‘This deluxe version features eight bonus tracks from the four-track session reels that are arguably superior to those on the original album, including an explosive rendition of the Soul Vibrations single, extended versions of the title track and Little Sunflower, and two fantastic, jazzy readings of Theme from Valley of the Dolls.
‘Additional flavour is provided by some of the in-studio atmosphere. The reels also featured the voices of Dorothy, producer Richard Evans, and others: encouragement, laughter, a brief burst of beatboxing, a spat about how many bars had just been played… In many cases these elements have been retained, conjuring up the sheer joy of being in the room with Dorothy and some of Chicago’s finest musicians in the winter of ’68.
‘By that time, Evans was running every aspect of Cadet Records, applying his emerging funk formula to new and established artists, with an overflowing pipeline of work for Ramsey Lewis, John Klemmer, Odell Brown and many more. His growing Afrocentricity, coupled with Ashby’s desire to highlight the Black struggle that had been the subject of several plays (from which three of the tracks on Afro-Harping were drawn) that she and her husband John had produced in her hometown of Detroit, provided the foundations for the recording of Afro-Harping. ‘Her jazz playing was very New York-ish, very sophisticated,’ Evans has recalled. ‘But I wanted things to be very Black, very funky at Cadet.’‘

‘Housed in a digipack with 28-page booklet. The sound is newly transferred from the original ¼-inch tapes, and remastered.’

Her funkiest record — Eastern-style settings of the writings of Omar Khayyam — with electrified harp, vibes and Japanese koto wrapped up in Richard Evans’ soulful arrangements.
‘Verve By Request.’

‘Imagine having been a Black female artist & innovator in the ‘60s. Imagine being a jazz musician with a focus on the concert harp. Oh, to be alive at that time… in music… in culture… in politics. This was Dorothy Ashby, and she was so much more than her musical output. She was a true visionary; her impact is still heard in many genres and eras of music, even today’ (Brandee Younger).
Her first six studio LPs — for Regent, Prestige, Jazzland, Argo, Atlantic — remastered from master-tapes, where these survive. 180g vinyl; beautifully sleeved and boxed.
The Jazz Harpist, Hip Harp, In A Minor Groove, Soft Winds: The Swinging Harp Of Dorothy Ashby, Dorothy Ashby, and The Fantastic Harp Of Dorothy Ashby.
With a 44-page book featuring a foreword by Brandee Younger, and impassioned and deeply researched liner notes, including interviews with those that knew her best, and lovely photos.
Just one!

CSNY-style folk and rock from 1973, Boulder, Colorado, reissued by the Numero offshoot.

No less than an alternate take of the almighty rocksteady classic from 1968. Backed with a Tommy McCook instrumental featuring organist Winston Wright.

Classic rocksteady. A sweet but urgent overture by Wentworth Vernal and Lloyd Parks, arranged by Tommy McCook.
As per the original 45 coupling, The Supersonics return on the flip for the surging, funky Soul Remedy, with tight, bluesy guitar, and Winston Wright blasting away on Hammond.
Beautifully done by Far East.

Extended, with dub.

Riveting roots harmony reasoning over a spare, brooding dub, produced by Sly & Robbie at Channel One in the early 80s, and previously only released on dubplate.
A must.

In his dazzling, rubadub flow, with intricate rhyming, lavish word-play and off-the-wall allusiveness, his genial socialism and jubilant, green-fingered vegetarianism, his knockabout sense of humour and all-round irrepressible good vibes, Ranger is the peerless heir to U-Roy and Dennis Alcapone… and the most diplomatic of envoys for the new dancehall styles just around the corner. He’s undervalued because of a perceived lack of gravitas, but he’s one of the all-time great deejays, and this is his best work.
Have a listen to the musical shock attack Automatic: over Take A Ride, no less, he bundles the Last Poets into a breakneck stream of consciousness, with walk-ons for Marcus Garvey, Bag O Wire, and Garvey’s secretary Mother Muschett; Dovecot Memorial Park and Madison Square; a bad boy who doesn’t know Ranger’s dad is a cop; succinct advice like ‘natty don’t play card inna Babylon yard’; a big baboon in the light of the moon, a broken chair, a felt hat, an anchor you can’t conchor…
“Everybody was wondering why I sounded different. And the reason I sounded different was through I did grow in England and I have the English accent and when I speak you can hear every word I am saying clearly. It was a plus for me. And then through I liked to write poetry and write songs, you know I’m a writer, I stick to the topic from start to finish.”
And the musical rhythms are a preposterous fish-tea tidal wave of Studio One classics (plus a Shank I Sheck): Take A Ride/Truths & Rights, Real Rock/Armageddon Time, One Step Beyond, Hot Milk, Throw Me Corn, Never Let Go, Full Up, Please Be True, Things A Come Up To Bump.

So let the good time roll, with Sir Coxsone at the control. When Ranger talk, the dance it have fe cork.
Deliriously enjoyable. Terrific cover art, too.
Very highly recommended. Five ribbits, five bims, five flash-its, five oinks.

Many people rate this his best solo album, for murder like Pusherman, Freddie’s Dead and Give Me Your Love (and less persuasively because it trespassed most deeply into rock audiences).
‘This heavy script… I could relate with a lot of it… It allowed me to get past the glitter of the drug scene and go to the depth of it — allowing a little bit of the sparkle and the highlights lyrically, but always with a moral to that.’
Superior Rhino reissue, with die-cut sleeve.

Curtis, Curtis Live, Roots, Back To The World, Sweet Exorcist… all in their own slip-cases, with the original artwork… a steal.