Super Boss (The Best Of U-Roy)

There have been many U-Roy collections since he burst on the Jamaican scene in 1970, but there are only two that are worth owning: The one on Blood & Fire and this one. Super Boss collects 21 absolutely classic U-Roy tracks assembled by journalist Ian McCann of Q magazine in the U.K. with a strong emphasis on the collaborations. For instance, here is "You Keep On Running" with Delroy Wilson, "Rightful Ruler" with Peter Tosh, and "Tide Is High" with the Paragons. Other Jamaican stalwarts like Slim Smith, the Melodians, and Hopeton Lewis make appearances on various plates. But what is most prevalent is the U-Roy toasting style, the easy, slippery, laid-back groove over the dub. Check the dancehall hits like "Dynamic Fashion Way," "Behold," "Love I Bring," "Big Boy & Teacher," and "Tom Drunk." The groove is backbone slippery, the skank is righteous, and the shimmy in the hips comes from the flow of U-Roy's ultra-Rasta hipsterism. This is the real rap, kicking it back on the mic as the punters shimmy across the floor, crocked to the glory on their favorite mess. All of the tracks here were singles, as either the A- or B-sides, and all of them are vintage from 1970 to 1979, the true glory years of U-Roy. This is the wap'n'bap'n time dread jam in ultra cool sequence and righteous flow. ~ Thom Jurek|