专辑简介

by Jo-Ann Greene

It wasn't merely distance that made U.K. reggae bands so startlingly different from their Jamaican counterparts, but their approach. Far removed from the hot house atmosphere of Jamaica's singles driven market, where producers ruled like the Russian tsars of old, the U.K. scene was album orientated, band focused, and labels called the shots, not the producers. Thus Matumbi developed in their own unique fashion, produced themselves, and made their own music, instead of being sidelined onto the perpetual spinning mouse exercise wheel of session work. Although eventually tagged as a lovers rock outfit, in fact, Matumbi refused to stick with just one style and reveled in playing all shades of the reggae spectrum. Point of View, arguably the band's greatest album, hits virtually every stylistic post you can imagine, and some you can't. The title track, for example, resurrects a big band sound, but not the jazzy one so beloved by Jamaican musicians of the 1960s, but its swing sister á la Glen Miller. Even more startling is the appearance of the DJ I-Roy halfway through the song, toasting merrily away to the horn-drenched rhythm. "Come With Me," in contrast, is reggae with a pure blues bend, and while Jamaica was heavily indebted to R&B, blues was virtually neglected, and the group now opened up a whole new hybrid path. Of course, lovers rock and roots are also on display as is some killer rockers. Matumbi's guitarist/vocalist Dennis "Blackbeard" Bovell is acknowledged as the father of British dub, and his influence is evident across the album. The band's production was as unique as their style, hints of dub slide in and out, intriguing electro sounds appear, while the rhythms are crisp and always sound fresh. Although all the rage in the late 1970s, the group split early in the new decade and were quickly relegated to a footnote in history. Their originality and fine music deserve better.