'...truly quality music that should be up there in the album-of-the-year stakes.'
Record Collector (UK)

Combine the talents of Lee Perry, the Skatalites and King Tubby all at the height of their powers, and the results were bound to be spectacular. Sessions at Lee Perry's Black Ark Studio and Aquarius Studio resulted in the release of an instrumental album, The Legendary Skatalites (1975). Soon after, a dub set, Herb Dub Collie Dub, appeared in very limited numbers. In 1998 Motion Records released a companion set of alternative dubs on Heroes Of Reggae In Dub, to widespread critical acclaim. A vinyl re-issue of Herb Dub Collie Dub in 2001 also gained a great reception. The Legendary Skatalites In Dub completes the set with the pick of the remaining tracks from the 1975 sessions plus a sought-after vocal cut entitled 'Starlight'.

The list of musicians on this album reads like a Who's Who of Jamaican music, and includes Roland Alphonso, Lloyd Brevett, Tommy McCook, Ernest Ranglin, and Augustus Pablo. The music itself is classic seventies dub reggae built on the acoustic bass of Lloyd Brevett and the horn section of The Skatalites.

Tracklist - CD Version FAST CD009:
1. Starlight Version 2. Middle East Dub 3. Fugitive Dub 4. Whispering Dub 5. Kimble Dub 6. Roots Dub 7. Bottom Dub 8. African Roots Dub 9. Dumboo Dub 10. African Dub 11. Herb Dub-Collie Dub 12. Candlelight Dub 13. Starlight (featuring Tony Brevett) 14. Middle East 15. Sealing Dub (Rhythm recorded at Black Ark)

The newly released vinyl version omits tracks from Herb Dub Collie Dub (which are duplicated on the CD) but includes extra tracks Seven Seal and Fugitive:

Tracklist - Vinyl Version FAST LP009:
1. Middle East Dub 2. Fugitive Dub 3. Seven Seal 4. African Roots Dub 5. Candlelight Dub 6. Rock Bottom Dub 7. Middle East 8. Fugitive 9. African Roots Version 10. Starlight (featuring Tony Brevett)

Catalogue Number: FAST CD/LP009.
CD Released Feb. 2002, Vinyl Dec. 2003
Available through normal retail outlets and reggae specialists, and direct from us on our online shopping page. UK distribution and most export is by SRD. Far East export is by Fat Shadow.

Reviews:

Oldie but goldie. The audaciously funky dub album of your (and our) dreams. Mad, phasing drum breaks (Sealing Dub), rolling acoustic basslines, skewed-to-hell analogue synths (Starlight) and uplifting, infectious party-time business (Bottom Dub) - it's all here. Stone-cold classic 70s dub that will ignite any party lucky enough to have it - age not an issue.
Ministry Magazine

The legendary all-star group gets beautifully spliced and diced. The sound is exquisite and the dubs are totally transfixing. .... this is a definitive dub selection that includes the scarce, anthemic, vocal bonus 'Starlight'. An unmissable history lesson. 5/5
Muzik

Vintage dub gold, fresh from the vaults. Musicians from the greatest band ever to emerge from Jamaica, mixed and blended by Lee Perry and King Tubby. Nowadays dub is digital business, but listen to the blaring horns, slapping bass and nyabinghi drums of these recordings and hear how it should be done. Pure, organic and fresh from the roots.
Straight no Chaser

The Skatalites occupy a nearly mythical place in Jamaica's promiscuous musical history. The Mark 2 version of the band (i.e. no Jackie Mittoo or very deceased Don Drummond) was put through the blender by the new sonic school of Lee Perry and King Tubby. These little heard items go against the usual dark, edgy dub grain, the tone almost blissfully mellow. Serious scholars of 70's reggae will have no complains.
Q Magazine

The Skatalites were top-flight musicians, and here they worked with the young lions of a new decade, notably Lee Perry and King Tubby. Motion's Heroes Of Reggae In Dub was a taster for the full meal - [Legendary Skatalites] is a superb album that works regardless of the genre. It's truly quality music that should be up there in the album-of-the-year stakes. Expansive sleevenotes with top artwork adds the final touch. It's the sort of album that will appeal to anyone and, once bought, it will never stray far from your CD player.
Record Collector

Specific mention must be made of the exceptional playing from the great Ernest Ranglin on guitar, though the whole ensemble is free, fluid and totally jazzed-up. Tubby must have loved doing this one!
The Wire

Audio Samples:
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