Junior Delgado Original Guerilla Music

[Soundboy; 2003]

Styles: reggae, dub
Others: Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, Black Uhuru

Junior Delgado never gets the respect he deserves. With Jamaican roots music, Junior Delgado ought to be as recognized as his contemporaries, such as Bob Marley, Peter Tosh, and the other legendary musicians that brought reggae music to the masses. With the newly issued anthology, Original Guerilla Music on Adrian Sherwood’s new imprint, Soundboy Records, Delgado might finally get the attention he deserved.

What separates Junior Delgado from the pack is undoubtedly his voice. Soulful and deep, with emotion like a Jamaican version of Otis Redding, Junior’s voice carries emotion and anguish on the opening track “Sons of Slaves,” a history lesson of Jamaican life and overcoming the history of the past. Other songs like “Storm is Coming” and “Trickster” are less stark but no less soulful with Junior toasting over the largely Lee Perry-produced tracks.

As if he needs another weapon, Delgado’s voice and Lee Perry’s thick beats and melodic basslines make for one of the finest partnerships in music and give Junior the canvas for some of the finest tracks in his quarter-century of recording. With great packaging and informative liner notes from Soundboy Records, Original Guerilla Music is one of those perfect summer albums.

1. Sons of Slaves
2. Armed Robbery
3. Tichion
4. Famine
5. Fort Agustus
6. Storm Is Coming
7. Black Man Heart Cries Out
8. Away With the Fussing & Fighting
9. Warrior No Tarry Ya
10. Trickster
11. Row Fisherman
12. Merry Go Round
13. Big Shot
14. Raggamuffin Year
15. Love Tickles Like Magic
16. Every Natty

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