Amethyst Gibbs

These recordings of the Terry Gibbs Quartet reveal, among other virtues, the extraordinary degree of sympathy between Terry and his partner, Miss Terry Pollard, the wonderful pianist of his group. After three years on the road together, the two Terries developed four hands that swing as one. The mental picture of a typical Gibbs performance involves flying mallets, racing thoughts and impulsive improvisation at their most dazzling. There is an essential percussive feel in what most of his fans have come to regard as a typical Gibbs performance; yet there are many occasions when he also offers a discreet and tasteful approach toward slow ballad numbers. All in all, this seems to be as complete a representation as you could wish of the Gibbs talent in every mood.

Two CD collection containing 48 tracks from the Joe Gibbs' stable of the 1970s, featuring a diversity of performer and musical styles. Includes significant Jamaican hits alongside almost forgotten rarities, with all but 15 recordings making their CD debut, many tracks unavailable on any format since the early '70s with 33 tracks new to CD. As the '70s unfolded, producer Joe Gibbs continued his inexorable rise to the top of the island's musical tree. His willingness to try new talent and styles gave him an edge over many of his contemporaries, as reflected in the willingness of major artists to join his roster of acts.

12 tracks new to CD. Joe Gibbs’ entire dub album output from the 1970s. Includes some of the most acclaimed dub albums of all time.

As the 70s drew to a close, the roots and dub sounds that had dominated the Jamaican music scene for much of the decade gave way to dancehall, a style that continued to find favour with reggae fans until the onset of the digital revolution of the mid-1980s. Aimed squarely at satisfying the demands of live audiences, songwriters largely abandoned the conscious lyrics that had typified the music of the preceding years, focusing instead on subjects which with their Jamaican audiences could readily identify.