Various Artists - Rastafari (The Dreads Enter Babylon 1953 - 1983) (2015)

It is nyabinghi drumming that provides the foundation for reggae, and Soul Jazz makes this argument explicit by kicking off the compilation with Count Ossie and the Rasta Family's "Africa We Want Fe Go", taking the traditional Rastafari nyabinghi chant and drumming and adding electrified reggae bass. This sets the tone for all selections: to demonstrate that link between the spirituality of Rastafari and the development of the unique sound of Jamaican music. Reggae may have developed into genres other than Rastafari music, as any listener to dancehall or lovers' rock reggae can attest, but none of these types of music would exist if it weren't for those origins in Rastafari. And although the tracklisting jumps around a little between decades, making it difficult to get a sense of chronology, it's clear that Rastafari consciousness has found its way into just about every type of Jamaican music, from drum compositions to calypso, mento, ska, reggae, and beyond. As the title says, "the dreads enter Babylon" and they leave no stone (or style) unturned.

Tracklist:

01. Count Ossie & Rasta Family - The Africa We Want Fe Go
02. Johnny Clarke - None Shall Escape The Judgement
03. Laurel Aitken - Haile Selassie
04. Count Ossie & Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari - Tales Of Mozambique
05. Ras Michael - Booma Yeah
06. Mutabaruka - Say
07. Bongo Herman & Jah Lloyd - African Drums
08. Ashanti Roy - Hail The Words Of Jah
09. Count Ossie & Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari - Sam's Intro
10. Bongo Herman, Les & Bunny - Salaam
11. Winston And Ansell - Zion I
12. Techniques All Stars - Zion I Version
13. Lord Lebby & Jamaican Calypsonians - The Ethiopia
14. Count Ossie And Leslie Butler - Soul Drums
15. Heaven Singers - Rasta Dreadlocks
16. Rod Taylor - His Imperial Majesty
17. QQ (2) - Betta Must Come
18. Earth And Stone - Jah Will Cut You Down
19. Count Ossie & Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari - Narration
20. Ronald Downer & Count Ossie - A Ju Ju Wa