Pastor T. L. Barrett and the Youth for Christ Choir

Album: Like A Ship... (Without A Sail)
Format: LP
Label/Info: Light in the Attic LITA 056 (2010) reissue. Originally released as M.Z.G.P. 8126. 1971 soul gospel under the direction of Barrett, community leader and pastor of Mt. Zion Baptist Church, Chicago, IL. I was truly blown away the first time I put this record on. The original pressing was limited to a few thousand copies and distributed at church socials and choir concerts. The sound and songwriting are outstanding for a home-grown recording, albeit one supervised by Chess/Cadet producer Gene Barge and backed by some of the best players in town. Not surprising that Donny Hathaway and members of Earth, Wind & Fire could be found in pews each Sunday drawn to Pastor Barrett's brand of sanctified jam.

V/A - Jamaica

Albums: Studio One: Roots - The Original; Vol. 2 and Vol. 3
Format: CD (also on LP)
Soul Jazz SJR CD56, CD114, CD168








While reggae and dub fans may eat this stuff up, there is much more going on here than reverb and riddims. It's certainly Rasta to the core -- representing some of the earliest recordings from Studio One, Jamaica's influential studio -- but this is much more than reggae, with diverse world grooves could easily be found on one of those excellent comps of West African highlife from Analog Africa or Soundway. There's even some American R&B and soul thrown in this rundown (Jamaican stew).