Keyboardist
Jackie Mittoo
is a truly seminal
reggae
figure. During the mid-'60s, as an original member of
the Skatalites
,
Mittoo
helped shape the language of the newly emerging
ska
. In subsequent years, as the premier composer/arranger of
Clement Dodd
's
Studio One
team,
created a wealth of rhythms that artists would return to during the
dancehall
and
ragga
eras decades later. His simmering organ lines added leagues of depth behind
Dodd
's greatest acts, including
Ken Boothe
Delroy Wilson
, and
the Heptones
. By the time
Universal Sound
released
The Keyboard King at Studio One
, there were far too few releases in print representing this
great. Though
Heartbeat
Tribute to Jackie Mittoo
may be the obvious primer, this disc is the perfect complement. Drawing heavily from the late '60s/early '70s when
was fronting a variety of
session bands,
Keyboard King
selects cuts from
solo albums like
Keep on Dancing
(1969),
Jackie Mittoo Now
(1970), and
Macka Fat
(1971). Chronological concerns are dispensed with (at one point the collection jumps nearly two decades with one track), and yet
manages to come up with a coherent portrait of the artist.
"Killer Diller,"
the earliest cut, is a steaming
platter from the mid-'60s, while
"Black Organ"
finds
musing over a smoky, chugging
beat. Though
clearly had a handle on any
rhythm that crossed his path, cuts like
"Get Up and Get It"
"Stereo Freeze"
prove that he was fluent in
funk
as well. Even the songs from
Showcase
, his final outing from 1982, maintain the standards of the vintage material. The interwoven lines of
and keyboardist
Pablove Black
on the drifting
"Oboe"
are a particularly pleasant surprise.
is an excellent introduction to a rhythm master and
legend. ~ Nathan Bush