Bluebeats, The :: Respect Due : CD

Release Date :: August, 2004

Long time ska players, The Bluebeats, are back at it again with a very tasty treat for all you traditional ska lovers out there. As the title suggests, The Bluebeats are paying their respect to the classic ska artists by recording their interpretations of their songs. Some of these songs you may know, but unless you are a hardcore ska listener, there are many that you may have to run out and hunt down the originals to get a dose of them the first time around. I think this is one of the strong points of the album, is that most of these songs are not common place in your ever tiring traditional ska compilation releases out there.
This is the third release that we have worked with The Bluebeats on and are more than happy to have them back at home with us. If you know the Bluebeats, this album will not dissapoint, if you are new to their sound, get ready to take a trip back in time to the time of the land of real ska music!

Track List
1. Say What You're Saying
2. Come Back Darling
3. Now I Know
4. Treat Me Good
5. She Will Never Let Go
6. I Can't Work No Longer
7. Just Like A River
8. Rock It With Me
9. I'm Gonna Let
10. These Arms of Mine
11. The First Cut Is The Deepest
12. Four Seasons
13. What A Confusion
14. Better Must Come
15. Live Wire
16. Put It On

Line Up
Mike Drance : Lead Vocals
Alison Whittlesey : Keys, Vocals
Lizanne Lachat : Vocals
Jason Hackett : Lead Guitar
Scott Rath : Rhythm Guitar
Thomas McGee : Bass
Glenn Hackett : Drums

Liner Notes
When The Bluebeats first came into being, the idea was to go back to the roots of Jamaican music in its various forms with a dedication to the original sound and soul of the music. Nobody was doing any of the old school rock steady, or early reggae so we wanted to experiment with that sound.

We had some favorite songs that we immediately wanted to play and once we started, it began to snowball. The music of artists like, Ken Boothe, Toots Hibbert, Delroy Wilson, The Melodians and dozens of others was just so beautiful and soulful we felt it had to get out there to the next generation. We then began writing our own music inspired by these artists but we had already established some wonderful cover tunes as part of our live performances. Fans would frequently ask where they could get a copy of our performance of various cover tunes. So here it is! Respect Due.

Respect due to all the artists who pioneered the various forms of Jamaican music, ska, rock steady, reggae as well as the soul and rhythm and blues that inspired these pioneers.

It was difficult to narrow down the choices of the songs to put on this record. There were so many to choose from. The songs we eventually chose are in no particular order of importance or significance. We just chose the songs that are among our favorites to play and the favorites of our fans and friends. We hope you enjoy listening to this music as much as we enjoy playing it.

Say What You're Saying - Monty Morris. We opened up the Rock Steady Festival at Steeplechase Park, Brooklyn with this tune and it really set the mood for a great festival.

Come Back Darling - Johnny Osbourne. We've always loved the harmonies and simplistic heartfelt lyrics. A Studio One Classic.

Now I Know - Ken Boothe. Mr. Rock Steady himself gave us his blessing to continue in the rock steady tradition. We did a show with him a few years back and were able to spend some time with him. One of Mike's all time favorite vocalists. Thank you Mr. Boothe!

Treat Me Good - Peter Tosh. His indomitable spirit and sense of justice, truth and right has always been his trademark. This is but a small taste of that spirit.

She Will Never Let Go - Larry and Alvin. Another classic. Alison loves the piano line. Great rock steady. Thanks John Soldo.

I Can't Work No Longer - Curtis Mayfield wrote this classic 'Chicago Soul' number for Billy Butler And The Enchanters. Mike introduced us to this one…we all agreed that it had rock steady written all over it.

Just Like A River - Originally done by Stranger Cole, it was Byron Lee's version that peaked Glenn's interest when he thought the vocalist sounded like Mike.

Rock It With Me - The Melodians were one of the best vocal groups from Jamaica. This one is just as sweet as it gets.

I'm Gonna Let - The Mellotones. This Joe Gibbs produced rock steady number has been a part of The Bluebeats live set for years. The guitar line leads this one with the 3 part harmony not far behind.

These Arms Of Mine - Otis Redding was such a huge influence on musicians everywhere and from every generation. American R and B was instrumental in the evolution of reggae and Otis' music inspired many Jamaican artists and continues to inspire The Bluebeats.

The First Cut Is The Deepest - Norma Fraser did a beautiful version of this Cat Stevens song that Rod Stewart actually had the most commercial success with. That is, until Cheryl Crow did it. Oh well. We were doing this before Cheryl and it was also another fan favorite so we decided to keep it in the record.

Four Seasons - Toots And The Maytals. We could have done a whole record of great Maytals tunes but this one is the first we covered since Mike used to sing it when he was in The Scofflaws. It has always been a fan favorite.

What A Confusion - Dave Barker performed this song when we toured Europe with him and Laurel Aitken. Dave was a real inspiration to us so this one is for him.

Better Must Come - Delroy Wilson. Glenn's favorite vocalist. We identified with this tune as he sings of his struggle in the music industry and life.

Live Wire - The Gladiators. Great reggae feel and really cool guitar licks. One of Jason's favorites.

Put It On - The Wailing Wailers. You can't do justice to this genre without a tribute to The Wailers. They recorded this wonderful spiritual song with The Skatalites. This one's for Scott.

Engineered and mixed by Brian Rath and Scott Rath at What Studio?
Produced by The Bluebeats

MEGA 013
© Copyright Megalith Records 2004.
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