Reggae covers add zest to American and British pop songs.
The period from the early 60s to the early 70s has always been my favorite in Jamaican popular music. It has something to do with the hesitant inception of new forms, tenuous, breakable rules, experimentation, vitality, and mess. Ah, the holy, incorruptible mess: once the production values get really good around 1971 my interest sort of wanes. Not only did Jamaica come into its own as a nation in this decade (gaining independence in 1962), but so did the incendiary three-stage radio rocket that is ska, rocksteady and reggae, a musical missile delivering a delectable sonic payload. Of course, this was a remarkable period, not only for Jamaican music, but also for the popular music of the world at large — more remarkable still, is that for just about any great American or British pop hit of the 60s, there is probably a reggae version of it. And it is probably amazing.
Take, for instance, Harry and Radcliffe’s cover of Sam Cooke’s “Wonderful World” (aka “History”): as with just about every solid reggae cover, the version adds ample bass and a sweet, danceable bounce to an already catchy melody. Here, though, the snappiness of the reggae makes the playfulness in Cooke’s lyrics of high school romance more explicit. I am also very fond of the Gaylettes’ cover of “Son of a Preacher Man.” This is still reggae, but with a massive, dramatic horn section, girl-group-style backing vocals, and a frantic pace that nearly overtakes lead singer Judy Mowatt. Toots and the Maytals take on John Denver’s dippy “Take Me Home, Country Roads” and never falter for a moment.
The great reggae cover is also carnivalesque. The original, Tommy James and the Shondells version of “Crimson and Clover” liquefied my 13-year-old soul, making me feel like I was in love without even knowing with whom. When The Uniques get their hands on it, the opening thumps of the bassline rekindle that sense of nascent romance. This is no straightforward imitation, though — in lieu of the studio effects of the Shondells version, The Uniques improvise their own, pretty much on the fly. The ballad gets a sense of humor, but maybe this is love as it ought to be.
