Words by Jesse Serwer—
The good folks at Jamaican record label/production team Truckback Records (a/k/a brothers Steve and Adrian Locke) have given LargeUp their latest riddim track to premiere, and we’re glad they did because it’s a scorcher. Inspired by Jamaica’s 50th anniversary, Freedom Shines is a re-lick of Freedom Blues, a vintage riddim that’s been kicking around since Studio One days and is probably best known in the early ’90s incarnation voiced by the likes of Admiral Tibett, Buju and others. Voicing Freedom Shines are a small but impressive crew of artists, each with the requisite timeless appeal to simmer on a rhythm like this: Tarrus Riley, Busy Signal, Gyptian, Warrior King and—this is a name we haven’t heard in a while— Turbulence. All of the tracks tun up but Tarrus’ “Original Dancehall” is definitely the theme song, an anthemic call for a return to old-time, good-natured dancehall vibes. Stream and download each track below, or get the whole thing here.
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