You better run fast...

Seeing as my last post about Yeasayer got taken down for copyright infringement, i thought it might be nice to share some music that the artist themselves has already made freely available.

If you are a) into the Swedish reggae scene or b) been keeping up with the european snowboard films this year, you may well have heard of Congo Man Crew. If not, now's the time to get involved. Their Myspace and Facebook pages provide scant biographical information, but the music more than speaks for itself.

Deep roots reggae laden with tasty riddims and vocal hooks is what the crew is about, and you can download their latest EP Run Fast ft. Mysticman right here.

Download: Run Fast EP (Z-Share)

Congospace

Their music features on Jolly Roger, the latest flick from the Pirates crew.

Check the trailer below.

I'm talking 'bout the elephantitis...

Pic: Jayenems

As introductions to Jamaican music go, you can't go far wrong with The Story of Jamaican Music. By no means comprehensive, it still serves as a taster of the Carribean scene from its early inception to the current Dancehall phase, taking in dub, ska and reggae influences along the way.

I was listening to an old Blue Room a while back when Monsieur Da Bank played 'Diseases' as part of the Dub Club segment on the show. Upon hearing said track i dropped everything and vowed to seek out a copy and share it with the wider world (or failing that, bloggers).

Which, in a roundabout way, is how i came across The Story of Jamaican Music. A 4 cd compilation, beginning in 1958 with ska and ending with the first wave of dancehall in 1993. A quick scan of Amazon reveals that copies are going for well over 100GBP! However, you can always do a crafty google search and download the torrent (but you didn't hear that from me).

As hard as it is to pick a favourite from the 95 tracks on offer, i'll have to go with the first one i heard, 'Diseases' by Michigan & Smiley. It still puts a smile on my face and makes me skank like a bad boy, and garners plenty of 'Who is this?' attention from friends when played in the car.

Having said that, i can listen to the entire collection quite happily (only having to skip Shaggy's dreadful Oh Carolina) and a few of the songs have made it onto my all-time favourites list.

Do yourself a favour and download them all.

The Wailers - Simmer Down
The Maytals - 54-46 (That's My Number)
Jacob Miller - Tenement Yard
Black Uhuru - Guess Who's Coming To Dinner
Michigan & Smiley - Diseases (Hermetic Seal of Approval)
Tenor Saw - Ring The Alarm

All links are Yousendit. You have a week. Go!