Capital Letters
mashed up the U.K. sound systems in 1978 with
"Smoking My Ganja,"
a punchy rockers styled single with a distinctly British flavor. The irrepressible song wafted straight up the
reggae
chart, prompting the
Greensleeves
label to send the group into the studio with
Chris Cracknell
to record a full-length.
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arrived in the new year, immediately garnering critical acclaim and sending
fans running to the shops. Hailing from Wolverhampton, the
Letters
were a big band, eight-strong (adding another guitarist/vocalist for their 1979
John Peel
radio session), and boasting four vocalists, two drummers (one the conga player) and two percussionists, among their ranks. In Jamaica, brass and/or organ filled out the arrangements, the
, however, used percussion, giving the band a surprisingly fleshy, rhythm driven sound. And then there's keyboardist
Earl Lynch
, a decided
jazz
fan, who unlike his Jamaican counterparts didn't provide atmospheres to the songs, but a snazzy flare instead, a predilection best heard on
"Rumours"
and
"Run Run Run."
However, it's the album's opening track,
"Fire,"
that best epitomizes the band at their bubbly
roots reggae
best, a song driven by a plethora of propulsive beats and percussion, a compulsive bassline, sharp
guitar, bouncy keyboards, and infectious vocals. Elsewhere, bass player
Junior Brown
shines on
"Daddy Was No Murderer,"
while the entire band swaggers across the more free-form styled
instrumental
"Buzz Rock."
Moving deftly from militant steppers style to the punchy almost
ska
-ified
"Ganja"
hit, every one of the ten tracks on the set was worthy of sound system play.
A pure roots and culture band,
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's themes range from the religion to self-affirmation, as the band batter down Babylon, rally for unity, push for marijuana legalization (of course), and discuss injustice and unemployment. Unusually, the group also strongly condemn Ugandan President Idi Amin, not that he wasn't thoroughly deserving, but at a time when it was de rigueur to praise Black African leaders (and overlook those with flaws), the British band refused to pull their punches.
This CD reissue further sweetens a classic set with the inclusion of the extended mix of
"Smoking,"
as well as the equally excellent "discomixes" of two of the band's other singles.
Capitol Letters
only lasted a few years, and this was their sole full-length, a masterpiece that leaves one yearning for so much more. ~ Jo-Ann Greene