Black Jade

An attention-evader even for the most ardent dub reggae fan, Black Jade's Contempo remains a mystery decades after its release. In the act of reissuing the LP, Solid Roots still only partly lift the veil: first set to tape between 1975 and 1976, the album was recorded by a still shadowy cadre of Notting Hill residents, who are said to have freely distributed it during Carnival. Their continued anonymity may form part of a decided effort to mythologise, though it almost certainly also reflects a niche facet of deeper-shades dub. Authenticity abounds: we hear preemptions of the hiss-floored undulations of Chain Reaction in this record as much as we do the busy instrumental imbroglios of Horace Andy, with the manly bass-charges of 'Virulence' polarising the sensitive subby coos of 'Love, Love, Love'.