OK, I'll admit it, I picked this record up strictly on the strength of the cover. Never seen or heard of it before, but how you gonna go wrong with a Sly & Robbie album called Disco Dub, sick cartoon cover, released in 1979? Thankfully I was right, and this album is a really unique slice of Sly & Robbie's sound, featuring some great versions recognizable cuts. It's not exactly mindblowing in terms of the dubs, but the instrumentals are killer on their own. Start with the longplayer, a 10 minute version of "Sidewalk Doctor(1)" aka Woman Of The Ghetto, in which they let Ranchie get completely loose on lead guitar. Really cool sound. The other big recognizable track here is "Depth Charge(2)," a dub version of Dawn Penn's classic No No No riddim. I like how they keep this one super minimal, sometimes just drawing out like a shaker and a couple synth drops. Ranchie's guitar warblings actually take the lead on a lot of these, and I'm not mad at all. Stuff like "War Of The Gods(3)" sounds so different. Rather than focus on the usual organs and occasional horn bursts like most dubs, these guys are accenting the trebbly instruments like triangles, shakers, and electric guitar. 2 more tracks round it out: "Mickey Mouse(4)" and "Battle Of The Titans(5)." Sound quality is a bit scratchy, but you aren't going to find this record anywhere else.

reviewed by the mgmnt