Justin Hinds has deserved an anthology like this for some time now, one that brings his important ska, rocksteady, and early reggae sides from
Duke Reid's Treasure Isle studio together in one package, and kudos for Trojan/Sanctuary for finally doing it. A major figure in Jamaica's musical story, on a par with
Jimmy Cliff,
Desmond Dekker,
Toots Hibbert,
Burning Spear. and Bob Marley,
Hinds has been woefully underappreciated on an international level, due in part, no doubt, to his own reticent nature concerning stardom. More country than Kingston,
Hinds took Jamaican folk sayings and proverbs and crafted them into songs of wry, subtle wisdom, and with his easy, calm singing style, he was disarmingly effective in calling out the foolishness he saw going on around him. He influenced everyone on the Jamaican scene, including Marley, who picked up on
Hinds' folk approach, even nabbing whole songs like
Hinds' "Corner Stone" for his own use.
Hinds hit right out of the box with his first recording for
Duke Reid, the enduring "Carry Go Bring Come," which became a ska standard in 1964, and backed by the likes of
Tommy McCook,
Don Drummond, and
Roland Alphonso at Treasure Isle,
Hinds turned out ska anthems like "Over the River," "Botheration," and "The Higher the Monkey Climbs," then slipped easily into the cooled-down rhythms of rocksteady with a superb version of Wade Flemons' 1958 R&B hit "Here I Stand."
Hinds became less active musically during the early-'70s reggae boom, but his reggae-styled remakes of "Botheration" and "Carry Go Bring Come" made them classics a second time over. Unlike most Jamaican singers,
Hinds didn't skip from producer to producer, but stuck with
Reid for ten years until
Reid's death in 1974, and recorded only sparingly afterwards. This important two-disc set includes every important side
Hinds did with
Reid, and when combined with the excellent Jack Ruby-produced
Jezebel album from 1976, forms the heart of
Hinds canon.
Justin Hinds' death in the spring of 2005 robbed Jamaica and the world of a wonderful singer and writer. Better late than never, this anthology is the essential starting point to the music and legacy he left behind. ~ Steve Leggett