KING TUBBY MEETS THE AGGROVATO

Tenor saxophonist Tommy McCook is rightly considered a giant of Jamaican music. Chosen by Clement 'Sir Coxsone' Dodd to be leader of the Skatalites in the early 1960s, he went on to become the chief exponent of rock steady as leader of the Supersonics house band at Treasure Isle. McCook remained a key session player throughout the reggae era, and during the roots reggae heyday of the mid-1970s, his expressive melodies found particularly strong outlet, especially on the music he created for grassroots producer Bunny 'Striker' Lee as a member of the Aggrovators, the studio outfit Lee hand-picked from the cream of Jamaica's musical crop. When enhanced by the adventurous mixing experiments of King Tubby, the engineer that turned dub into an art form, instrumental Aggrovators music became positively ethereal, yielding an exceptional listening experience. On King Tubby Meets The Aggrovators At Dub Station, Tommy McCook blows mean sax and flute over dubs of outstanding tracks by Johnny Clarke, Cornell Campbell, Linval Thompson, Delroy Wilson, and others greats. First issued on Third World in 1976, this vinyl reissue comes complete with four thematic bonus tracks, and the whole disc makes for essential listening.