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"FROM COAST TO COAST - THE SOUND OF NOW!"
Or the sound of what was new in reggae, dancehall, lover's and dub in February,1985.
RODIGAN vs BARRY G, big and large on the radio.
Dubplate Clash. London, UK vs Kingston, Jamaica.

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It was a bit of a struggle to get this one made and uploaded, lots of technical hitches, and computer freezes and HD video format refused by youtube, so this is the best I can offer. It's not the absolute ideal and there are a couple of things I did better but that version got messed up.

But anyway I am rambling... so here it is...dadaah!...wikidub proudly presents from his cassette archive of reggae radio shows...a legendary night in February 1985 when David Rodigan of London's Capital Radio took on the might of JBC1's Barry G in Kingston, Jamaica in a showdown to see who could lay down the tastiest, meanest and deadliest metal dubplates. Trouble.

Showcasing the hottest new computerised dancehall sounds like the "Sleng-Teng" "riddim" Rodigan and Barry G slugged it out with killer after murderer tune, to the delight of the radio audiences in London and Home Counties and all of Jamaica.

Like many folks I bought a cassette tape to record the occasion and it's this archival recording I present here. Please realise, the sound is not going to be great, but it's now made acceptable. It was recorded on a boogie-box so there is a bit if hissing sometimes. I have left the treble on and not used dolby or any filters on this, except I have amplified it, because the recording had got quiet with age it seems. You may wish to use a graphic equaliser if the hiss is too noticeable for you. Personally, I don't mind.

Also, the sound level is variable, but that is more to do with the engineers in the studios fiddling with the mixing board. Near the end it gets quite loud and then suddenly quietens down again. Also, please ignore the too loud wikidub voice right at the very end, it should be a lot softer - oops! I was recording live on the fly and editing out the ads and the news so there are a couple of jumpy bits.

So yeah, the first time I uploaded I listed all the artists on the recording but I forgot to copy it when I deleted that vid because it wasn't accepted (quicktime?), so I'll just mention a few, but the deejays do obviously mention all their names.

Sugar Minnott, Gregory Isaacs, Patrick Andy, Aswad, Maxi Priest, Leroy Sibbles, Little John, Wayne Smith are just some of the many musicians and singers who had their brand new tunes played that special night.

So, I hope you like this Crucial Jam, this mighty session, this famous dubplate clash which lit up the airways and cheered up those listening, like me, in London on a cold winter's evening in early 1985, which was rather depressing because Thatcher was battling the miners and the USA & the USSR were apparently just about to blow each and everyone else away into pulverised atoms.

ENJOY!!! :)