Taken from the album: "Reggae Anthology: The Gussie Clarke Story", Gregory Isaacs' "Rumours" is a archetypal slice of original JA dancehall. Originally released in 1988 on Music Works in Jamaica, and on Greensleeves here in the UK; the track is produced by Augustus Clarke and sees the development of digital technologies within the Jamaican music cannon which would go on to define the dancehall genre.
Isaacs' vocal – ruminating on the police assuming his modest wealth has been achieved through illegal means - is delivered with a wry, dark sentiment whilst the instrumental section is full of primitive sampling, splashy digi-drums and a bassline composed on the Casio MT40 which was gaining huge popularity in the scene after the infamous "Sleng Teng" riddim.
On the flip we have a fully expanded exercise in top tier digi-dub version! Adding a multitude of extra layers, including a mystic melodica line, brash synth stabs, sizzling electronic strings and huge reverb splashes it sees Clarke go wild on the, what was then, quite new technologies - digital mixing desks and DSP effects and such like.
A classic of the dancehall genre - available for a limited time once again!
Isaacs' vocal – ruminating on the police assuming his modest wealth has been achieved through illegal means - is delivered with a wry, dark sentiment whilst the instrumental section is full of primitive sampling, splashy digi-drums and a bassline composed on the Casio MT40 which was gaining huge popularity in the scene after the infamous "Sleng Teng" riddim.
On the flip we have a fully expanded exercise in top tier digi-dub version! Adding a multitude of extra layers, including a mystic melodica line, brash synth stabs, sizzling electronic strings and huge reverb splashes it sees Clarke go wild on the, what was then, quite new technologies - digital mixing desks and DSP effects and such like.
A classic of the dancehall genre - available for a limited time once again!
TRACK LISTING
A. Rumours
B. Rumours Version