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POOR MAN'S FRIEND RECORDS

Poor Man's Friend Records is proud to present a brand new 7" featuring the legendary Cornell Campbell. This 45 delivers a powerful message from The Gorgon, a prolific artist whose recording career spans over 60 years. First recording for the venerable Coxone Dodd at Studio one, Mr Campbell has built a cult following with his trademark Falsetto voice. Equally adept at writing beautiful love songs as he is deep spiritual roots cuts, It's fair to say many of his works have become Iconic milestones in the evolution of the genre. In the year 2025 Cornell Campbell warns us of the pitfalls of living our life in an egotistical way, " Just try sweeping up your backyard, before you find fault with people's yard." A searing condemnation of those that judge others based on their wealth, this mid seventies style roots production was cut by the Poor Man's Friend Rhythm section at their studio in Bristol. The B side dub was masterfully orchestrated by label stalwart Yakka, whilst the horns were played by Cornerstone Horn section.

TRACK LISTING

1. Change That Dub (feat. Yakka)
2. Change Your Ways (feat. Yakka)

Icho Candy & The Viceroys

Pave The Way (feat. Yakka)

A truly enigmatic character from the golden era of Jamaican roots music, Icho Candy is an artist that has, to me, always been shrouded in mystery. A devout rastafarian born with a gift for prophetic songwriting, Candy always writes in a way that is true to himself and his deep seated beliefs, regardless of the external pressures he endures as a veteran artist, an incredible feet for an independent artist with a career that spans fifty years.

First recording for the great Joe Gibbs and Jack Ruby in the late seventies, Icho's big break in the industry came with the hit record "Captain Selassie", a track that is widely considered to be one of the greatest rastafari anthems in dancehall. During this time Icho also recorded for labels such as Jah Life, Rockers International, Tesfa, Jah Shaka and many more. Like so many of the great artists in the eighties Icho recorded and toured in America for an extended period alongside Sugar Minott, Nicodemus, Nitty Gritty, King Kong before returning to Jamaica to record two amazing albums for the late Jah Shaka.

The A side of this latest seven inch gives us the classic writing style of Icho Candy. Pairing his lyrical depth with an early 70's Phil Pratt style production. An eerie horns line meets the clean sharp, older school backing vocals provided by The Mighty Viceroys to create something magical, the type of record we thought we may have already heard on some scratchy 45 deep in a soundmans crate.

Yakka once again returns to the label on B side duties, providing another Tubby inspired voyage into dusty fx units and quick draw fades. The bassline increases, the vocal decreases but the vibe never ceases.

TRACK LISTING

1. Pave The Way (feat. Yakka)
2. Pave The Dub (feat. Yakka)

This heavy roots reggae cut comes courtesy of The Viceroys, legendary harmony group from the stables of the world renowned studio 1. First recording for the venerable Mr Dodd in 1967 The Viceroys were instrumental in moving the sound from rocksteady to reggae with early hits like "Ya Ho" and "Love & Unity" .

The A side of this weighty 45 is a revisited vocal from the early days of the group, a haunting, smokey rendition of Maga Down. Drawing musical influence from Ethiopian and Cuban music as well as its obvious early reggae basis this record sounds fresh whilst simultaneously transporting you back to the golden era with its warm nostalgic themes.

The flip side is an ethereal dub mix from the Bristol based Yakka, an almost psychedelic journey into the mixing board bringing out the best of the vintage sound pellet.

This is the third release from Bristol label Poor Man's Friend Records, produced in the Poor Man's Friend studio and voiced in Jamaica only 300 copies of this smoked out ode to the golden era are available for purchase.

TRACK LISTING

1. Maga Down
2. Maga Dub (feat. Yakka)


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