Bim Sherman - Ghetto Dub - Weekend Fest

First time a reissue is reviewed here, but frankly, we don’t have a choice.
Bim Sherman (born Jarrett Lloyd Tomlinson Vincent in Kingston, Jamaica) was a pivotal figure in Jamaican Reggae scene, and its subsequent UK era. Emerging in the early 1970s, he was at the forefront of the island’s musical innovation, experimenting with cutting-edge Dub production techniques. After several  
releases on his own, Jamaican imprints Scorpio and Red Sea between 1975 and 1978 he established more and more. So it happened only four years later that a producer and musician from the United Kingdom, certain guy called Adrian Sherwood (who’s worth a feature himself…), got more into Sherman’s music, and invited him to join Cry Tuff founder Prince Far I. Prince Hammer to tour alongside them and Sherwood’s friends, the UK Reggae group Creation Rebel.

Bim Sherman obviously enjoyed the time overseas a lot and decided to stay in London, strengthening his friendship with Adrian Sherwood, amongst others with releasing on his legendary On-U-Sound label. Besides he founded his new, UK based imprint, Century Records on which he mostly released until he was diagnosed with cancer and passed away in November 2000. A few of his records aside from these two labels came out on the small, mysterious bristolian RDL Records. One of them, Ghetto Dub became a centerpiece of UK Dub history and his own work as well. Only reissued once in 1995 on his own Century Records, this rare record is an outstanding example for Bim Sherman’s craft, acting as a conduit between classical Jamaican Roots culture and UK’s adventurous experimental Dub sounds. Playful, catchy and wonderfully twisted earcandy, as well as deep, suffering meditations.

38 years after first release this masterpiece is now finally available to a wider audience, reissued on Cologne based music festival imprint Week-End.