Horace Martin came to prominence in Kingston in 1979 when he finished third in the Tastee Talent Series behind a young Nadine Sutherland and Paul Blake of the Blood Fire Posse. He recorded many top ten hits and four albums in Jamaica, but then like so many other artists of his generation fled the violence to Canada. Since his move he has received the Canadian Reggae Music Award twice and set up his own Shockout Martin Label. His vocal style is reminiscent of Dennis Brown, Cornell Campbell & the other Horace.
This album was released in 2005 and features tracks from 1983-85. All of the tracks were recorded on the Negus Roots Label and produced by Robert ‘Flako’ Palmer who worked a lot with Sly & Robbie, Mad Professor & Lacksley Castell in the Early 80’s.
‘Repatriation’ is an original version of a classic riddim, please help, a chocolate fish to anyone who can identify it. Other highlights include ‘King Fa Them’ – in the tradition of General Trees with wicked reverb on the vocals. ‘We Want Work”‘ is a slower, dubby track with a nice horn section. ‘Pure Delight’, features some awesome C64 synth stabs and screeches. ‘I Can’t Believe It’, rallies against the growing tide of violence in Kingston. The albums title track ‘Positive Vibez’ is brilliant and ranks up there with some of the best works of the era. ‘Zuggy Zuggy’ reworks a John Holt track to great effect.
All in all a worthwhile album, I’ll be on the lookout for Horace Martin in the future. Just a hint, stop the CD player at Track 11, what is it with those Beatles crossover tracks?
3/5
Daddy Mac
