Burning Spear – Marcus Garvey

Burning Spear's third album (and first to get international distribution via Island) is a banger from start to finish. The Studio One records are in a class by themselves, but this is a remarkably powerful statement. There's a stridency to the rhythms that compels your body to do anything other than remain still, whether it's a foot tap or a head bob or what have you. Absolute bliss listening to this LP. Original US pressing from 1975 sounds fantastic, with tremendous depth to the low end, a crispness to the percussion and guitars, and warm, full vocals. A great sounding pressing with a vivid, pure soundstage. Five stars and a happy face.

My variant 1 copy has Robert Willington's name centrally and Delroy Hines on the right under the photo on the back. Anyone else have this misprinted cover?

Man this album and pressing sound fantastic - high quality album...

Very good quality JA Press (Jamaican Mix)... I didn't listen to it on a Total Sounds stamper but this one have nothing to do with the Island pressings !
With Dub companion Garvey's Ghost

Very good US Press of this Killer ! (Island Mix)

The Black Disciples helped the vocal trio bring their vast potential and musical vision to vinyl, one they'd threatened with previous releases, but never quite attained. Producer Lawrence "Jack Ruby" Lindo's was equally important to the album's sound, gracing it with a Deep Roots Mix that accentuated the haunting atmospheres of the music. Unfortunately, the listener experiences only wisps of that here. The Island subsidiary Mango believed the production too threatening, or at least too commercially inviable, for white audiences, and thus remixed it into what they considered a more palatable form. However, Marcus Garvey is so powerful a record that, even in this diluted state, it remains a masterpiece.

Original Jamaican mix. Differs from the more widely pressed (and subsequent) Island version in at least three ways:
- "Resting Place" is absent from Jamaican releases.
- Track timings are different from the Island release for all tracks. Track A1on this release is -0:06; A2 -0:22; A3 -0:21; A4 +0:24; A5 +0:05; B1 +0:12; B2 -0:15; B3 -0:10; B4 +0:17. (Timed by hand).
- Mix is noticeably different. Bass and percussion higher in the mix; other instruments and vocals vary. An overall "fatter" sound than the Island release.

My Back to Black copy has a spelling mistake on the back cover Jordan River is spelt Jordon River, but is correctly spelt on the disc label, Is this the norm?

Seems to me all the JA pressings are the mono OG mix...

I have a copy of this press but the matrix number is very clearly 2524 not 2574. Unless they are two different pressings?

is this the original Jamaican mix / same mix than the Wolf pressing ? thanks

Do the releases on Fox/Wolf have the original non-Island mixes? Can anyone confirm?