Nice Up the Dance - UK Bubblers 1984-87

In the mid-‘70s, the London-based Greensleeves imprint built itself into one of the world’s pre-eminent reggae labels by marketing the undiluted sounds of the Jamaican underground to British listeners. By 1984, the burgeoning label founded the subsidiary imprint UK Bubblers to release homegrown masterpieces by the likes of DJs such as Tippa Irie, Tannoi, and Sparky Dean. Nice Up the Dance: UK Bubblers 1984-87 is a retrospective of this remarkable British reggae label. UK Bubblers’ releases weren't just musically outstanding; they provided a window into daily life in London’s flourishing Jamaican communities. Pato Banton’s “Mash Up the Telly” criticizes British television’s dreary cultural wasteland. On “Good To Have the Feeling You’re the Best,” Tippa Irie sketches vivid reminiscences of the London "Blues Dance" scene on which he cut his teeth as a teen. These recordings occupy a fascinating middle ground between the roots-based sound of ‘70s-era London artists like Jah Shaka and the more aggressive ragga sounds of the late ‘80s, and they give listeners an invaluable lesson in the history of the U.K. reggae scene.