AMG Review of Jazz in Jamaica

Stephen Cook
All Music Guide

Taking in Jamaican boogie, ska, and rocksteady, this collection of Duke Reid-produced Treasure Isle tracks shines the spotlight on the jazz-inspired instrumentals from such important island groups as the Skatalites and the Supersonics. The bulk here features such one-time Skatalite stars as trombonist Don Drummond, trumpeter Baba Brooks, and tenor saxophonists Roland Alphonso and Tommy McCook; apart from his tracks with the Skatalites, McCook is also heard heading up Reid's rocksteady house band, the Supersonics. Maybe not the ideal introductory disc, Jazz in Jamaica still will make that balmy evening out on the porch that much more enjoyable.