Red is a 1981 album by the Jamaican reggae band Black Uhuru. The line-up of the band changed many times during its 16 years and this is the second release for the lineup of Michael Rose, Sandra "Puma" Jones and Derek "Duckie" Simpson. Sly & Robbie were again in the production seat after having previously worked with the band on the 1980 album Sinsemilla.
| Red | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 1981 | |||
| Studio | Channel One, Kingston, Jamaica; Compass Point, Nassau, Bahamas | |||
| Genre | Reggae | |||
| Length | 39:24 | |||
| Label | Mango, Island, Warner Bros. | |||
| Producer | Sly & Robbie | |||
| Black Uhuru chronology | ||||
| ||||
Reception
edit| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic | [1] |
| Christgau's Record Guide | A−[2] |
| Q | [3] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [4] |
Red was ranked at No. 3 among the top ten "Albums of the Year" for 1981 by NME.[5]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide wrote that Rose's "elaborately ornamented phrasing has more in common with cantorial singing than with typical reggae vocal style."[4] In 2023, Rolling Stone ranked Red number 466 on their list of the 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.[6]
Track listing
editAll tracks are written by Michael Rose unless stated
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Youth of Eglington" | 5:00 | |
| 2. | "Sponji Reggae" | 4:56 | |
| 3. | "Sistren" | Rose, Derrick "Duckie" Simpson | 4:34 |
| 4. | "Journey" | Simpson | 5:21 |
| 5. | "Utterance" | 3:42 | |
| 6. | "Puff She Puff" | 5:08 | |
| 7. | "Rockstone" | Rose, Simpson | 4:38 |
| 8. | "Carbine" | 6:05 |
| No. | Title | Writer(s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|
| 9. | "Sponji Reggae" (Discomix) | 10:32 | |
| 10. | "Trodding" (Dub version of "Journey") | Simpson | 5:18 |
Personnel
edit- Black Uhuru
- Michael Rose - vocals
- Derrick "Duckie" Simpson - harmony vocals
- Puma Jones - harmony vocals
with:
- Sly Dunbar - drums, syndrums
- Robert "Robbie" Shakespeare - bass, piano
- Ranchie McLean - rhythm guitar, lead guitar
- Mikey Chung - rhythm guitar, lead guitar
- Radcliff "Dougie" Bryan - lead guitar
- Barry Reynolds - lead guitar on "Carbine"
- Robert Lyn - piano
- Keith Sterling - piano
- Uziah "Sticky" Thompson - percussion
- Technical
- Chris Blackwell - executive producer
- Soldgie (Cedrica Anthony Hamilton) - sound engineer
- Lancelot "Maxie" McKenzie - vocal engineer
- Kendal Stubbs - guitar overdubs engineer
- Johnnie Black - photography
References
edit- ^ Cook, Stephen. "Black Uhuru: Red" at AllMusic. Retrieved 27 September 2011.
- ^ Christgau, Robert (1990). "B". Christgau's Record Guide: The '80s. Pantheon Books. ISBN 0-679-73015-X. Retrieved August 17, 2020 – via robertchristgau.com.
- ^ "Red". Q. Bauer Media Group. January 1991. ISSN 0955-4955.
- ^ a b The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 63.
- ^ "Albums and Tracks of the Year". NME. 2016. Retrieved 2 November 2016.
- ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. 31 December 2023. Retrieved 23 January 2024.
