Chant Down Babylon: The Island Anthology

Between 1975 and 1978, while he was on Island, Burning Spear, aka Winston Rodney, recorded his classic albums. The combination of Spear and producer Jack Ruby seem unstoppable, bringing forth heavy, spiritual reggae and some wicked dub, making him one of the most influential reggae figures of the period. Chant Down Babylon cherry-picks the best from his six records for Island, and two CDs is barely enough to contain it, with gems like "Slavery Days," "Man in the Hills," "Mek We Dweet," and "Social Living." As an introduction to the man at his very best, this can't be beat. Chris Nickson