"It isn't Sly Dunbar's most spectacular performance as a drummer although his playing is right in the pocket: listen to the lightness of his touch on the cymbals and the tightness of his occasional fills but as recording debuts go, appearing on an early 70s reggae classic in your teens, a single that furthermore went to No 1 in the UK and sold 300,000 copies despite British radio's disinclination to play it, is quite the impressive way to open your account."
"It's all great, but if you want to see how impactful Dunbar's playing was on the sound, head straight to the title track. The beat he plays is complex, a world away from the one-drop rhythm that had predominated in reggae: so complex, in fact, that Dunbar claimed other drummers initially refused to believe he'd actually played it, assuming some kind of studio trickery was involved. Then everybody started trying for that style, he added, and it soon become established."
Sly Dunbar made a notable recording debut as a teenager on The Mighty Diamonds' Right Time, a UK No 1 that sold 300,000 copies despite limited British radio support. His drumming helped popularise the rockers rhythm, moving away from the one-drop pattern and prompting other drummers to emulate the style. Dunbar provided tight, echo-rich drumming on Junior Murvin's Police and Thieves, with Boris Gardiner on bass. He also played on Culture's Two Sevens Clash, including the prophetic title track about 7 July 1977. Dunbar's fills, touch and rhythmic complexity significantly shaped the sound of roots reggae.
Read at www.theguardian.com
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