http://www.myspace.com/officialprincealla

Origine du Groupe : Jamaica
Style : Reggae Roots , Dub
Sortie : 2002

By http://www.reggae-reviews.com

One of the ever-evident truths you face when choosing a reggae album to purchase is that you can't go wrong with a Blood and Fire release.  Or should I say re-release?  This label never ceases to amaze me at their ability to scour the depths of studio vaults, back alleys, under producers' beds, wherever to bring to light overlooked and/or out-of-print reggae from the '70s and early '80s.  And this stuff is always good.  You'd think that at some point, they'd either: 1) run out of material to uncover, or 2) relegate themselves to releasing less-than-stellar work just for the sake of releasing it.  But such a situation has yet to arise, as evidenced by the wonderful I Can Hear the Children Singing, which collects two albums previously unavailable on CD: Prince Alla's Heaven Is My Roof and Junior Ross's Babylon Fall.  Prince Alla is easily the more well-known name (thus his face is plastered on the album cover), having already had a Blood and Fire retrospective of his '70s work in Only Love Can Conquer.  I hadn't previously heard of Junior Ross and thought that his album might consist of DJ versions of the Prince Alla tracks, but actually he is a singer himself, and the rhythms don't carry over from Alla's album to Ross's.  So what's the connection between the two albums?  Well, aside from the artists having grown up together in the Greenwich Farm neighborhood of Kingston, both sets were produced by DJ/producer  Tappa Zukie.  Indeed, I Can Hear the Children Singing is as much a showcase for his production talents -- as he crafts a truly vintage, Golden Era-roots reggae sound -- as it is for the singers and musicians (including a who's who of the time: Sly & Robbie, Santa Davis, Bingy Bunny, Chinna Smith, Augustus Pablo, Headley Bennett, Ansel Collins, Tony Chin, et al).  Fans of Prince Alla's Only Love Can Conquer should undoubtedly scoop up his classic 1978 debut album Heaven Is My Roof (released under the name Ras Allah).  Despite different producers (Bertram Brown did the tracks on Only Love Can Conquer), Alla's angelic voice is consistent throughout both discs, his expressive vocals effortlessly floating through placid yet unwaveringly righteous cuts like "Funeral," "Go Down in Silence," "Jah Jah Bird," and the title track, and perhaps peaking on the evocative "Slave Master" and the refreshingly lovers rock-toned "Go to School."  From start to finish, this is the real deal for fans of '70s roots.  Despite relative obscurity, Junior Ross proves that he's worthy of co-billing with Babylon Fall, a 1992 collection of singles he recorded for Tappa Zukie between 1975 and 1977 under the name Junior Ross & The Spears (The Spears occasionally claiming Prince Alla himself as a member).  Babylon Fall starts out every bit the equal of Heaven Is My Roof -- with the electric "Judgement Time" (borrowing elements of The Abyssinians' "Declaration of Rights"), the epic sound of "Man From Zion" and "Send Me Over There," plus the melodic "Rough Way Ahead" and "Jah Love."  The second half of this disc isn't quite as sharp, however, hurt somewhat by the inclusion of a dub ("African Border") and a DJ version ("Freedom fe Natty") of "Liberty," which already wasn't one of the best tunes here.  Plus, Ross's voice just isn't as distinct or as appealing as Alla's.  Still, he constructs some wonderful roots melodies that compliment Tappa Zukie's vintage rhythms well.  

Engineer : Prince Jammy & Phillip Smart & King Tubby
Mixing Engineer : Scientist
Producer : Tappa Zukie
Vocals : Junior Ross & Prince Alla
Drums : Sly & Santa Davis
Bass : George Fullwood & Robbie
Guitar : Chinna & Tony Chin & Bingy Bunny
Keyboards : Augustus Pablo & Keith Sterling & Ansel Collins & Gladstone Anderson
Horns : Bobby Ellis & Vin Gordon & Headley Benett
Percussions : Scully Simms & Sky Juice

Tracklist :

Cd 1
01 - Prince Alla - Bosrah Extended
02 - Prince Alla - Funeral Extended
03 - Prince Alla - Go Down In Silence
04 - Prince Alla - Slave Master
05 - Prince Alla - Gold Diver
06 - Prince Alla - Heaven Is My Roof
07 - Prince Alla - Daniel In The Lions Den 12
08 - Prince Alla & Tappa Zukie - Black Man 12 Mix
09 - Prince Alla - Jah Jah Bird
10 - Prince Alla - Go To School
11 - Prince Alla - Just One Way

Cd 2
01 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Judgement Time Extended
02 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Man From Zion
03 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Send Me Over There 12 Mix
04 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Bow Down Babylon 12 Mix
05 - Junior Ross & The Spears - You Cant Run
06 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Rough Way Ahead
07 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Jah Love Extended
08 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Liberty
09 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Freedom Fe Natty (Feat. Tappa Zukie)
10 - Junior Ross & The Spears - African Border
11 - Junior Ross & The Spears - So Jah Jah Say
12 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Hold Them Prophecy Extended
13 - Junior Ross & The Spears - Babylon Fall Extended