CD: Dubbin' De Vibes
POET: Michael St. George
LABEL: Passin Thru' Records
MICHAEL ST. George's 15-track CD Dubbin De Vibes is overwhelmingly true to its title.
In fact, he gathers a stellar cast of poets for the title track, joining voices with poets Cherry Natural and Oku 'The Guru' Onoura for a chant of dub, dub, dub, we a dub de vibes, Benjy Myaz providing a singing contrast, on the title track.
The album is anchored by four versions and, with two of the remaining 11 remaining poems framed by a pair of very short pieces, the main course of the matter is in nine poems, running from the roots rock Dubbin' De Vibes to the delightfully jazz-influenced Babel Tower.
The first of those short poems, both done without music, is the album opener Attention, at 13 seconds. The second, running at four seconds, reinforces the message of dub, laced with heavy sound effects to good effect.
Musically, there are few surprises, with a wailing electric guitar of track seven, Decay, and the jazzy Babel Tower among them, with drum and bass dominating most of the way. On I Do and Mega, the voice is allowed free rein, without any music.
Thematically, St. George honours the power of words on the title track and makes a statement for freedom on Caged In, before landing a easy roots rocking wallop with Missin' You, which features the vocals of Pam Hall carrying the 'missing you' refrain. The tale of a travelling poet on the road, missing home, hits home as he says:
It's been 125 days/Since our little baby was born/And only 25 of those days I have seen, My heart is with you/Nobody knew/Just how much I have been/Missing U
It is not only the baby and the lady the poet is missing, though, as:
I can't take no more, Potatoes on this tour/A little bit of ital stew can do...
I Do cements his commitment to and vision of purpose for poetry (I do what I do/because I see generations without hope/robbed of their innocence/robbed and robed in entertainment), while See Us Through reaffirms his knowledge in the Most High. Close to its end Decay, which is delivered in a tight rhyming style which sees the poet putting is voice through different ranges, reveals its purpose with:
You can say I am phonetic/ Using certain symbols and sounds, To warn the people/Of the order of the day, But you can say Jah send certain/Symbols and sounds/For us to recognise the times/And the terror to come
No Two Sides presents the goal of an ideal, just society (No left side no right side/Nothing to hide/Straight down the middle/Can you imagine/A world where peace, love/Harmony is respected) on a soothing rhythm track, before Mega punches directly to the solar plexus of a supersized society.
There is a particular beautiful turn of phrase in Babel Tower.
Boxing Day,/Up to 95 per cent off/Sorry, we were sold out on Christ yesterday
Benjy Myaz features prominently on the album, not only as a guest vocalist but also as musician, arranger, mixing engineer and producer, sharing the latter duty with St. George. Alex Martin-Blanken is responsible for a delightful grand piano on Babel Tower, Errol Hird does a good saxophone on See Us Through, Iauwata Selassie has a hand in writing duties an well as keyboard and synth work and names such as Paul Kastick, Dalton Brownie and Bobby Treasure underscore the quality production work of Michael St. George's Dubbin De Vibes.
