Blackbeard's Orchestra

4th Street Orchestra - Yuh Learn! (1977)

The Grunwick Affair
Forever Missing You

Dennis Bovell is the man. He formed one of the first major UK reggae groups, Matumbi, in the mid-70's, produced The Pop Group's Y and the Slits Cut- two of the best albums from the post-punk era- in addition to producing all of Linton Kwesi Johnson's classic albums among other timeless reggae titles. His own dub albums are also worth checking out. One overlooked part of his catalog is his 4th Street Orchestra project that released some great dub in the late '70s. Check out these instrumentals from the album Yuh Learn! from '77 that feature some tight horn arrangements.

This album was reissued last year by EMI with the follow up album from '78, Scientific Higher Ranking Dubwise. Check it out here. "The Grunwick Affair" and other 4th Street Orchestra tunes also appeared on the excellent Bovell collection titled "Decibel" released on Pressure Sounds a few years ago.