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Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari, The – Grounation [IMPORT DELUXE EDITION 3xLP +7" + magazine + art print– New LP
Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari, The – Grounation [IMPORT DELUXE EDITION 3xLP +7" + magazine + art print– New LP
Soul Jazz Records

Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari, The – Grounation [IMPORT DELUXE EDITION 3xLP +7" + magazine + art print– New LP

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  • Artist: The Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari
  • Title: Grounation (1973)
  • Genre: Reggae
  • Label: Soul Jazz Records


"Like Sun Ra's Arkestra and John Coltrane are to jazz, the Mystic Revelation of Rastafari are to reggae – the ultimate expression of roots music and Rastafarian ideology in reggae music, music functioning at a high level of spiritual consciousness combined with an equally avant-garde and forward-looking approach to sound. The group's stunning, unique and groundbreaking 1973 album ‘Grounation’, a mighty conceptual triple-album (the first ever reggae triple!) is, similar to Marvin Gaye's 'What's Goin' On', a definitive all-encompassing cultural statement of its time and place. A sprawling album of raw and unique cultural expression that combined Rastafari consciousness with deep spiritual jazz music – an absolute and essential classic of Reggae music. The Mystic Revelation of Rastafari group came into existence at the start of 1970s, the union of two former Studio One artists (and groups) of equal repute – Count Ossie & his African Drums and saxophonist Cedric ‘Im’ Brooks’ & his group, The Mystics. Master drummer Count Ossie and his collective of Rastafarian drummers performed for Haile Selassie on his momentous visit to Jamaica in 1966. Cedric Brooks came out of the Alpha Boys School – the fertile breeding ground of musicians who dominated the Jamaican music scene from the 1960s onwards. The Mystic Revelation Of Rastafari’s ’Grounation’ is a massive opus, a work of profound musical genius that tells the story of Jamaica through music and words. A cornerstone in the history of reggae, a unique and other-worldly album the like of which has never been made since."

 

Don Snowden: "This is Rasta devotional music before it was turned into commercial reggae styles, music that could be played outdoors in the hills or around campfires in Kingston. There's nary a guitar in sight -- the music is all percussion, with horns, chants and recitations, an acoustic bass foundation (maybe Lloyd Brevett from the Skatalites?) and a surprisingly strong jazz quotient. "Bongo Man" leads with percussion and horn riffs before a sax solo surprisingly close to free jazz (could it be Cedric Brooks?). "Naration" starts with the heartbeat Nyabinghi rhythm and a consciousness rap on the middle passage and slavery emphasized by sudden sax honks before an introduction-to-Rasta section that quotes the psalm that "By the Rivers of Babylon" is drawn from. It does go on a bit, but "Marbat...Passin' Thru" gets an Afro-Cuban/mambo horn riff and percussion groove, and "Lumba" and "Way Back Home" close things out in a song format with sax and trombone playing off the drums. Volume Two basically falls in the same vein, with a ragged-but-right version of the proto-reggae hit "Oh, Carolina" (famous now thanks to Shaggy but not to non-Jamaicans when Grounation first came out) with trombone solo and group singing leads into the Rasta chanting with drums on "So Long." "Groundation" is full-fledged, extended excursion into Nyabinghi consciousness while the finale, "The Warm Up," marries effective horn riffing with the percussion and what sounds like arco bass but may just be the sax. Grounation obviously lost some of its shock-of-the-new power over the years as reggae became a known quantity in the broader pop world, and other recordings covered the same Nyabinghi/Rasta musical ground. It's valuable historically, because you can hear the Jamaican music spectrum from ska and jazz come together to form reggae and the roots of Ras Michael & the Sons of Negus and conscious poets like Mutabaruka, too. And the music is still enjoyable, just as long no one goes in expecting a set of regular reggae songs."

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