Still Bill 2

Continuing our brief tribute to the late, great Bill Withers...

Horace Andy ‎– Ain't No Sunshine
Jaguar ‎– J 189
Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM
Jamaica, 2006

A    Horace Andy  -  Ain't No Sunshine
B    Mafia & Fluxy  -  Ain't No Sunshine Version

In the early 70s, Jamaican vocalist Hoarce Andy had a hit on the island with his cover of Bill Withers' "Ain't No Sunshine." What we have here is an early 2000s remix of that cut by musicians and producers Mafia & Fluxy.

Horace Andy has one of the most distinctive voices in reggae, crossing decades and genres yet still managing to remain relevant. Since the 1990s, he's been best known to non-reggae obsessives for his work with Massive Attack, but he's been on the scene since the early 1970s, originally releasing records for Coxsone Dodd and his legendary Studio One label. Even by the prolific standards of reggae singers, he's put out an impressive number of memorable songs and that instantly recognizable falsetto (and songwriting chops) have served him well as he recorded for nearly every important producer in reggae. He's one of those artists that keep me chasing old Jamaican 45s- I've been listening to this guy about 30 years (damn, I got old!) and still run into singles by him that I've never even heard of. I'm sure we'll revisit Horace Andy in the days to come...

Somewhere around 1973(?), Andy hit with his cover of "Ain't No Sunshine" produced by produced by Bunny "Striker" Lee. Horace Andy's high voice seemed especially well suited for Withers' bittersweet lyric. The excellent rhythm was versioned in the following few years by Augustus Pablo, Lee Perry and, most importantly, on multiple cuts by the great Dr. Alimantado.*

In the 90s and early 2000s, musicians and producers Leroy and Dave Heywood, better known as Mafia & Fluxy, were semi-regularly revisiting classic reggae rhythms from the 60s and 70s and collecting some of those tracks into several "Revival Hits" albums (none to my knowledge, including this cut though). Does their synth overdub remix improve on Horace Andy's original? Well... no. But it's not bad and probably opened the door to the classic song getting a few new rounds of play in the clubs and dances, which is enough to justify its existence to me.

Even after a thorough cleaning of the record and lots of work removing scores of the worst pops and clicks, this is still a damned noisy, crackly JA pressed record from the later days of the Jamaican pressing plants. But what are you gonna do? I'm pretty sure this 7" is the only place to find this version of the song and the instrumental take on the B side.
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*If you've ever wondered whether a song called "Best Dressed Chicken In Town" can be truly great, please click those links to realize that the answer is definitively yes.