All The Peace Makers Turned War Officers
Junior Murvin – Police And ThievesIsland Records – 12WIP 6539Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, Single, UK, 1980
Junior Murvin's Police And Thieves has to be one of the most memorable pieces of reggae songwriting ever. Urgent lyrics delivered with the gentleness of Murvin's unmistakable Curtis-Mayfield-in-JA falsetto and the production magic worked up by Lee Perry on the Upsetters' backing track combine to make something special. It's one of the reggae songs that everyone would know if there was any justice in this world.
Of course, the lack of justice in this world inspired the lyrics when Junior Murvin and Scratch wrote this in 1976, then quickly recorded the single at Perry's Black Ark studio. The lyrics tell of gang violence and even worse police brutality. The words were clearly spilling out of the Kingston headlines of the day, but they've also tragically proven timeless. New versions of this still get cut every few years, easily translating to different countries, eras, and musical styles (reggae, punk and jazz covers off the top of my head). 45 years later in America, the tune came into my mind more than once over the last year as this country again grappled with a history of white supremacy, racist policing, and violence that we've only begun to reckon with.
The Jamaican single was released in 1976 and a hit at home before also spoking to listeners in the UK, especially after the Notting Hill Carnival riots that August. The song found an even larger international audience when it was included in the soundtrack to the movie Rockers a few years later. Today's record is the UK 12" single released along with that soundtrack album.
Marketing for the UK and US white rock music markets probably helped score this the brilliant picture sleave, but I love that they still formatted the record itself in a Jamaican style. Instead of including extra tracks from the soundtrack LP, you get three additional cuts on the Police And Thieves rhythm. Junior Murvin's classic crashes right into a ringing bell that opens a DJ version by Jah Lion (yet another Jah Lloyd alias, used during his stint recording with Lee Perry at the Black Ark). The B side features a saxophone instrumental by Glen DaCosta, and an excellent dub mix from Perry and his Upsetters. Even if some latter day Lee Perry records sometimes seemed like a parody of himself to cash in on Europeans with spending money and people who learned about him from Beastie Boys or something, the production on these tracks really does make clear why he is permanently seen as a genius. If you haven't before, put on some headphones and listen to the wildly inventive, powerful and beautiful work he was creating in his prime.
I really hope you enjoy this.
Tracklist
A1 Junior Murvin - Police And Thieves
A2 Jah Lion - Soldier And Police War
B1 Glen Dacasta - Magic Touch
B2 The Upsetters - Grumblin' Dub
From Genesis in FLAC (download Zip file): https://mega.nz/file/VXoQzCqQ#3qe5fVg4zhEE2z00k5xGTGdNA3xumzrWpfBjYWckRbo
To Revelation in MP3 (stream or download -LINK NOW FIXED-): https://mega.nz/folder/MahE3KoB#Yv9ZdX6Yr_kygx9IxKvM5A
As always, thanks so much for your generous crate-digging. Can't wait to hear what's next.
ReplyDeleteLooks like this one only has the FLAC links (both MP3 and FLAC are the same URL). Just thought you'd want to know...
Thank you for catching the mistake and sorry about that! The MP3 link is now fixed.
DeleteI'm glad you're enjoying! And you've answered two important questions for me: 1. yes, at least one person checks these out when I post them and 2. they apparently use the MP3 link?
Is it useful to keep posting both FLAC and MP3? It's not hard to do, but I'm not really sure how people are actually using these. (Assuming that Anonymous here isn't the only one...) I make FLAC files for myself, but have assumed the MP3s are useful for some and easier to stream if you don't download music. Let me know!
Yes. Flac please. Just discovered your blog and loving it. Thank you.
ReplyDeleteGlad you found it. I don't post a lot, but I've kept including both FLAC and MP3. Hopefully those who are so inclined are able to also stream the MP3 versions without much trouble. Let me know if it gives you any trouble and thanks!
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