Classic Rockers (Island, 1995)

Classic Rockers collects Augustus Pablo tracks -- both productions of other artists and his own instrumentals/dubs (mostly the former)-- from 1975 through 1987.  Of course, his signature song, "King Tubby Meets the Rockers Uptown," is present, as is its vocal version, Jacob Miller's "Baby I Love You So."  It is the lesser-known tracks, however, that make this album such a treat.  Harmony trio Tetrack (or T.E. Track, as they are listed here) lends their sweet vocal talents to "Isn't It Time To See," while Hugh Mundell contributes "Jah Says the Time Has Now Come," each of which are strong enough to have bolstered their classic Pablo-produced albums Let's Get Started and Africa Must Be Free By 1983, respectively.  A pair of 1987 tunes -- after Pablo was supposedly past his prime -- by Delroy Williams, the old-fashioned "You Never Know" and the digital-edged "Stop the Fighting," also excel, while most of the rest provide ample support on this excellent showcase of Pablo's talent.

Valley of Jehosaphat (RAS, 1999)

This isn't a particularly great Augustus Pablo effort, but the lush sound and production quality carry you through.  His melodica is omni-present, but it is the drumming that resonates most loudly, from the rhythmic African drums of "Sky Gazer," "Burning Drums," and "Ethiopian Binghi Drums," to the sharp beats of "Internal Struggle" and its mix, "Sea Shell Dub."  The drum and bass funk up Pablo's sound, at times making you forget that a good portion of the tunes on Valley of Jehosaphat are pretty darn generic.  He throws in some other elements to keep things lively -- chanting voices on "3rd Generation," jazzy strings on "Jah Express," and a digital edge on the aforementioned "Internal Struggle" and "Sea Shell Dub" -- so this album won't put you to sleep (and Pablo fans might actually relish it), but for me it's decent, not brilliant.

East of the River Nile (Shanachie, 2002 [orig. released 1977])

I admit that I'm not the biggest Augustus Pablo fan in the world.  Though he was a dub pioneer and reggae icon, in general I've found his tranquil melodica to be a bit too tranquil; i.e., like an audio sedative.  His genius is more apparent to me in his production of other artists, as on Hugh Mundell's Africa Must Be Free By 1983, Tetrack's Let's Get Started, and the Classic Rockers compilation.  Still, on his dubs, even I can recognize his moments of brilliance, such as the quintessential dub track "King Tubby Meets Rockers Uptown," "Vibrate On" (with Lee "Scratch" Perry), and dubs of Jacob Miller and the previously mentioned Hugh Mundell and Tetrack albums.  That said, East of the River Nile is generally considered one of Pablo's crowning achievements.  It helped him cement himself as a force in reggae establish the melodica sound as his signature.  If you're a big fan, you'll likely enjoy this album -- particularly since Shanachie added 6 bonus tracks (4 dubs of tracks on the album and 2 tunes from the same time period) for this 25th anniversary re-issue -- but casual listeners like myself might find it droning, especially when some tracks are versions of others ("Nature Dub," "Chapter 2," "East of the River Nile," "Memories of Ghetto Dub," "Jah Light Version," etc.).  Some of these tracks don't seem to change the music enough to even warrant a new song title; I mean, a dub of an instrumental . . . what's the point?  Anyway, although there's nothing particularly dazzling here, the most intriguing tracks include "Natural Way," "Jah Light," the funky, bluesy title track,  "Sounds From Levi," "Addis-A-Baba," and "Islington Rock," which utilizes the music from Lee Perry's classic "Words of My Mouth."  On an objective level, I can appreciate the quality of East of the River Nile, but on a personal level, I can't see myself listening to it for pleasure.

At King Tubby's (Attack, 2005)

*GUEST REVIEW*
This is Pablo's first improv album with John Butcher, Akio Suzuki, and Mike Patton. Sadly, my imagination gets the better of me as it's actually a dub album recorded at Tubby's studio. This Bunny Lee production gives a reasonable showcase of Pablo's wind piano. However, this is nae a classic version album. It's more of a soundtrack grower with a few interesting tracks. Standouts include "Barbwire Dub," "Musical Dub," and the slow and smootchy "Minstral Pablo." The weaker tracks on here sound like session tracks that lack seasoning.

- ragudave