V/A

This two CD/LP set is the latest in the VP Records Reggae Anthology series. The Channel One Story provides a great overview of the legendary Kingston recording studio that was built in the mid-’70s and went on to rule Jamaican music into the ’80s. Joseph “Jo-Jo” Hoo-Kim, one of two Chinese-Jamaican brothers who built the Channel One studio, produced more than 300 songs in that era alone but has never been widely recognized or truly credited for the sound and style with which Channel One made its mark. This set features 37 of Jo-Jo’s original recordings from some of reggae’s premier vocalists like Barrington Levy, Don Carlos, Yellowman, Delroy Wilson, The Mighty Diamonds and more. The Revolutionaries and Roots Radics handle the instruments, with top engineers like Scientist at the controls. Fans of KZFR’s Devastation Sounds (and Reggae Boomshot before that) will recognize some tunes and will probably like them all.