STINGRAY: A YARD SOUND FROM PERIVALEThe UK reggae studio and label that has emerged, as one of the leaders in the music field since it was founded in 1994 is the Mcleod brother..s STINGRAY RECORDS. Based in the West London suburb of Perivale, where they have their own 24-track Big House studio, Carlton ..Dillie.. Mcleod and sibling Raymond .. Sting.. Mcleod have steadily built a reputation for Stingray as possessing the most ..Yard.. sounding of all the UK outfits. They have produced both the best local performers (including Peter Hunnigale, Sylvia Tella, Lloyd Brown etc) and those with higher profiles from Jamaica (Dennis Brown, Luciano, Freddie Mcgregor, Bushman, Tony Curtis, Lukie D etc).With a background that included stints as a social worker and both a sound system (Lord Koos, Savannah, Love Injection) and radio deejay (Time Radio, WLR) as well as drumming with the I-lects band .. Dillie has also contributed to the recent success of Saxon Records, where he worked closely with the renowned Musclehead to record gems like Peter Hunnigale..s Genuine album. On Stingray itself his production with Don Campbell, of the I-lects guitarist & lead singer..s Never Burn Your Bridges set particularly stands out.The characteristic sound of tunes on stingray is fairly traditional .. certainly informed by the values of classic 1970s reggae .. but built with all the advantages of modern studio technology .. Besides the production and engineering talents of Dillie, their crisp and clean vibe depends on musicians of the calibre of Computor Paul, Firehouse Crew, Jazzwad, Carlton ..Bubblers.. Ogilvie (another former member of the I-lects band), Ernie Wilks, Daltone Browne, Winston Rose and Tan Tan. The expert mixing from Dillie himself then provides the very important finishing touches. Reggae ..experts.. often ignore tunes made outside of Jamaica, but there..s no excuse for overlooking the consistently arrest-ing production style of Stingray .. unless it..s the criminal underexposure it receives on the radio...Dillie recalls at an early age he was into music from as young as six years old, in the days when the Blue Spot gram used to run t..ings. My mum used to have difficulty keeping me from her records and she always knew that I would end up in music, she bought me a drum kit by the age of 15. ..In school we formed a group called Ilects along with Don Campbell, (Guitarist & Vocalist) Carlon ..Bubblers.. Ogilvie and Kenneth Mckenzie..
ZINC FENCE RECORD OF THE WEEK
LUCIANO
..God
& King (Stingray 7")
Luciano left Phillip 'Fatis' Burrell's Exterminator camp at the
close of 1998, bringing to a close a creative partnership that
had delivered some of the best roots music of the decade. However
reggae fans had nothing to fear for Luciano proceeded to freelance
to good effect before linking up with former label-mate Mikey
General to form their own Qabalah imprint. The impressive output
from their joint venture (some half dozen 45s to date from various
artists as well as their own work, and one essential Mikey General
album) has not precluded either from recording for other producers.
In fact, last week, Zinc Fence Record of the Week was given over
to Luciano's otherwise under-acclaimed False Prophet on
the obscure Thriller label, and now this most gifted of all the
modern conscious singers steps forward with another rootical winner,
this time for one of the UKs leading production houses, Stingray.
In the relaxed and reflective mood of past Xteminator classics
like Who Could It Be, Its Me Again Jah and Sweep
Over My Soul which have endured to become highlights of his
stage performances, God & King is a beautiful devotional number
set to elicit raised lighters at any dance. In fact, it has been
doing just that since it first appeared as the highlight of the
Stingray Collection 6 album compilation and the extensive
radio play it has received in the UK ensured its eventual release
on 7".
The supporting Muzik Street rhythm, recorded at Stingray's Cave studio, is both stubborn and extremely graceful and is further graced by an ethereal, reflective trumpet solo. Also check the further cuts available - especially Sylvia Tella who applies her distinctive growl to a sad account of all types of people with heartaches and loneliness, who manage a Plastic Smile. Other fine cuts are Freddie McGregor's Peace And Love and Al Campbell's Live Up.
Peter Dalton, September 2000