RAS Records
1985
Private Beach Party
About This Album
Although it was 1988's Red Rose for Gregory that really fired the imagination of international audiences, Private Beach Party, unleashed three years earlier, was immensely popular in its day, and drove reggae fans worldwide to distraction. Both sets were produced by Gussie Clarke, and boasted some of his most sizzling rhythms.



In 1985, ragga was beginning to steamroll across the Jamaican dancehalls, but Party still has a wonderfully organic quality, even though it's aimed straight at the sound systems. The musicianship is superb, with Sly Dunbar, Willie Stewart, Lloyd Parks, and Robbie Shakespeare laying down the sizzling rhythms, while guitarist Willie Lindo, pianists/synth players Franklin Waul and Robbie Lyn build up the melodies and moods, and the superb brass section of Dean Fraser, Nambo Robinson, Chico Chin and Dave Madden take the songs to new heights.

And what glorious heights they are. Clarke has the wizard's touch, and can take even a sweet and intimate number like the title track or a bubbly love song like "Special to Me" and conjure up plenty of dancehall fire. And no matter if Isaacs himself is in "Bits and Pieces" after his lover leaves, the band refuse to let him dampen their spirits, lost in the mellifluous groove they're creating, which reaches a sizzling climax on "Promise Is a Comfort," while the singer himself bemoans his lover's promises meant nothing.
Track List

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