“Huh?”, I thought at first, “they recorded a 1: 1 remake of“ Aux Armes, etc ... ”, Serge Gainsbourg's all-time best seller? The album that you originally recorded in 1979? Are the two older gentlemen Sly Dunbar and Robbie Shakespeare totally crazy now? ”Well, it's true: "Dub Serge" (Tabou1) by Sly & Robbie is actually an exact remake of the 1979 original. Even the entire band (besides Sly & Robbie) is the same as it was 41 years ago: Mikey Chung, Dougie Bryan, Robby Lyn and Sticky Thompson - only Ansel Collins is missing. Insane! But the story behind it puts the work in the right light. The remake was recorded back in 2011, when Tabou1 label boss Guillaume Bougard was in the studio with Sly, Robbie and the band, all recordings for a funk album had been recorded and there was still an unused studio day available. They decided to use the remaining day for the remake of the legendary Serge Gainsbourg album: Just like that, for fun and without ambitions. In fact, the rhythm twins and their co-workers got the entire album up and running in just six hours. What an achievement! The recordings went to the archive. Bougard only remembered her when Universal Records asked him for a Sly & Robbie interview that was to be filmed for a Serge Gainsbourg documentary on the occasion of the fortieth anniversary of "Aux Armes etc ...". "Why not earn some money on the anniversary," thought Bougard. After all, Sly & Robbie only received $ 1979 each for the recordings of the bestseller in 250, and not another cent in royalties. Incredible, but that's how it was back then in Jamaica. So Bougard pulled out the 2011 recordings dubpracticed it in no time (probably to keep up with the original recording speed) on an old PC and released it into the world. This is what it looks like folks: How can you give a negative review of an album with such a genesis? I don't have the heart to do it - and to be honest, it's not that bad.
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Sly & Robbie: Dub Serge
One reply to "Sly & Robbie: Dub Serge"
Recorded in just 6 hours and run on a PC in next to no timedubbt? Of course that explains a lot :)
1979 ... S&R were just studio musicians who did their part (even if it's awesome ... but other studio musicians sometimes just as much contribute to the production and are not in the credits, i.e. they don't get any royalties). You should also consider what you got for your dollar in 1979, especially in Jamaica ... where the US $ has always had the upper hand versus the YES $.
On the other hand, I still have a 1 YES $ note from one of my first trips to the island. It hasn't been around for a very, very long time… and such a note must have been worth something (otherwise it would have been a coin). I'll have the bill framed :)
Just sayin '- food for thought.