V/A – Glory Dominion Power Majesty / Half Moon Productions

2015 repress; originally released in 2003. Double LP version. The gnarliest reggae compilation in Christendom, drawn from the ’70s and early-’80s heyday of the Toronto-based Half Moon label, when it played host to stars like Joe Higgs, Augustus Pablo, Johnny Osbourne, and Leroy Sibbles, and home to locals like Pluggy Satchmo and Dill Smith. Raw, twisted, compelling, time-and-again staggering productions by Oswald Creary, in the tradition of his childhood-friend Lloyd Bullwackie Barnes — and Lee Perry and Keith Hudson — but utterly themselves. Rough, tough, mystical roots. Brilliant mastering by Moritz von Oswald. Silk-screened sleeve (and the artwork is Will Bankhead’s finest hour). Just awesome. Artists include Joe Higgs, Johnny Osbourne, Dill Smith, Pluggy Satchmo & Jah Levy, Leroy Sibbles & Otravis Band, Stranger Cole, Super 8 Corporation, Louis O’Connor, Rothadam, OJ, The Blenders, Bongo Ossie & The Moonlights, Bingi Kicks & G. Campbell, and Carl Dawkins.