Bam On The Roof Riddim – VP Records 1992

Garnet Silk’s “King Moses” gives Bam On The Roof its emotional center, but the pull of this 1992 VP Records set is really in the way it lines up big voices across a clean, rootsy cut of the “Murder She Wrote” rhythm. Cutty Ranks comes in hard on “A Who Seh Me Dun, ” Anthony Malvo smooths things out on “Falling In Love, ” and Jack Radics’ “Start Loving Again” keeps the sweeter side of the riddim in play. Junior Murvin’s “Stand By Me” is a nice curveball too, stripped back enough to let the vocal do the heavy lifting. Compared with some of VP’s tougher dancehall work around that era, this one leans more toward melodic reggae and conscious singers, which gives the whole compilation a warmer, more album-like feel. It sits neatly in the label’s early-’90s catalogue as a sharp snapshot of where roots and dancehall were crossing paths.