No Jestering Riddim – City Line Records

Augustus Pablo leads the way here, and the two cuts attached to his name carry the kind of sharp, melodica-touched pressure that keeps the whole No Jestering set moving. Carl Malcolm’s title tune and Pablove Black’s “Black Wax” sit alongside Pablo’s “Pablo Nuh Jester” and “King Tubby’s Nah Jester Dub, ” with the tracklist leaning into that sly, teasing mood rather than any big vocal swing. The link to Clive Chin’s Impact! camp gives it a useful bit of context, too, since this was cut in 1972, right when that sound was locking in and being chased by singers and dub heads alike. But it’s Pablo’s pair that leave the deepest mark, especially “King Tubby’s Nah Jester Dub, ” where the riddim turns the joke back on itself and lets the low end do the talking.