Soul Jazz presents the most prestigious record label in the history of reggae music: Studio One. Soul Jazz has released a series of commemorative discs and box sets to honor possibly the most innovative record label to cater to the Caribbean’s most noted sound. One of the box sets is called Studio One: Story, which contains a CD of select songs sampling the range of music Studio One had to offer, a documentary DVD telling of the history of the label and its founder Sir Clement Coxsone Dodd, and a small book of facts and the history of the label. For any fan of good ol’ yad musik this is a must have.

But this post focuses on one of the classic jams found on the compilation CD. “I’m Still in Love with You” is a classic Alton Ellis song that uses one of the most well known dubs in reggae music. Alton Ellis is a lover’s rock/rocksteady legend who has been active in Jamaica’s music scene for over 30 years. Know as “The Godfather, Mr. Soul, [and] Soul of Jamaica”, Ellis brings his soulful voice and passionate lyrics to the table on “I’m Still In Love With You”, as song about a man who, obviously, is still in love with a woman, even though he questions her love for him. The way in which he sings this tune, the listener can only feel the emotions of a confused man— experiencing pain and love within a three minute and 26 second time frame. What really nice about the song is that the lyrics are simple, and though they repeat themselves, that way that Ellis emphasizes certain lines rejuvenates the song with every bar. Hands down, the sing on this song is beautiful.

Not only is the singing on point, but the dub is also fire. Produced by the dub team of Wycliffe “Steely” Johnson and Cleveland “Clevie” Browne, the dub provides an instrumental canvas containing a heavy bassline, a melody to induce a steady rock (hence the term “rocksteady”), and enough change-ups to keep the dub as interesting as the singing. In a way, the dub seems to juxtapose the emotional sing of Ellis with its strong, dominating sound. This dub has lived on to blessed by many reggae artists over the years, including a cover of “I’m Still in Love with You” by Sean Paul on his Dutty Rock release. This shows that good music will not die.

So check out the other works off of Studio One/Heartbeat, which Soul Jazz has many compilations of, the works of Alton Ellis, and the works of Steely and Cleive. Long live Studio One and its legacy (peep the Alpheus post too).

2 Responses to “Alton Ellis: I’m Still in Love with You”

1. Moe D Says:
   May 20th, 2006 at 6:48 pm

   That track was awesome.

2. James S Says:
   June 24th, 2007 at 10:50 am

   Just chill. Great.

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