ALBUM DESCRIPTION

Once upon a time, on a small Caribbean island far, far away, producers and engineers dared to stretch the limits of reggae music. It was an era when there were no rules, no formulas, and no corporate deadlines--just musical creativity in its purest form. Like the dub pioneers before him, on "Zion Gates," Solomon Jabby has embarked on his own journey into the realm of free musical expression, inspired by his love of the genre and his relationship with Jesus Christ.

This sophomore studio experiment, features organic roots, classic riddims, and massive dub mix-downs reminiscent of the original dub masters like King Tubby, Lee Perry, and Scientist. But this isn't just full of instrumentals for Solomon even voices a few songs on this disc to share his faith in Christ inna dubwise stylee. The album title comes from Psalm 24:7, a verse that embodies Jabby's vision for the project: "Open up ancient gates, open up ancient doors, and let the King of Glory enter."

The other day I was having dinner with the lead singer of 'Imisi, a true roots-rock extraordinaire. I had selected the brand spankin' new album from Solomon Jabby as the soundtrack for our evening of fellowship. He was familiar with Solomon's work (from his dub tracks on Lion of Zion's "To The King" and "Reggae Redemption Songs" compilations). But when we discussed this "Dub Revelator" in greater depth, my friend said, "he is alive? I thought he was dead." No, Solomon is not dead. But my friend made a strong point with his misinformed comment. For Jabby's vintage music sounds so authentic that you would swear that the artist must have passed away some time ago. This album simply sounds like it came from a different era. And it would be much easier to believe that this recording was made in 1974 rather than 2004.

Recorded at his "Altar of Sounds" studio in Georgia, Jabby used analog equipment like tube powered pre-amps, spring reverb units, tape echoes, reel to reel decks and analog phasers to record, mix and produce this work of art. Solomon believes that using this old equipment gives his album an authentic feel similar to that of King Tubby and Bunny Lee. This is a sound that modern digital dubs simply cannot capture.

After learning that this spectacular album had been shelved for some time by the artist, I called him up and convinced him to let me manufacture it for him so that I could help get it out to the massive. That is how much I believe in these fourteen tracks!

Solomon Jabby is a multi talented artist with a surprisingly fresh and authentic sound, similar to dub masters like King Tubby, Prince Jammy and Augustus Pablo. But in addition to writing and producing, he also played every song on this album. And when I say "played", I mean PLAYED. That's right--he personally performed all of the live drums, bass, guitar, keys, organ, percussion, melodica, sax, knobs and delays. Yet amazingly enough, none of the songs sound like they were performed by a one-man-band. His interpretation of each instrument is right on target. His style and reggae technique reveals an in-depth knowledge of the art of creating music. And his lyrics and song titles show his heart for the Lord and desire to be a true "Dub Revelator"--one who relays God's Word in a relevant way to the world through dub music.

The album title of this CD is true to its name for "Zion Gates" is heaven for a roots fan. If you like late 70's sounding dub reggae, then you will love this new Solomon Jabby CD--it is a brand new classic! After initially overcoming the shock that these fifteen songs weren't recorded decades ago with someone like King Tubby or Lee Scratch behind the mixing board, you will feel an overwhelming sense of satisfaction that you chose to buy a real roots reggae album written and performed by a born again Christian. Once again Solomon gives us a CD that will stay in our disc trays for decades and merely appreciate with age like a fine wine. Grab your copy today... It's simply brilliant!

Review by Mark Mohr