The legendary gravel-voiced deejay is commemorated nicely on this generous collection, which combines the entirety of his 1981 album Livity with seven tracks from his earlier Message From the King. The Arabs provide a strong, supple instrumental backing for Far I's declamatory chanting -- song titles like "Armageddon," "King of Kings" and "Moses, Moses" will give you an idea of the general mood and lyrical thrust. Everywhere on this album, the mood is slow, smoky and serious, and aficionados    [ read more ]

CD $11.38

The second Prince Far I collection in Front Line's reissue series brings to light four obscure singles along with their dub versions, as well as the entirety of the all-instrumental Cry Tuff Dub Encounter Part 2. The instrumental dub tracks are pretty much like those that make up the other volumes in the Cry Tuff series -- perfectly fine, but not particularly distinctive, examples of the genre. But the singles show Prince Far I at his best. In his inimitable gravel-pit of a voice, he exhorts the   [ read more ]

CD $11.38

The gravel-voiced DJ Prince Far I recorded a number of albums for Virgin's Front Line imprint in the late 1970s, and though bad blood later developed between the artist and the label (as Prince Far I would explain in bitter detail on "Virgin," a 10" single recorded for On-U Sound in 1981), those Front Line recordings remain some of his best. When the first set of Front Line reissues hit the U.S. marketplace in the early 1990s, the Prince Far I material was represented by two colle   [ read more ]

CD $11.38

Prince Far I made several fine albums for the Virgin label's Front Line imprint in the late '70s. That relationship eventually soured, leading him to record the scathing "Virgin" several years later; probably the angriest artist-to-label kiss-off since Lee "Scratch" Perry accused Island label head Chris Blackwell of vampirism and murder. But while the relationship continued, it resulted in some of Prince Far I's most powerful work. Long Life had its long-overdue CD reissue in 2002   [ read more ]

CD $11.38

British dub master Adrian Sherwood collaborated with iconic Jamaican toaster Prince Far I for the first time on this powerful slice of version reggae, which includes performances from the likes of Sly Dunbar, Leroy "Horsemouth" Wallace, Earl "Chinna" Smith, and Dennis Bovell. While Prince Far I's vocals are not to be heard on these sessions, the deep-rooted presence of his personality is certainly felt, and the strength of the rhythms bubbling up through Sherwood's layers of ec   [ read more ]

CD $17.08

CD $17.08

This entry in the Cry Tuff Dub Encounter series is a rare meeting between the British reggae and free improvised music scenes. In fact, this series might be the only one that ever took place, as the latter style of players often pride themselves on not being involved in anything that could be perceived as a musical genre, which certainly would include reggae. Steve Beresford and David Toop, both multi-instrumentalists who worked together frequently during the '70s and '80s, were always much m   [ read more ]

CD $17.08

In the veritable faceless crowd of DJs that flooded the reggae scene in the 1970s and 1980s, most of the best and most distinctive ones spawned a host of imitators. Only Prince Far I, with his gravelly, stentorian voice and strict spiritual focus, remained truly unique -- in part because few could have imitated him if they'd wanted to, and even fewer would have dared try. Health and Strength was one of the albums he cut for Virgin's Front Line imprint in the late '70s; unlike the others, this   [ read more ]

CD $17.08

Originally released on LP in 1975, Psalms for I was Prince Far I's first album and, in tandem with the following year's Under Heavy Manners, acted as the first half of a devastating one-two punch that would forever alter the course of reggae DJ practice. For one thing, Prince Far I did not like his art to be referred to as "toasting" or "chatting" -- to him, the word "chanting" was more apt, and few listeners would disagree. Instead of riding the rhythm while demonstrating his own cleverne   [ read more ]

CD $17.08

This collection documents the late Prince Far I's (aka Michael Williams) final period with the Trojan label. These are frequently referred to as his best years, despite the fact that Psalms for I and Under Heavy Manners are graded as his finest albums. But it comes down to track-for-track, the dub 12" singles, and the sound system tracks that he cut with one of the greatest bands in the history of reggae, the Arabs -- mainly made up of the Roots Radics band with cats like {$Flabba   [ read more ]

CD $18.98

This collection documents the late Prince Far I's (aka Michael Williams) final period with the Trojan label. These are frequently referred to as his best years, despite the fact that Psalms for I and Under Heavy Manners are graded as his finest albums. But it comes down to track-for-track, the dub 12" singles, and the sound system tracks that he cut with one of the greatest bands in the history of reggae, the Arabs -- mainly made up of the Roots Radics band with cats like {$Flabba   [ read more ]

CD $23.73

CD $16.13