Black Roots , from the St Paul's area of Bristol, formed in 1979 and made ten albums before calling it a day in the mid-90s.
They did two BBC sessions for the late, lamented John Peel which were recorded in April and November 1982 and originally released in 1986.
The ten tracks from the original sessions are presented along with the group's first singles - Bristol Rocks and The System - together with 12" mixes of four of the tracks Confusion, Chanting For Freedom, The Father and Tribal War. Versions of the latter track open and close the album although ,curiously, the 12" version is shorter than the original.
I would have liked to hear more tracks like the excellent dub mix of Chanting For Freedom - at eight and a half minutes easily the longest track here.
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Obviously it's something of a period piece but it is a reminder of how the quietly revolutionary sound of reggae - what Black Roots called "militant pacifism" - made for a perfect counterpoint to the anarchy and disjointed energy of British Punk and Post-Punk.
The calls for peace and justice between nations and moral reprimands towards juvenile delinquents are as relevant now as they were then.
John Peel said "If anyone tells you that there is no such thing as good British reggae, first tell them that they are a herbert and then listen to Black Roots". Such a ringing endorsement is good enough for me.
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