Playing It Cool & Playing It Right, by Keith Hudson

Playing It Cool & Playing It Right

by Keith Hudson

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WE10 Vinyl LP
Record/Vinyl + Digital Album
The 1981 album by the ‘Dark Prince of Reggae’ is a true dub masterpiece. Newly mastered and finally back in print.

Includes unlimited streaming of Playing It Cool & Playing It Right via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality download in MP3, FLAC and more.
Download available in 24-bit/96kHz.

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1.	Playing It Cool 01:58	buy track
2.	Playing It Right Dub 01:53	buy track
3.	Trust & Believe 03:36	buy track
4.	In I Dub 02:53	buy track
5.	California 02:58	buy track
6.	By Night Dub 02:53	buy track
7.	Not Good For Us 02:51	buy track
8.	Formula Dub 02:56	buy track
9.	Be What You Want To Be 02:38	buy track
10.	Be Good Dub 02:25	buy track
11.	I Can't Do Without You 01:59	buy track
12.	Still Need You Dub 02:00	buy track

about

Keith Hudson, who temporarily worked as a dentist in the ghettos of Kingston, emigrated to New York City in 1976 and died there prematurely in 1984. He is best known for his work as a producer for artists such as U-Roy, Big Youth, Ken Boothe and Horace Andy and within short order Hudson brought his all-round talent to full fruition.

In 1974, he produced two ground-breaking albums. "Pick A Dub" was one of the first official dub albums ever, and is still considered to be one of the greatest moments of Jamaican music. In addition, the unique "Flesh Of My Skin, Blood Of My Blood" became the first concept album in reggae history. Thematically dedicated entirely to black history, this masterpiece captivates with an atmosphere that is as dark as it is deeply spiritual, charged by Hudson's eccentric vocals.

In 1981, he created the dub masterpiece "Playing It Cool & Playing It Right" which he produced with the help of Wackie's founder and mastermind Lloyd ‘Bullwackie’ Barnes. It remained the only collaboration between the two producers. Hudson decided to release it on his own label Joint International as he has done on his previous releases.

The album continues Hudson's psycho-acoustic journey into the abyss of existence and has the power to overwhelm the listener with the beauty of artistic self-empowerment. "Too Much Formula" sings Hudson, whose voice occasionally recalls Sly Stone, "Darkest Night" answers an echoing background chorus found elsewhere on the track "California". Hudson's production techniques are fascinating on this album. We often hear a kind of flashing-whip sound on the snare, which adds dynamics to the whole album. Rarely has a dub record sounded so electrifying, with radical spatial sound spreading out in all directions and rarely has it been as crystal clear, with warm bass and echophonic treatments as contained within these 30 minutes of music.

43 years after its first release and 20 years after its last re-release on the German-British label Basic Replay (Basic Channel/Honest Jon's), "Playing It Cool & Playing It Right" is now finally available again via Week-End Records, with a newly revised master and a rare interview with Lloyd ‘Bullwackie’ Barnes, talking about the making of this amazing album.

”It feels fresh and sounds amazing.“ – Lloyd Barnes, Wackie’s

“Legendary, strange, compelling music.“ – Mark Ainley, Honest Jon's

credits

released June 7, 2024

Audio restoration & mastering by Stephan Mathieu, Schwebung
Pressed by Optimal Media

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Week—End Records Cologne, Germany

Week-End Records, founded in 2022, is a Cologne-based label that extends the work and musical vision of the annual festival Week-End Fest.

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