Strength Of My Life

Description

One of the best reggae albums of the 80s and a true highlight of the Real Authentic Sound label's catalog is finally getting an LP reissue! Lascelle "Wiss" Bulgin, Albert "Apple Gabriel" Craig, and Cecil "Skelly" Spence all contracted polio in their childhood and met at a Jamaican rehabilitation center. In the 70s, they formed Israel Vibration, and their first album, The Same Song, released in 1978 on the Top Ranking label, was an international success. But by the time they released Strength of My Life in 1988, it had been seven years since they had recorded an album, having fled Jamaica in the years that followed to seek better healthcare and escape the dancehall scene. Against all odds, Strength of My Life turned out to be a triumph, marking the beginning of the group's partnership with the Roots Radics and a reaffirmation of the love the band members had for each other, as well as a celebration, as the title suggests, of the strength of their lives (we challenge you not to be moved by the title track). It's Augustus Pablo on melodica on "Greedy Dog" and Dwight Pinkney on guitar on "Jah Love Me," by the way. The royalty of roots reggae!