Okay, first things first - this must be one of the most high profile gaps on Spotify, right? Missing these early BMW albums is like missing Beatles For Sale or whatever. I'm sure there's some convoluted copyright tale behind it.

The second thing is the great leap the band have taken in the five years since the debut. Gone is the "soulful sound of the Wailers" or whatever, and in comes a much more recognisably reggae style - helped in no small part it appears by Lee Scratch Perry. I like it though - the shuffling snare/tambourine drum lines, the high backing vocals, Bob front and centre, already an unmistakeable voice. I would have been tempted to imagine these early outings as kind of bland, dub-by-numbers affairs, but there is depth here, despite the simple four track set up. In a song like It's Alright your mind almost fills in the gaps where the string section should come, where the horns should be playing along with the main refrain, where the gospel choir should be boosting the chorus. maybe it's muscle memory from subsequent albums - who knows.

I was just about to note a slight James Brown influence when I realised one of the tracks is actually a JB cover. So these guys were obvioulsy very plugged in to what was going on elsewhere. This wasn't some kind of primitive, insular scene - these were guys making their own music, in their own style, but taking influence from all over. Wailing Wailers had What's New Pussycat, and Soul Revolution has a Curtis Mayfield track. It all goes against the stereotype/preconception of stoned dreads hanging around waiting for fish to fry - even though I'd imagine a lot of casual listeners (and I am the uber-casual here) still have an image of Bob as the arch-toker of Kingston Town or whatever.