AAC 128 kbps


(All details from allmusic.com)

Biography by Jason Ankeny
A pioneering force behind the rise of Caribbean music, guitar virtuoso Ernest Ranglin was born in Manchester, Jamaica in 1932. He began playing ukelele as a boy, soon graduating to guitar; while in his teens he began performing live both locally and in the Bahamas, often in tandem with the young Monty Alexander. Ranglin's session work at the famed Studio One helped give birth to the ska phenomenon, which during the late 1950s began taking Jamaica by storm. He finally began attracting international notice in 1964 when he traveled to London to perform at Ronnie Scott's jazz club, so impressing its owner that he remained on as the venue's resident guitarist for the next nine months. There he made a number of solo records for the fledgling Island label, and also collaborated with Prince Buster; additionally, Ranglin teamed with Jamaican singer Millie Small to cut the international smash "My Boy Lollipop." He soon returned to session work, arranging classics including the Melodians' majestic "Rivers of Babylon; " with his guitar leads on the Wailers' "It Hurts to Be Alone," he also laid the foundation for the rise of rockers reggae. Though remaining perhaps best known for his jazz prowess, in the 1970s Ranglin toured with Jimmy Cliff; in 1973 he was awarded the Order of Distinction from the Jamaican Government for his contributions to music, and continued touring and recording regularly throughout the decades to follow, most notably signing to Chris Blackwell's newly-formed Palm Pictures label to issue 1998's In Search of the Lost Riddim. E.B. @ Noon and Modern Answers to Old Problems followed two years later; Grooving appeared in early 2001.

below the bass line:
Below the Bassline is a successfully smooth integration of traditional reggae and jazz: two music forms that may not immediately spring to mind when contemplating the flawless mixture of music styles. However, the collective featured in this album -- and Ranglin (a reggae and ska rhythm innovator) is a chief among them -- plays 55 minutes of island-tree-swaying, soul-backed precision. Ira Coleman's bass playing is not the focus of this album, even though the title seems to suggest so. Nor does the focus of this album fall upon the popular funk and fusion (and yes, even disco) drummer Idris Muhammad. In fact, there is only one brief drum solo by Muhammad on Below the Bassline, and it is the first thing you hear. Muhammad opens up "Congo Man Chant" with a snare laden solo whose rhythm quickly involves Ranglin and Coleman, who collaborate to play eight bars of a rapid, but laid-back, bassline. Monty Alexander jumps in with the piano and brings Ernest along with him as they determine what ends up being the refrain for a moving piano solo sandwiched in between two adept Ranglin solos. There are two ska-rhythm selections on this album, "Ball of Fire" (on which Roland Alphonso plays saxophone) and "Bourbon Street Skank," which features some of Ranglin's most dexterous playing (also heard on "Nana's Chalk Pipe"). The title track is immediately identifiable as reggae, with its organ stabs on the down side of the beat, Muhammad's gentle but consistent treatment of the high hats, Ranglin's lyrical playing on the guitar, and the overall slow, relaxed tempo and feel of the tune. It is an accurate capsule of Below the Bassline, another testament to the skill of the legendary Ernest Ranglin and the other musicians featured here.

credits:
Monty Alexander Piano, Melodica, Producer
Roland Alphonso Sax (Soprano), Sax (Tenor)
Steve Barrow Liner Notes
Ira Coleman Bass (Acoustic)
John Dent Mastering
Miriam Gonzales Assistant Engineer
Gary Mayone Percussion, Keyboards
Idris Muhammad Drums
Andrew Page Engineer
Ernest Ranglin Guitar
Robert Schwartz Assistant Engineer
Mark Van Den Bergh Coordination
Mark Wilder Engineer, Mixing
Trevor Wyatt Executive Producer

modern answers to old problems
Jamaican ska and jazz guitarist Ernest Ranglin mixes Fela-style African worldbeat and retro R&B on this well-produced album. Ranglin's clean, unadorned guitar sound blends vividly with the dance feels of tracks like "Outernational Incident," "Kunene," and "Swaziland." The rock-solid rhythm section -- bassist Orefo Orakwue and drummer Tony Allen -- makes every track move and groove organically, with additional help from percussionists Olalekan Babalola and Olakunle Ayanlowo. Joe Bashorun's Wurlitzer and organ and Denys Baptiste's tenor sax are indispensable elements of this hip, accessible sound.

Vocalist Sylvia Tella co-composed five of the tracks and makes memorable appearances on each of them. British firebrand saxophonist Courtney Pine guests on the jazz samba "Inflight," but is a tad too low in the mix.

credits
Ernest Ranglin Guitar, Producer, Main Performer
Trevor Wyatt Producer
John Dent Mastering
Chris Franck Guitar, Berimbau, Percussion
Anilda Carrasquillo Art Direction, Design
Adrian Boot Photography
Mark Van Den Bergh Producer
Sylvia Tella Vocals
Joe Bashorun Organ, Wurlitzer
Jerry Boys Engineer
Courtney Pine Sax (Tenor)