Roman Stewart – What You Wanna Do

The close association of Roberto Sánchez from Spain-based A-Lone Productions with Jamaican veteran singer/producer Linval Thompson has brought reggae fans some great LP reissues on vinyl. These included classic albums such as Yami Bolo’s Healing, The Viceroys’ We Must Unite, and Linval Thompson’s I Love Marijuana. Also collectors of vinyl singles were served very well with the release of a bunch of 7″ and 12″ platters. Not that many re-releases but mostly new songs on classic riddims laid by the Roots Radics and Thompson All-Stars, all recorded at Channel One and produced by Linval Thompson during the late ’70s and early ’80s. These singles included artist such as Luciano, Half Pint, Horace Martin, Clive Hylton, Prince Alla, Rafeelya, Dawn & Christine, K Vibes, Earl Sixteen, Sammy Dread, Al Campbell, Johhny Osbourne, Barrington Levy, and Freddie McKay. Truly a who’s who in reggae.

The latest release, a 12″ vinyl platter, features the voices of the late singer Roman Stewart and acclaimed Jamaican dub poet and vocalist Nazamba, who sadly passed away in 2022. Side A brings the listeners an extended dubplate mix of Roman Stewart’s 1980 released song What You Wanna Do. The song was produced by Linval Thompson, recorded at Channal One, and backed by the Roots Radics. On the label of the original 7″ single released by D-Roy in the UK, the Revolutionaries are credited as backing band. The new extended mix from the Channel One master tapes is done in pure dubplate style by Roberto Sánchez at his A-Lone Ark Muzik Studio. The final result is a killer steppers piece with an amazing vocal by Roman Stewart which comes over the same riddim as Linval Thompson’s Rastafari Is My Religion and Freddie McKay’s Cool Down Your Temper.

The flip side features the latest recording done by Nazamba, the anthemic Africa. The latter will surely appeal to fans of King Cry Cry aka Prince Far I as Nazamba’s thunderous gruff voice strongly reminds of the Rastafarian chanter who was killed in 1983. Besides Nazamba’s vocal delivery, it are his conscious and powerful lyrics that add to the appeal of his tune. The second track on the B-side, Africa Dub, is a heavy hitter with an awesome bass line that makes the walls tremble when played really loud.

This lethal 12″ single is not for the weak-hearted!