Dennis Brown Africa / Here I Come Again

• Dennis Brown – Africa ( extended )
• Dennis Brown – Here I Come Again ( extended )

• 1. Africa ( extended )
• 2. Here I Come Again ( extended )

1975 / 1977 Produced by Winston 'Niney' Holness

The crew over at Berlin’s Deeper Roots label has built a serious reputation lately, and their latest drop shows exactly why. This time they are featuring The Crown Prince of Reggae, Dennis Brown, in a sharp production by Sir Niney, known to the reggae massive as Niney The Observer. These two musical giants brought forward so much beautiful music during the 1970s, and it is a joy to see these gems getting proper vinyl releases again.

This new 12" single catches Dennis Brown in his teenage years, yet his vocal delivery sounds incredibly mature and seasoned. Spin the A-side for the emotional repatriation anthem 'Africa'. Dennis belts out that famous line, "Africa We Want To Go," capturing that deep, fiery longing for the motherland. The tune originally touched down in Jamaica back in 1975 on Niney's Observer label under the title 'African', and it also landed on the landmark 'Just Dennis' album. Thankfully, Deeper Roots blessed us with extended versions here, so you can enjoy the dub portions to the absolute max. The driving roots riddim comes courtesy of the Soul Syndicate band. This heavy foundation laid down by Fully Fullwood on bass and Santa Davis on drums gives the dub version some serious extra power.

Flip over to the B-side for 'Here I Come Again', which also gets the extended treatment. This one is another certified roots classic, though the vibe and tone shift away from the heavy focus of 'Africa'. Here, Dennis delivers a message focused on finding inner peace and spiritual comfort with the Almighty watching over, a theme he touched on quite a bit during that era. It originally came out under the title 'Have No Fear' on the Jamaican Observer imprint, while the UK market saw a release on the Penguin label. The riddim track sounds deceptively simple at first, but Santa Davis' standout drumming really steers the ship. When the dub version takes over, that drum and bass foundation becomes the main driving force. Dennis' vocals drift in and out through heavy splashes of echo, making the whole experience feel wonderfully spacy and intense.