Train to Zion

Train to Zion is typical of an early-'80s trend in Jamaican music, in which an established artist (in this case, singer Linval Thompson) would appear in tandem with another singer and a deejay on a single LP, in loose approximation of a dancehall triple bill. While the exact provenance of these songs isn't clear—it seems that Thompson produced some himself, while others are credited to a mystery man by the name of Colin Oldham—“Trip to Holy Mount Zion,” “Never Had a Problem," and “Train to Zion” are among Thompson’s most ingratiating works. They continue the tradition of the dread music Thompson recorded for Bunny Lee in the mid-'70s, but these rhythms are invested with the militancy of the early '80s. The steadfast rhythms of Sly & Robbie are unmistakable. While the deejay cuts by Ranking Trevor have been deleted from this edition, there's still one offering from the second singer, Wayne Jarrett, a young protégé of Thompson’s. He sounds like a slightly younger, slightly less intense incarnation of his mentor, but that doesn’t keep “Money Problem” from being a superlative cut, enlivened by the dynamic mixing of Prince Jammy.