This 3CD set is a must for all fans of rock steady, dub and dancehall, as well as admirers of Duke Reid’s inimitable Treasure Isle sound.

Some 30-plus years after his death and the popularity, the influence, and – more than anything – the iconoclastic status of reggae legend Bob Marley were still growing, so much so that his face on a t-shirt had become ubiquitous on college campuses, surpassing Che Guevara on posters and canvas banners as well. Marley, the documentary film and its accompanying soundtrack, aim to keep the man not only an icon, but a historical figure too by filling in his backstory with interviews, historical news footage, and that sweet, sweet reggae music that brought the man such a huge following…

One of Jamaica's most consistent vocal groups, and unfortunately one of the most unsung, the Ethiopians were led by the distinctive tenor and fine songwriting skills of Leonard Dillon. Originally a trio (with Stephen Taylor and Aston Morris), most of their hits were done with Dillon and Taylor as a duo, and their close two-part harmony is a trademark of the group. Following Taylor's death in 1975, Dillon carried on the name, double-tracking and using other singers in the studio to reproduce the trademark Ethiopians sound. This two-disc set is currently the best introduction to the Ethiopians on the market, and includes all of the group's major sides plus other rarities and oddities. Dillon is an excellent songwriter, with a compelling moral center and a knack for simple yet endlessly memorable melodies, and his songs, usually written from the ghetto sufferer's perspective, are exceedingly sly and wise.

Legendary Jamaican artist Frederick “Toots” Hibberts returns with his first studio release in more than a decade. Got To Be Tough is an energizing provocation that renews the near six-decade career of the man who launched a new sound and genre with his 1968 release, Do The Reggay.

For those who don't want or can't afford to plonk out for the Toots & the Maytals' Time Tough: The Anthology, The Very Best Of provides the perfect solution, distilling down that two-CD, 41-track set to a single 19-song disc. There are a few subtle differences, however; for starters this set boasts two different versions of the band's reggae smash "54-46, That's My Number," as well as the original ska version of their Jamaican Song Festival winner "Bam Bam," unlike the anthology, which included only a later remodel. However, the "Never You Change" found on this set is not the trio's original ska hit, but a reggae-fied remake. The rest of the album pulls directly from the anthology, with the disc divided almost evenly between the trio and a solo Hibbert's pre- and post-Island career. Thus, for those who prefer the Maytals' ska and/or reggae hits, this is not the collection for you, as there are much better compilations of those periods. But for fans looking for a larger overview of both the band and Hibbert himself, this is an excellent place to start.