Natty Dread by Bob Marley & The Wailers

The 70s in the UK were a pretty rubbish time on the whole but at least we had Top of the Pops with a huge variety of different music beamed into our living rooms once a week. We had glam, disco, country, punk, and countless one hit novelty wonders, but something that always stood out for me was reggae. There was no way that a geeky, middle-class white kid from the home counties would otherwise have connected with the music of Bob Marley and his songs of growing up in poverty in Trenchtown.

I might not have understood some of the lyrics, but I always got the sentiment and those heavy dub beats are a universal language that speaks to us all. This was a transitional album, with Peter Tosh and Bunny Wailer having left the band and the I–Threes (Rita Marley, Judy Mowatt, Marcia Griffiths) now providing backing vocals to lively up the sound.

This is a gorgeous, timeless album and as good an introduction to reggae as you are likely to find.