Needles & Grooves

Desmond Dekker

Check out any of the Trojan Essential Series. All great picks for getting into reggae. I also watch RootzmanGarage on Twitch who has great curation

That @ayayrawn rec for the Heptones is the *best*

Why not some Peter Tosh? Venture from Bob, but not too far.

Burning Spear and Black Uhuru are among my favorites. Also can’t go wrong with War Ina Babylon by Max Romeo. Horace Andy’s In The Light is another you might enjoy based on what you said.

Gregory Isaaks Night Nurse

@Psymon One of the finest songs of all time!

Have you tried Bob Marley and The Wailers? Just kidding……

Maybe give Dennis Brown a listen to.

Jimmy Cliff has always seemed a little lighter than some others from the golden era. I’d also recommend Johnny Nash’s “I Can See Clearly Now” album.

More modern could be Slightly Stoopid, Tribal Seeds, and Iration

@scotthilk might have some ideas as well

Marcia Griffith’s “Sweet and Nice”, Love is All I Bring Comp, Phyllis Dillion “One Life to Live”, Studio Women comps, Hollie Cook’s albums, Rita Marley’s “Who Feels it Knows It”, Sandra Cross “Country Life”

John Holt's 1000 Volts of Holt is another good one to look into for what you're asking.

Great recommendations above. I have a master list in one of the other reggae threads that I made, but I am too lazy to find it right now. Remind me and I will look, otherwise it is there!

Repeating a lot of what is said here - 1000 Volts of Holt, Heart Of The Congos, Sweet and Dandy, Jimmy Cliff. Also worth noting many people never explore the pre-Island stuff by Bob Marley such as Soul Rebels or African Herbsman, which is just as good as anything he did later on.

Forgot this one!
She also has at least one album reissued on vinyl...can't remember which one.