Cultural polymath - pop star, filmmaker, radio broadcaster, commentator, Grammy winner. Oh and DJ, too. Take your pick from the many coats worn by our selector, Don Letts aka The Rebel Dread. Born in Brixton, a child of the Windrush Generation, Letts’ slippery and unorthodox career is somewhat hard to define, without taking a few detours around London, New York and Jamaica. He began his working life managing the dauntingly hip Acme Attractions on Chelsea’s Kings Road, where he made a mark with his attitude, dress and, especially, the pounding dub reggae that vibrated the shop’s walls. His first gig as a DJ at the short-lived Roxy in Neal Street, became mythical for turning a generation of punks on to reggae.

There’s a diverse mix of classic and new, with legendary figures like John Holt, The Tamlins and Cornell Campbell, mixed in with British veterans Mad Professor and the irrepressible Dennis Bovell, while (relatively) young striplings Kiko Bun, Emily Capell and Prince Fatty deliver the goods, with laidback Texan groovers Khruangbin also offering an exclusive bass heavy-delight.The song choices are diverse, from French dubsters’ OBF’s renditions of ‘Sixteen Tons’, the miners’ paean popularised by Tennessee Ernie Ford in the 1950s, to Ash Walker’s refix of Omar’s ‘There’s Nothing Like This’ and ‘All I Do Is Think About You’, immortalised by the ill-fated Tammi Terrell and preserved here by Quantic (the latter two both exclusives). Being a Rebel Dread compilation, there’s a cover (by Wrongtom Meets The Rockers) of The Clash’s ‘Lost In The Supermarket’ while Don’s exclusive, naturally, is a rendition of Big Audio Dynamite’s debut hit, ‘E = MC2’.

Tracklist:
A1 Ghetto Priest - Hercules (North Street West 'Late Night Tales' Dub)
EXCLUSIVE REMIX
A2 Prince Fatty & Shniece McMenamin - Black Rabbit
A3 Wrongtom Meets The Rockers - Dub In The Supermarket EXCLUSIVE REMIX
A4 Gaudi Meets The Rebel Dread ft. Emily Capell - E = MC2 EXCLUSIVE TRACK
A5 Rude Boy - Superstylin' EXCLUSIVE REMIX
B6 Capitol 1212 ft. Earl 16 - Love Will Tear Us Apart
(Full Vocal Dub) EXCLUSIVE REMIX
B7 Quantic Presenta Flowering Inferno - All I Do Is Think About You
(Far East Dub) EXCLUSIVE REMIX
B8 Zoe Devlin Love ft. Tim Hutton - Caroline No
B9 John Holt - You'll Never Find Another Love Like Mine
(Mad Professor 2021 Dub) EXCLUSIVE REMIX
B10 Cornell Campbell - Ital City Dub EXCLUSIVE REMIX
B11 Matumbi - (I Can't Get Enough Of) That Reggae Stuff
(Dennis Bovell Remix) EXCLUSIVE REMIX
C12 Gentleman's Dub Club ft. Kiko Bun - Use Me (Ben McKone Dub)
C13 Black Box Recorder - Uptown Top Ranking
C14 OBF - Sixteen Tons Of Dub
C15 Yasushi Ide - Ain't No Sunshine (Space Dub Mix) EXCLUSIVE REMIX
D16 The Tamlins - Baltimore
D17 15 16 17 - Emotion (Dennis Bovell Remix) EXCLUSIVE REMIX
D18 Ash Walker - There's Nothing Like This EXCLUSIVE TRACK
D19 The Senior Allstars - Slipping Into Darkness
D20 Easy Star All-Stars - Within You Without You
D21 Khruangbin - Dern Kala (Khruangbin Dub Mix) EXCLUSIVE REMIX