When Easy Star's Lem Oppenheimer and Michael G decided to tackle a reggae version of one of their favorite rock albums, it wasn't a just matter of covering a simple, straight-forward rock album and adding some one drop elements here and some delay effects there. Nope, they had picked one of rock's most influential albums ever... the fourth best-selling album of all-time... a psychedelic concept album favored by college- and middle-aged stoners alike... they had picked Pink Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon.
It can't be an easy thing to cover an entire album, let alone one that affected you enough 30 years after it was made to inspire you to record your own interpretation. According to Easy Star, they received the blessing of Pink Floyd to do the album, though they never actually spoke directly with the band. Nevertheless, when they brought in some Easy Star regulars (Sluggy Ranks, Gary Pine, Ranking Joe) and reggae legends (Frankie Paul, The Meditations) to record the project, what resulted was a critically praised product that's not only a worthy cover album, but a release that stands strong on its own merits.
Dub Side of the Moon opens with the mellow and ethereal "Speak to Me/Breathe (In the Air)," featuring the highly underrated Sluggy Ranks, whose "Ethiopia" was a highlight of Easy Star's outstanding debut compilation in 1997. Sluggy handles his vocals masterfully, not sounding like a reggae singer covering a rock song, but like a champion vocalist comfortable in his new environment. His versatility really is remarkable; leading off an album like this is no easy task, but he pulls it off.
The intense instrumental "On the Run" follows and the Easy Star All-Stars head into unfamiliar instrumental territory: drum-n-bass. The rapid double-speed jungle drums bump the futuristic feel of the original track another 30 years ahead. The hyper-dream nature of this version leads nicely into the alarm-clock introduction of "Time," which features Corey Harris and Ranking Joe on vocals.
Oppenheimer discusses in the liner notes the decision to replace some of the guitar solos with horns, melodica, and even toasting, explaining that rock-like guitar solos are unusual within reggae. Rather than try to fit a square peg into a round hole, Easy Star decided to take certain elements of the original recordings—including the nearly-subliminal interview voiceovers—and recreate them in a more traditional reggae style. In taking this approach, the album feels less like a cover album than it does a real and true interpretation by dedicated fans.
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