Time Out's top reggae tracks

As inspired by the latest raggamuffin Rastamouse…

We love Rastamouse, which is lucky since if Twitter, Mumsnet and the BBC switchboard are all to be believed, by the time you've read this exactly four-fifths of the country's toddlers will be finger-snapping raggamuffins on roller skates investigating misplaced cheese. While tiresome grown-ups have tried to link the stop-motion adventures of Da Easy Crew with everything from cultural erosion to cheesebongs, at heart it's as harmless and innocent as '70s felt-fest Fingerbobs twinned with a Lilt advert. Deal with it, zeitgeist.

If you want to stay irie, we say respect your younger bredrin' by developing their enjoyment of reggae. With the Crew's excellent single 'Ice Popp' sounding more animated and life-like than most of 'Now...77', here are ten more all-ages reggae recommendations, plus a guide to seeking out the best grooves in London as we give you the nous behind the mouse...

Toots and the Maytals - 'The Very Best…'

Positivity, soul and good vibes by the bucket load. The Maytals’ back catalogue is essential for any household with songs warm enough to melt the cheese right there in your hand.
Derrick Harriott - 'Monkey Ska'

Wherein a monkey outwits poor Derrick by doing all the latest dance crazes better than him! Perfect for those a bit too young for daggering.
Jimmy Cliff - 'The Harder They Come'

From the seminal soundtrack to '70s crime drama 'The Harder They Come', Jimmy Cliff's eternally uplifting tune couldn't be better for fans of the rodent detectives.
Lady Chann - 'Sticky Situation'

London's reigning dancehall queen tells a lovelorn tale over a riotous tropical beat. Featuring more hooks than Bagga T's got gold chains.
Various - 'Trojan Reggae for Kids'

Iconic label Trojan excelled themselves by compiling reggae versions of pre-school favourites like 'Humpty Dumpty', 'Three Blind Mice' – even 'Puff The Magic Dragon' by cool ruler Gregory Isaacs.
Bob Marley - 'Babylon by Bus'

No one man did more for reggae music worldwide than singer, icon and insanely devoted football fanatic Bob Marley. Hear him in all his splendour on tour in 1978. How does Bob like his donuts again...?
Clint Eastwood & General Saint - 'Another One Bites the Dust'

Though seen as a novelty in the duo's '80s heyday, this tag-team version of Queen's disco-rocker is bouncier than a space hopper on a trampoline.
Sister Nancy - 'Bam Bam'

A rootsy classic with infectious horns – Zoomer would approve of this wikkid riddim.
Alicia Keys ft. Junior Reid - 'No One' (Remix)

Keys' torch-song anthem gets a reggae rinse-down with help from the legendary Junior Reid, thus linking the old and the new perfectly.
Ziggy Marley - 'Family Time'

For the most conservative of tastes, Bob's eldest loin-fruit hooks up with Paul Simon and chums to make the musical equivalent of ice cream flavoured ice cream.

By Oliver Keens

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Comments

By Gloria Salmon - Sep 22 2011

Oliver Keens? I'd just like to say, from one journalist to another, that I'm getting slightly alarmed by your "pranks". The business with the really tall orchestra tapping a load of glass bottles against my windows was amusing, I must admit, but the little "delivery" of a whole honey-covered roast ham on my desk in a heap, smearing my papers with ham-grease and charred meat? That, Mr Keens, is a step too far! I've just had a telling off from Alan Rusbridger and he's made me stand in the corner, sipping cold soup from a sawn-off coconut. A laugh's a laugh, Oliver, a joke's a joke, but this ham incident is neither. You owe me an apology and a cocktail the size of a rooster, boy.