Sly and Robbie Present Taxi

Sly and Robbie Present Taxi
Compilation album by
Sly and Robbie
Released1981
GenreReggae, pop
LabelIsland
ProducerSly Dunbar, Robbie Shakespeare
Sly and Robbie chronology
Sly and Robbie Present Taxi
(1981) 		Rebel Soldier
(1982)

Sly and Robbie Present Taxi is an album by the Jamaican musical duo Sly and Robbie, released in 1981.[1][2] It was their first album as a credited duo, with many of the tracks first released on their Taxi record label.[3][4] Sly and Robbie Present Taxi is dedicated to the Jamaican musician General Echo, who was killed in 1980.[5]

Production

Sly and Robbie recorded the drums and bass first, often tinkering with the tracks until they sounded as if they could have been created by a computer.[6] The duo had verbal agreements with most of the artists on their label, dividing with them whatever profits a song made and putting their share back in to recording.[6] The U.S. Mango release includes Sheila Hylton's cover of the Police's "The Bed's Too Big Without You" and omits Black Uhuru's "World Is Africa".[7] "Smiling Faces Sometimes" is a cover of the Undisputed Truth version of the Motown composition.[8] "My Woman's Love" was written by Curtis Mayfield.[7] General Echo's "Drunken Master" is a tribute to the martial arts film.[9]

Critical reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[10]
Bedfordshire on Sunday[4]
Robert ChristgauA−[11]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[12]
MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide[13]
Reggae & Caribbean Music8/10[14]
The New Rolling Stone Record Guide[15]
Spin Alternative Record Guide8/10[16]

The Northern Echo labeled the album "neat Jamaican dance music".[17] Bedfordshire on Sunday praised the "dynamic" production team, and, alluding to Bob Marley's recent death, noted, "The Lion sleeps but the jungle still stirs."[4] Newsday said that "each cut is meticulously crafted, featuring soulful singing and Dunbar and Shakespeare's characteristically solid, flexible rhythms."[8] The Los Angeles Times stated that "this is reggae-as-Jamaican-pop-music, with love as the principal theme."[18] Robert Christgau noted that these "love songs are why Jah made syndrums: reggae as pure pop".[11]

In 1986, The Philadelphia Inquirer praised the "smart, sinuous music".[19]

Track listing

No.TitleArtistLength
1."My Woman's Love"Jimmy Riley 
2."Smiling Faces Sometimes"Tamlins 
3."Merry Go Round"Junior Delgado 
4."Sitting and Watching"Dennis Brown 
5."Hot You're Hot"Sly Dunbar 
6."Sweet Sugar Plum"Wailing Souls 
7."World Is Africa"Black Uhuru 
8."Drunken Master"General Echo 
9."Old Broom"Wailing Souls 
10."Oh What a Feeling"Gregory Isaacs 
11."Heart Made of Stone"The Viceroys 
12."Fort Augustus"Junior Delgado 

References

  1. ^ Moskowitz, David V. (2005). Caribbean Popular Music: An Encyclopedia of Reggae, Mento, Ska, Rock Steady, and Dancehall. ABC-CLIO. p. 272.
  2. ^ The International Who's Who in Popular Music (4th ed.). Taylor & Francis Group. 2002. p. 147.
  3. ^ Risen, Clay (11 December 2021). "Robbie Shakespeare, 68, Who Transformed Reggae". The New York Times. p. A21.
  4. ^ a b c Henderson, Steve (7 June 1981). "Record Review". Bedfordshire on Sunday. p. 5.
  5. ^ Means, Andrew (31 May 1981). "Records". The Arizona Republic. p. G11.
  6. ^ a b Denselow, Robin (13 July 1981). "Rydim kings of Jamaica". The Guardian. p. 9.
  7. ^ a b Bohen, Jim (16 August 1981). "Shortcuts". Daily Record. Northwest New Jersey. p. D3.
  8. ^ a b Robins, Wayne (13 September 1981). "Record Capsules". Part II. Newsday. p. 41.
  9. ^ Legault, Robert (November 1981). "Reggae". The Rocket: 34.
  10. ^ "Sly & Robbie Present Taxi Review by Stephen Cook". AllMusic. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  11. ^ a b "Sly and Robbie". Robert Christgau. Retrieved 13 January 2026.
  12. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. p. 536.
  13. ^ MusicHound World: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 2000. p. 720.
  14. ^ Thompson, Dave (2002). Reggae & Caribbean Music. Backbeat Books. p. 271.
  15. ^ The New Rolling Stone Record Guide. Random House. 1983. p. 629.
  16. ^ Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. pp. 360–361.
  17. ^ Speed, Stan (30 April 1981). "Albums". The Northern Echo. p. 8.
  18. ^ Snowden, Don (17 January 1982). "Reggae Rolls On in New Releases". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 86.
  19. ^ Tucker, Ken (19 September 1986). "A reggae show...". Features Weekend. The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. 24.
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