Dubmatix Sticky Icky Reggae Mix

This week’s mix brings together legends and new artists from around the globe - from Linval Thompson, Prince Alla to Jah Garvey and Jar - this is a tossed salad of grooves ready for your ears.

Midweek Reggae Mix 4 - new, old and everything in between.

This selection focuses on early Jamaican ska and rocksteady recordings, highlighting classic artists such as Desmond Dekker, Prince Buster, Derrick Morgan, and Delroy Wilson. The tracks feature vintage rhythms, simple arrangements, and early deejay versions that shaped the foundation of reggae.

Zion Train are widely regarded as a bridge between classic Jamaican dub and modern electronic bass music. They helped bring dub into European club culture and festivals, influencing dub techno, ambient dub, and live dub performance acts worldwide. Their use of live mixing as a performance instrument has become a standard approach for many modern dub and electronic artists.

This mix digs deep into the nasty, bad funk of late-60s and 70s funk and soul, where rhythm came first, and polish came last. From the tight New Orleans groove of The Meters – Good Old Funky Music to the explosive call-and-response of James Brown – Mother Popcorn, every track is built around drums, bass, and attitude.

Junior Murvin was born Murvin Smith on July 22, 1946, in Port Antonio, Jamaica, and raised in Kingston, where he began singing in the 1960s as part of local harmony groups. His early recordings leaned toward rocksteady and soul-influenced reggae, but it wasn’t until the mid-1970s that his voice, a high, falsetto style sometimes compared to Curtis Mayfield, became fully recognized. Murvin’s sound stood out in an era dominated by heavy roots vocals, giving his music an emotional, haunting quality that would later define his most important work.

This mix leans into disco and modern funk, keeping the groove locked down for 60 minutes. Classic late-70s and early-80s grooves sit comfortably alongside newer edits and remixes that respect the original feel while adding a modern touch.

We’re going back to a moment in time during the 90s when you had breakout stars from Jamaica - Shabba Ranks and iNi Kamoze hitting the mainstream charts and rotation on MTV and other music video stations. You also had the mixing of dancehall with hip-hop - Vicious with Doug E Fresh, Supercat, and others. This mix moves between street anthems, radio hits, and club staples.

This Funk Jazz mix leans hard into the groove, moving between modern jazz-funk burners, deep-pocket classics, and band-driven jams where feel is everything. Tight rhythm sections, loose nimble fingers, letting forth musical consciousness. New cuts sit beside genre classics - let your backbone go and dig what’s going on.

Going back to a period in time in the 90s that seemed short-lived once it hit the mainstream media - Electronica / Big Beat. However you categorise it, it fused aggressive drums, breaks, dance, rave, and other genres to create something fresh.

Today I bring in a long-time brother-in-dub - Andrew (aka Eccodek). We’ve shared stages and music for almost 20 years now. I asked him to create the mix for today, and knowing his musical inspiration, it’s a good one.

Certain artists bring a feeling of soulful upliftment and leave a mark on your musical heart - Jimmy Cliff is one; you sense a man smiling and embracing life. He’s navigated Jamaica’s musical evolution from the start, with 1962’s Hurricane Hattie, to the soundtrack that put him front and centre on a global stage in 1972. He’s continued to release beautiful music that speaks to our spiritual sides, and his legacy will live on for generations to come.