Phil Pratt & Friends The War is on Dub Style

Highly sought after dub album, that has not been available since its original release in the early 1980s. In the early 1980s, one London recording studio became the favoured hang-out for visiting Jamaican producers and British reggae musicians alike. Easy Street Studios in Bethnal Green had humble beginnings, but was soon pouring out an impressive run of hit tunes by artists like Sugar Minott, Winston Reedy, Alton Ellis and Barrington Levy. Founded by Eddy ‘Eddyman’ Williams, the studio soon recruited a team of local eastenders, like Dean ‘Joe 90’ Richards, Mike Stephenson, Jeff Chandler and Stuart Breed, who became known as the Easy Street Crew. Phil Pratt had an illustrious career in Jamaica stretching back to the rocksteady years of the 60s, scoring huge hits such as ‘My Heart Is Gone’ and ‘Artibella’, but by the 80s he was increasingly finishing his productions in London. Easy Street was a low budget studio with professional but fairly limited equipment – a Soundcraft TS24 mixing desk, a Roland RE301 Chorus Echo, an AKG BX5 reverb, and an MXR flanger/doubler – and a speedy way of working which suited the incoming rush of reggae producers. ‘The War Is On Dub Style’ is an album that typifies Phil’s working methods in those days, with the backing tracks recorded at Joe Gibbs’ Studio in Jamaica, and overdubs and mixing done in London. By the mid 80s Easy Street was scoring further successes with homegrown lovers’ rock and deejay tunes, and to support their breakthrough acts the Easy Street Crew started to go out on the road and into concert venues and dancehalls.