The sounds that defined Jamaican music changed drastically at the dawn of the ‘80s, as the densely textured productions of roots-era studio wizards like Lee Perry and Niney the Observer gave way to skeletal, stripped-down rhythms that brought drums and bass further into the foreground than ever before. As this new production style evolved, singers and DJs also modified their approaches, forgoing melodic complexity and soul-influenced harmonies in favor of rougher, less polished approaches that better suited the elemental rhythms crafted by producers like Prince Jammy and Jah Thomas. Anthony Johnson was one of the most memorable of this new breed of singers. Though he'd been recording at studios like Channel One and the Black Ark since the mid-‘70s, he didn’t experience widespread success until he hooked up with Jah Thomas in the early ‘80s. Together they cut “Gunshot”: an epochal slice of dangerous-sounding rub-a-dub decrying sectarian violence that remains one of Johnson’s biggest recordings. This excellent compilation brings together 14 of the best tunes Johnson recorded for Thomas during this period.