East of the River Nile

A melody can pause without taking the music’s momentum away. East of the River Nile makes that separation especially inviting: a slender upper line leaves the bass and pulse audible as continuing presences. Augustus Pablo’s instrumental pieces offer several ways to occupy the same space. Try following what remains after a phrase ends before returning to the phrase itself.

This late 1970s Jamaican album centres on Augustus Pablo’s melodica and keyboard playing in an instrumental reggae setting. A melodica is played by blowing air while pressing keys, giving its phrases a different articulation from a piano. Pablo’s earlier single bearing the same title should not be confused with the release of the album as a whole. The linked Rockers International issue carries a 2020 notice and preserves twelve tracks, distinct from a later edition with six bonuses.

Melody and room

Natural Way is followed by Nature Dub, an invitation to compare rather than assume complete identity. Nor should the whole album automatically be described as vocal recordings with their singers removed. Choose a moment when melody attracts attention and another when the spaces around the rhythm become more noticeable. Upfull Living, Unfinished Melody and Jah Light also change the scale of the sequence. One generalised description of a dreamlike mood would miss those differences.

A small instrument can occupy the centre

In Chant To King Selassie I, compare a melodic entrance with the low sound remaining underneath. Recognising an unusual instrument is only a beginning. Follow how a note ends, how another arrives and how a brief line takes its place over the rhythm. Other instruments leaving space can matter as much as the lead instrument’s volume. There is no need to treat that relationship as an exotic exception to ensemble playing.

Titles are not a map of musical sources

Memories of the Ghetto and Africa (1983) precede the title selection. Their names do not establish that the music reproduces a particular African or Egyptian tradition. Continue through Sounds From Levi and Chapter 2 to Addis a Baba, hearing the relationships between sounds. The lasting attraction lies in a small melodic gesture coexisting with a large rhythmic presence. Follow the bass once and the phrasing above it next; each route reveals another aspect of the same space.