Big Mountain Riddim

Press Release: Manchester UK meets Jamaica with a transatlantic summer riddim.

Manchester, UK-based label World One Entertainment has just delivered a compelling new riddim for summer 2022. Combining some big names with the outfit’s emerging talents it’s already a must-have for Reggae lovers everywhere.

Big Mountain Riddim, released via World One Entertainment (WOE), sees the label team up with a fine crop of both Jamaican and UK-based artists – as well as seasoned Reggae artist Don Hartley’s Don Hartley Musik and Sharon Bentley-Payk’s Vibes Peace Freedom Music Promotion. WOE has already made waves, most recently across its collaboration with the legendary Luciano - the stirring track Shine On Me. Now, Big Mountain Riddim sees WOE, Hartley and Bentley-Payk offer another sumptuous musical experience.

“Big Mountain Riddim combines all the best elements of Reggae music from across the years. Classic musical devices are present, like the bubble rhythm. Whining, Cali-influenced electric guitars breeze in and out. The chord progressions are pure Soul and Gospel music is nodded to with the electric organ. Hartley and Bentley-Payk’s production, and Mighty Drop’s mastering, are first class. Then, the highly competent artists deliver all their interpretations with aplomb. Overall, Big Mountain Riddim is a quality release from this promising outfit” – Mr Topple for Pauzeradio

The artists have all delivered clean, conscious interpretations across the riddim, too: from legendary Mikey General’s cautionary tale on Don’t Trust Dem to George Nook’s rich yet moving The Hardest Thing and Steve Santana’s emotive and engaging Too Late. WOE and the team have altered the riddim accordingly to fit with the artists’ interpretations, too – meaning that Big Mountain Riddim is a varied melting-pot of tracks. The team are available for interviews and jingles at short notice.

Hartley said of the process of creating the project:

“It was literally a beautiful, year-long experience of working together with lots of back and forth online to put this album together.

Sharon Bentley-Payk of Vibes Peace Freedom Music Promotion was very instrumental in arranging meetings online with the artists to iron out any difficulties that came up from time to time. For example, we had to request a couple of the artists to revoice and resend files with cleaner vocals or sometimes more pronounced vocals as we needed everything to be top-of-the-line quality.

All the artists were very forthcoming and thankfully, we got there in the end. Myself, Sharon and Linval from the label World One Entertainment are very pleased with the result and are willing and planning to work with these talented artists again”.

Big Mountain Riddim is the perfect release for summer rotation – sure to please Reggae lovers worldwide. And it cements WOE, Hartley and Bentley-Payk as musical forces to be reckoned with.

Big Mountain Riddim track listing: Don Hartley - Big Mountain II Kolussus - Climbing Raymond Wright - Common Ground Erral Matik - Jah Your Love Grip Wrench - Real Love Mikey General - Don't Trust Dem Steve Santana - Too Late George Nooks - The Hardest ThingBig Mountain Riddim

Big Mountain Riddim credits: Production: Don Hartley and Sharon Bentley-Payk Composer: Linval Allison Guitar, bass: Paul 'Nucleus' Morris Keys: Peter 'Technical' Davies Drums, percussion: Pedro Queiroz Music recording: Paul 'Lush' Morris at Nucleus Roots Studio Mixing and mastering: Mighty Drop Artwork: Caythorpe Studios

Big Mountain Riddim Press Release by Mr Topple (10th July 2022).