Toots And The Maytals

Toots Hibbert is known primarily as one of the first artists to use the word “reggae” (with his 1968 song “Do The Reggay”), but he and his band The Maytals are more than just planters of flags. Their Funky Kingston remains one of the key reggae albums in the canon, thanks in part to the hit “Pressure Drop.” Having leaned on collaborations with Maytals-inspired acts for much of the ’00s, Hibbert and the band take a look at their own roots with Flip And Twist (released in 2010, in digital, joint-shaped USB drive form). It’s a heavily soul-and R&B-influenced disc, with Hibbert making good on those years of comparisons to Otis Redding and Wilson Pickett, and even tackling Stevie Wonder’s “Higher Ground.” In May of 2012, the band will set out on an acoustic tour to celebrate a new documentary and a CD/DVD recorded live in Jamaica.

Updated 03/07/2012