Eric Gale - Negril (1975)

Negril is an album released in 1975 from a session produced, arranged, and almost entirely composed by guitarist Eric Gale. It includes some of Jamaica's best-known musicians of the time. The album expresses Gale's fondness for the beach and natural beauty of the Jamaican seaside village Negril, which became a popular destination for tourists.

Negril was recorded at the Harry J Studio in Kingston, Jamaica. It was released in Jamaica by Micron Music,[co-owned by executive producer Michael Johnston, and in the UK by Klik Records. Paul Douglas, drummer on the album, has said that Gale and company recorded material that was left off the album.

Gale was under contract with CTI Records, so he could not be identified as the session leader. CTI's founder, Creed Taylor, approved of Gale's participation because the cover lists him "courtesy of C.T.I." and publishing credit is listed on the label as "Creede (sic) Taylor Inc".[The album incorrectly attributes session leader to drummer Sparrow Martin and songwriting to "Eric Gayle."


A review on the reggae site Zinc Fence says of Negril that "listeners with tastes limited to heavy dub were never likely to find anything to tickle their palettes here, yet anyone looking for a mellow, superbly-played mid-1970s instrumental reggae album could do far worse than seek this out."[ Black Music magazine called Gale's playing on Negril "sensitive, subtle, and graceful."[ Author and music critic John Masouri called the album "a delightful hybrid of reggae, nyahbinghi, soul, and jazz, with just a touch of calypso added for good measure." Masouri notes that Peter Tosh's "most telling contribution is the scything wah wah that underpins Gale's lead guitar on I Shot the Sheriff." "Further traces of Tosh are less distinct," Masouri observes.
Tracklist:

A1  Lighthouse  6:05
A2  East Side West Side  4:53
A3  Honey Coral Rock  3:45
A4  Negril  3:52
B1  Red Ground Funk  5:17
B2  Rasta  5:30
B3  Negril Sea Sunset  5:38
B4  I Shot The Sheriff  5:00

Eric Gale - Negril (1975)

(256 kbps, cover art included)