BLACK SYMBOL - LOVING JAH / EVERYTHING HAS ITS TIME BLACK SYMBOL

During the 1980s the late Black Symbol was a massive supporter of reggae music in Birmingham's Handsworth community and thirty years later he offered Reggae Archive Records a similar level of support. Not only did he allow us to release his back catalogue and new music, he also introduced us to many other Birmingham artists with whom we went on to work with.

Sadly, we lost Black Symbol just over two years ago, but he is always in our thoughts and having discussed it with his family and with their support, we decided to reissue a classic and very in demand 12" single, "Loving Jah" / "Everything Has Its Time". Two unique and very spiritual slices of UK roots reggae at its best.

This great single barely sold upon release, not because of any lack of quality, but because Black Symbol's brothers and fellow band members had little option but to travel the country by bus and train with boxes of the record, trying get it stocked anywhere that would take it. Few copies made it to shops beyond Birmingham. The record had minimal self-distribution and the London based reggae industry mostly ignored Britain's second city, only being interested in promoting their own releases or in one case offering a pittance for the band's rights, an offer firmly rejected.

It may be a very rare record, but its quality meant that those in the know were soon trying to find themselves a copy, an often-futile task. The arrival of the internet barely made the search much easier with copies appearing infrequently averaging perhaps one copy showing up every two years or less. Inevitably the demand has seen prices climb with copies now fetching in excess of £200, assuming you can beat the competition and be first in the queue to purchase one.

We originally shared both tracks with a wider audience back in 2015 with our Black Symbol compilation album. If anything, that release created even more of a demand for the original 12" single with its extended mixes. Knowing that for many reggae fans it is the format of choice, we're pleased to be releasing a straight reissue of the original 12" as a fitting tribute to our great friend Black Symbol.