Various Artists – Alton Ellis Tribute EP
label: Enlace Funk
year: 2010
myspace.com/superakatz
myspace.com/theupsttemians
thepepperpots.com
myspace.com/theoldians
side a1: Akatz – Aguafiestas
side a2: The Upsttemians – You Make Me So Very Happy
side b1: The Pepper Pots – It’s True
side b2: The Oldians – These Eyes
A heartfelt tribute to the late great king of rocksteady Alton Ellis (1938-2008), commissioned by Spain’s bestest funk & soul magazine Enlace Funk, by four Spanish bands. All (more than decent) versions stay pretty close to the originals, but where The Upsttemians (Madrid, original here), The Pepper Pots (Girona, original here, and The Oldians (Barcelona, original here sing in English, Bilbao-based band Akatz do their rendition of “Dance Crasher” in Spanish, literally translating the title and staying true to the anti-rudie lyrical content. This one, and “It’s True” are Ellis originals, while “You Make Me So Very Happy” and “These Eyes” were hits for Ellis, but adaptations of songs by Brenda Holloway and The Guess Who, respectively.