(Note: For a modern inclusion, one might look to Chronixx or Protoje, but for historical significance...)
To understand reggae, you must understand Ska, the genre that preceded it. The Skatalites were the house band for Jamaica’s Studio One, and they were virtuosos. Their cover of the film theme "Guns of Navarone" is legendary. It introduced the world to the heavy brass section that would become a staple of Jamaican music. Listening to this track is watching the DNA of reggae being formed in real-time. It is jazz, it is soul, but undeniably Caribbean. best reggae songs ever