John Masouri

It was an absolute pleasure interviewing Runkus for the cover story of this month's Echoes. His latest album Supernova is a genre defining example of progressive reggae/dancehall and I was fascinated by the accounts of his collaborative work with mixed media artist Tavares Strachan. Both are clearly highly gifted individuals. Elsewhere we celebrate Harlesden Bassline's success in honouring twelve of London NW10's finest musical talents - Janet Kay, Aswad, Ruff Cutt, the Cimar

My contributions to this month's Echoes - the second issue of its 50th Anniversary year - include a full length interview with New Zealand reggae band Six60; a list, complete with short descriptions, of 50 key reggae and dancehall albums (one for each of Echoes' half century as a thriving UK music publication) and finally, a fulsome tribute to the late Sly Dunbar, who I was proud to call a friend, and whose passing inspired Mick Jagger to post "The world has lost its rhythm.

Echoes celebrates its 50th anniversary this year and this is the first issue of 2026. The reggae content includes an obituary of Third World guitarist Cat Coore centred around tales of he and the band's early years; a trip round the UK reggae scene circa 1976; the story of Randys (forerunner of VP Records) and the usual pages of singles and album reviews. As well all the essential soul and jazz happenings of course...