Their biggest hits came as ska was beginning to slow down and turn into rock steady, and this collection documents Toots and the Maytals helping to usher in that transition. Songs like “Monkey Man,” “Pressure Drop,” and “54-46 Was My Number” have legendary status today — “Monkey Man” was famously covered by the Specials during the second-wave ska revival of the early 1980s, and the Clash included a version of “Pressure Drop” as a B side to their “English Civil War” single. On these early recordings Toots Hibbert’s chesty, soulful voice gives the band a highly distinctive sound that continues to resonate today.

– Rick Anderson