Errol ‘Flabba’ Holt – African Train 7″ single

The post Errol ‘Flabba’ Holt – African Train 7″ single appeared first on Reggae Vibes.

Black News

May 24, 2026 - 09:04

Errol ‘Flabba’ Holt – African Train 7″ single

Release Info

Label
Deeper Roots / Buyreggae
Format
7″ Single
Street date
May 2026
Contact
Buy it here!

Tracklist

A: Errol ‘Flabba’ Holt – African Train
B: Holt & Bolts – African Roots

Deeper Roots out of Berlin keeps delivering the goods, and this one is something special. They’ve gone deep into the Niney The Observer archives to resurrect the 1975 single African Train by Errol ‘Flabba’ Holt, and it’s a real find.

The original came out on Niney’s Jamaican Observer label with Flabba credited on the A-side under the alias “Observing African.” That name is pure Niney, consistent with his habit of handing out playful pseudonyms to artists and himself, all tied into the Observer label identity. But it’s more than wordplay. The alias also speaks to where the music was spiritually, rooted in African repatriation and Rastafarian consciousness, which was the heartbeat of so much mid-seventies roots music.

The B-side version, titled African Roots, is credited to Holt & The Bolts. Some suggest “The Bolts” was a pseudonym for the Soul Syndicate, who were regular fixtures in Niney’s sessions. Randy’s Studio 17 in Kingston is where this was cut, and you can hear that in the recording’s weight and texture.

African Train is quintessential mid-seventies roots. Niney’s production is sparse and heavy, leaving room for Flabba’s vocals to breathe over a rugged backdrop with a tingling piano riff winding through it. It’s also a rare moment, Flabba stepping out front as lead vocalist rather than holding down bass. Most people know him vocally from My Heart In Danger, but hearing him in this context reminds you there was always more to the man than the riddim section.

The B-side does exactly what a good version should. No tricks, no added effects, just the raw backdrop running hard with fragments of Flabba’s voice drifting in during the second half. Straight and direct, the way dem used to do it.