This is UB40's 6th album and consists of mainly 'toasting' - a Jamaican style of rapping, before rapping was a thing. We got a taste for it when Astro did a toasted verse of 'Red Red Wine' on their 'Labour of Love' album.
U-Roy was a pioneer of toasting - talking or chanting over a beat or 'riddim' by a DJ. Before Blondie did their take, but after The Paragons did the original, U-Roy recorded his deejay version of 'The Tide is High' and brought toasting into the open. Even more so when he did a UK tour along with Max Romeo in '72. When Musical Youth sang 'Pass the Dutchie' in 1982 they were paraphrasing a U-Roy line "this station rules the nation with version" meaning a version of a track that a 'toaster' could use to overlay his vocal.
Along with the full 'Baggariddim' album there's a 12" 45 included in this 2-disc set. The 45 has the UB40/Chrissie Hynde version of 'I Got You Babe' along with 'Don't Break My Heart', the only 2 non-toasted songs here. The rest of the tracks feature a variety of artists putting vocals over some titles released on previous UB40 LPs. An unusual album, but for fans of UB40 (me included) it's a good addition to the collection.
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