Although it’s impossible to cover master Jamaican producer Bunny Lee’s whole career on one single CD, the existence of The Cool Operator is justified by the fact that the songs on this compilation were picked by Lee himself. In addition to his famous “flying cymbal” drum patterns, Lee was one of the first producers to re-use his own riddims for different singers. Listening to Johnny Clarke’s “Move Outta Babylon” alongside Max Romeo’s “Natty Dread Take Over” or Clarke’s “No Woman No Cry” versus Derrick Morgan’s “Some Women Must Cry” shows how much potential Lee’s beautifully layered productions contained. But the comp’s absolute highlight is without any doubt the legendary heavyweight slamfest between I-Roy and Prince Jazzbo. Straight to your head, Natty!