Ska is international, baby! The Orobians hail from Milan, Italy and recorded Jamaican Tunes in an all-wood studio in Rome. They are doing well over there, having toured a couple of times and backed Laurel Aitken on one of his Italian tours.
The Orobians have worked hard to make this an I-tal (no pun intended) recording, and I think they've succeeded admirably. Essentially, their formula is to cover movie themes inna Jamaican stylee, ranging from ska to reggae, a la the Skatalites. This works well for them, as they are a technically tight band with a five-peice brass section (and yes, the horns are playing different notes, unlike some bands we could mention). Among the most recognizable of the tunes here is the theme from "From Russia with Love", a well-executed tip of the hat to the Skatalites, and an acknowledgement of the spy theme in past and present ska.
The Orobians also pull off the love theme from "The Godfather". Finally, an Italian ska band doing this cover!! It would be an interesting idea for a ska radio show to do an all-godfather cover hour, or half hour. I can think of at least two others, notably Unsteady on Tightrope.
"Prelude no. 4" is also a triumph. In case you don't recognize the name (as if I did), it's the theme from "2001, a Space Odyssy". The Bari Sax here really makes the song. You can tell how these guys worked hard to replace something like 25 horns with 5.
The boys from Milan do better to play in the Skatalites' style than when they actually cover them, however. Their rendition of "Christine Keeler" fell a little short of the mark, in my opinion. This is what usually happens when people cover the godfathers of ska, so I don't think this really counts against them. Some people may say that Jamaican Tunes is a by-the-numbers exercise in hero worship and imitation. I would say that it shows heart and dedication, a true love for the Jamaican beat that is outstanding for what it is trying to be.
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