V/A: Ghetto Children 7" (Black)

Death Is Not The End's 333 sub-label unearths a synth-heavy slice of early 80s UK reggae from short-lived Birmingham outfit Dessus — a disco and punk-inflected 45 originally pressed in vanishingly small numbers in 1981.

Formed around 1976 as Odessus, the group spent the late 70s gigging reggae covers and originals across the UK — mostly around the West Midlands — including a run supporting Steel Pulse on tour. A chance meeting with British-Cypriot producer Kim Nicoloau in a chip shop on Soho Road led to a rehearsal visit and then a session at Gary Lucas' Spaceward Studios in Cambridge, where four tracks were cut over two days in early December 1980. "Ghetto Children" and flipside "Dessus Jammin'" surfaced soon after on Ellie Jay Records — a short-lived pressing outfit offering cheap P&D deals to jobbing bands and producers.

Despite landing a BBC radio "Hit Pick" and a decent run of airplay, nothing further from the group ever emerged — making this reissue the only way you'll hear them without hunting down one of the handful of surviving originals.