Personnel: Victor Rice (guitar); Michael Goldwasser, Michael Goldwasser (acoustic guitar, electric guitar, synthesizer, percussion); Paul Schellack (acoustic guitar); Antoine Silverman (violin); Jonathan Dinklage (viola); Alex Kadvan (cello); Victor Axelrod (melodica, piano, electric piano, Clavinet, organ); Pamela Fleming (trumpet); Buford O'Sullivan (trombone); Selwyn Brown (piano, organ, background vocals); Eddie "Headdie" Ocampo, Patrick Dougher (drums, percussion); Ivan Katz (percussion); Jennifer Smith (background vocals).

Audio Mixers: Michael Goldwasser; Michael Goldwasser; Tony Maimone; Victor Rice.

Recording information: AuH2O Studio, Queens, NY; Blacklindy Studio, London, England; Capture Sound Studios, Brooklyn, NY; Don't Trip Studio, Brooklyn, NY; Drop The Bass Studio, St. Mary's, Jamaica; Homequake Studio, Birmingham, England; KDS Studios, Orlando, FL; Kingston Studios, Brooklyn, NY; Mellowstone Studios, Queens, NY; Music Village, Birmingham, England; Studio G, Brooklyn, NY; Total Running Time, Sao Paulo, Brazil.

Arrangers: Michael Goldwasser; Michael Goldwasser; Victor Rice.

Renowned for covering classic pop/rock albums in their entirety, the New York City-based reggae ensemble Easy Star All-Stars have taken on Pink Floyd's DARK SIDE OF THE MOON (DUB SIDE OF THE MOON) and Radiohead's OK COMPUTER (RADIODREAD). With this 2009 outing, the All-Stars work their dub magic on SGT. PEPPER'S LONELY HEARTS CLUB BAND, deftly tweaking the Beatles' landmark record, appropriately enough, with a little help from their friends. Highlights of DUB BAND include a drifting, ska-tinged version of "She's Leaving Home" with vocals by Easy Star regular Kirsty Rock, an atmospheric take on "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite!" featuring Ranking Roger of the (English) Beat, and a hypnotic Matisyahu-assisted rendition of "Within You Without You."

After their full coverage of classic albums from both Radiohead and Pink Floyd, the collective known as the Easy Star All-Stars go way back to the band and the album that pretty much changed everything. The accent, as always, is on the Easy part of the band's name, meaning this easy-skanking tribute to Sgt. Pepper's flows effortlessly, never getting caught up in overly ambitious detours or ridiculously huge arrangements. Tracks like "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" with guest vocalist Frankie Paul and "Within You Without You" with natural mystic Matisyahu have slick studio touches, but the heavy lifting is left up to the performances, and both guest vocalists are perfect choices who simply nail it. Having been on the road frequently the previous two years pays off, as the players are suitably loose, creating grooves that feel natural and alive. The ever growing importance of the horn section comes to fruition as they shrink some of the original album's elaborate arrangements into smaller packages, ones that could be imagined in a live setting or -- in the case of Ranking Roger's "Being for the Benefit of Mr. Kite" -- at some wicked ska-fueled pool party. The warm voice of Michael Rose closes the set on a dubby "A Day in the Life," a cover version drenched in reverb with a clever imitation of the locked groove gibberish found at the end of the original Pepper's LP. ~ David Jeffries