A dubplate is an

acetate disc An acetate disc (also known as a ''lacquer'', ''test acetate'', ''dubplate'', or ''transcription disc'') is a type of phonograph record generally used from the 1930s to the late 1950s for recording and broadcast purposes and still in limited use t ...

usually of 10 inches diameter, traditionally used by

studios A studio is an artist or worker's workroom. This can be for the purpose of acting, architecture, painting, pottery (ceramics), sculpture, origami, woodworking, scrapbooking, photography, graphic design, filmmaking, animation, industrial d ...

to test recordings prior to mastering for the subsequent pressing of a

vinyl record A phonograph record (also known as a gramophone record, especially in British English), or simply a record, is an analog sound storage medium in the form of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove. The groove usually starts nea ...

, but pioneered by

reggae Reggae () is a music genre that originated in Jamaica in the late 1960s. The term also denotes the modern popular music of Jamaica and its diaspora. A 1968 single by Toots and the Maytals, " Do the Reggay" was the first popular song to use ...

sound systems In physics, sound is a vibration that propagates as an acoustic wave, through a transmission medium such as a gas, liquid or solid. In human physiology and psychology, sound is the ''reception'' of such waves and their ''perception'' by the ...

as a way to play exclusive music. They would later become an important facet of the

jungle A jungle is land covered with dense forest and tangled vegetation, usually in tropical climates. Application of the term has varied greatly during the past recent century. Etymology The word ''jungle'' originates from the Sanskrit word ''jaṅ ...

drum and bass Drum and bass (also written as drum & bass or drum'n'bass and commonly abbreviated as D&B, DnB, or D'n'B) is a genre of electronic dance music characterized by fast breakbeats (typically 165–185 beats per minute) with heavy bass and sub-ba ...

UK garage UK garage, abbreviated as UKG, is a genre of electronic dance music which originated in England in the early to mid-1990s. The genre was most clearly inspired by garage house, but also incorporates elements from dance-pop, R&B, and jungle. It ...

grime Grime may refer to: * Dirt, in the form of black, ingrained dust * Grime (music genre), a genre of music * ''Grime'' (album), a 2001 album by Iniquity * ''Grime'' (video game), a 2021 Metroidvania video game * "Grime", a 2022 song by Dallas Wood ...

and

dubstep Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in South London in the early 2000s. The style emerged as a UK garage offshoot that blended 2-step rhythms and sparse dub production, as well as incorporating elements of broken be ...

music scenes.

History

The first use of dubplates is commonly attributed to

sound engineer An audio engineer (also known as a sound engineer or recording engineer) helps to produce a recording or a live performance, balancing and adjusting sound sources using equalization, dynamics processing and audio effects, mixing, reproduction, ...

King Tubby Osbourne Ruddock (28 January 1941 – 6 February 1989), better known as King Tubby, was a Jamaican sound engineer who greatly influenced the development of dub in the 1960s and 1970s. Tubby's innovative studio work, which saw him elevate the ...

and

such as

Lloyd Coxsone Lloyd Coxsone (born Lloyd Blackford, c. 1945) is a Jamaican-born sound system operator and record producer, who has been resident in the United Kingdom since 1962. Biography Blackford was born in Morant Bay, Jamaica, c.1945, and moved to Wandswo ...

and

Killamanjaro Founded in the summer of 1969, Killamanjaro is a Jamaican reggae sound system, sound system best known for their sound clash, clashes and large amount of classic reggae dubplates. It is owned by Noel "Papa Jaro" Harper and named after Mount Ki ...

. Special and one-off versions would be cut to

acetate An acetate is a salt (chemistry), salt formed by the combination of acetic acid with a base (e.g. Alkali metal, alkaline, Alkaline earth metal, earthy, Transition metal, metallic, nonmetallic or radical Radical (chemistry), base). "Acetate" als ...

for competing in a

sound clash A sound clash is a musical competition where crew members from opposing sound systems pit their skills against each other. Sound clashes take place in a variety of venues, both indoors and outdoors, and primarily feature reggae and dancehall music. ...

, utilising vocals specially recorded to namecheck the sound system. As such, these would become known as "dubplate specials" often remarking on the prowess of the sound system playing it, in a bid to win the clash. In the UK, the earliest place to cut reggae dubplates would also be one of the most unlikely. John Hassell and his wife ran a recording studio from their suburban house in

Barnes Barnes may refer to: People * Barnes (name), a family name and a given name (includes lists of people with that name) Places United Kingdom *Barnes, London, England **Barnes railway station ** Barnes Bridge railway station ** Barnes Railway Bri ...

, South West

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

, but would become key to

British British may refer to: Peoples, culture, and language * British people, nationals or natives of the United Kingdom, British Overseas Territories, and Crown Dependencies. ** Britishness, the British identity and common culture * British English, ...

sound systems and artists such as

Dennis Bovell Dennis Bovell (born 22 May 1953Huey, Steve"Dennis Bovell Biography" Allmusic. Retrieved 27 December 2014.) is a Barbados-born reggae guitarist, bass player and record producer, based in England. He was a member of the British reggae band Mat ...

. Throughout the 1980s and 1990s, Music House in

North London North London is the northern part of London, England, north of the River Thames. It extends from Clerkenwell and Finsbury, on the edge of the City of London financial district, to Greater London's boundary with Hertfordshire. The term ''nort ...

and JTS Studio in

East London East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth. Etymology As in other languages, the word is formed from the f ...

would become the two most prominent "cutting houses". Whilst acetates have been used in the

music industry The music industry consists of the individuals and organizations that earn money by writing songs and musical compositions, creating and selling recorded music and sheet music, presenting concerts, as well as the organizations that aid, train, ...

for many years, especially in

dance music Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement. In terms of performance, the major categories are live dance music and recorded danc ...

, dubplates would become a particularly important part of the

scene throughout the 1990s. This would be followed through its descendants

and

, and cutting houses such as Transition. New music would regularly be composed and recorded onto DAT tape in order for it to be cut onto dubplate, often so that it could be played that weekend (or even that night). Despite the shift to DJing on digital mediums such as CDJs and DJ controllers, dubplates continue to be used for playing exclusive music and have also gained a specialist market in recent years.

Etymology

According to David Toop, the " dub" in dubplate is an allusion to the dubplate's use in "dubbing" or "doubling" the original version of a track.

References

{{reflist Audio storage Reggae culture Jungle music

History

Etymology

See also

References