Feel a Little Better

The FRIDAY QUESTION feature returns next week here at Route 1.
First comes the (none-to-surprising) revelation that I FEASTED on reggae during our recent Bay Area visit.
I purchased or received for Father's Day a trio of excellent sets of music:
1) A Treasure Isle compilation of rocksteady songs produced by Duke Reid. These tunes are real classics of the early 1960s and represent probably my favorite style of music.
2) A Studio 1 ska compilation. These bouncy tunes represent my comfort music. They have served me well, in fact, as I have returned from vacation. My arrival back at work at the newspaper coincides with a bitter, messy labor dispute between a local hospital and its nurses. I am covering the dispute (which seems headed inexorably toward a nasty strike) and can seem to do no right in the eyes of the warring parties. Ska has helped comfort me, as I find myself in the middle of haters.
3) The Trojan records REGGAE RARITIES box set. The three discs in this excellent set represent songs previously unreleased by reggae's premier reissue label.
It seems difficult to fathom how catchy songs such as "Feel a Little Better" by the Lloyd Parks-led Techniques, "(Name) Ring a Bell" by The Cables and "Why Did You Leave" by the Young Souls failed to become reggae staples. They are beautiful and memorable in spades.
I listened to the Reggae Rarities discs as I drove to a couple assignments today. They helped soothe me and helped me transition from vacation to workaday grind.