Cutty Ranks

Cutty Ranks, born Philip Thomas, left behind his work as a butcher to become among the first artists who genuinely threatened Shabba Ranks’ hold over the ragga scene. After representing sound-system culture throughout the early 1980s, he signed with Donovan Germain’s Penthouse imprint in 1990 and began laying his stony vocal timbre—closely echoing Shabba’s—across the “gun talk and slackness” that defined ragga during those years. He further separated himself from other DJs by selecting beats that were then rarely used on the circuit. The two key albums that best illustrate his approach remain The Stopper, issued by Fashion, and Lethal Weapon, released on Penthouse, both of which display his strengths effectively.