David Bowie Becomes 'Ziggy Stardub'

Real Rock Becomes Real Reggae

You've got to admire the audacity of Michael Goldwasser. Twenty years ago, the New York musician, label owner, producer, songwriter and mixer, showed the first results of what may have seemed a nutty idea: a reggae reenactment of Pink Floyd's "Dark Side of the Moon." The entire album was turned into first-rate reggae, by Goldwasser's musical collective the Easy Star All-Stars (founded 1997), track by track, beat by beat. The result, "Dub Side of the Moon," not only put a fresh light on the iconic Pink Floyd album. It seemed to reinvigorate reggae as well.

This bold triumph resulted in other equally meticulous and entertaining remakes of legendary albums on the Easy Star independent label. "Radiodread" (2006) smoked out Radiohead's "OK Computer." The Beatles 1967 musical earthquake became "Easy Star's Lonely Hearts Club Band" (2009). After a full remix of the Pink Floyd album ("Dubber Side of the Moon" 2010), Goldwasser and company tackled Michael Jackson's "Thriller" in the 2012 releas…