Ska music, the danceable predecessor of reggae that combines calypso, R&B, swing, and boogie-woogie, has proven a remarkably durable musical genre. This infectious dance music has seen three distinct eras of popularity in three different countries. The first, in Jamaica, gave us the Skatalites and their remarkable Studio One sessions like Desmond Dekker. Like American label Motown, Studio One had its own roster of skilled session musicians, among them pianist Monty Alexander and guitarist Ernest Ranglin. Both musicians have since become international recording artists, and on Rocksteady they combine forces once again to explore the music of their homeland and their youth.

Drummer Quentin Baxter and acoustic bassist Hassan Shakur, along with rhythm guitarist Junior Jazz, lock into the grooves of these songs, allowing the pianist free reign to play bop-style runs, bluesy accents, and barrelhouse rolls that bring his interpretations of these songs alive. To some Alexander’s genteel style might seem too polite for this type of dance music, but his playful use of space and deft reharmonization brings a new dimension to these classic songs. On the Desmond Dekker tune “The Israelites” both Alexander and Ranglin give outstanding solo performances, clearly inspired by the song’s rhythmic buoyancy and stimulated by each other’s playing.

Though the songs maintain the ska and rocksteady rhythms of their original versions, this is unmistakably a jazz-oriented performance, as the use of acoustic bass attests. Alexander and Ranglin play the material with obvious affection and enthusiasm for the originals, but that doesn’t stop them from applying their full bag of technique and soulful improvisation, learned from playing straight ahead jazz.

The ringer here is the final track, a version of Bob Marley’s “Redemption Song” that comes from a much later era than the rest of the album. Here, the approach is more meditative, putting the perfect cap on a lively, joyful, and thoroughly enjoyable CD.