Get Up Stand Up

Recorded for The Chequers’ 1976 Creole album Check Us Out, by the Aylesbury band led by John and Richard Mathias, George Young, Paul War, and Jackie Robins. John Mathias was credited as producer on the original release. The track recast Bob Marley and Peter Tosh’s protest song as a polished funk-disco cover, and contemporary coverage highlighted the band’s idea of turning a soul record into reggae in reverse. It was one of the album’s defining cuts and a strong example of the group’s mid-1970s shift toward Philly soul and dancefloor production. It became a cult dancefloor favorite and circulated on later compilations and DJ sets, helping keep the Chequers’ version in circulation well beyond its original release. Its continued appearance on rare soul and disco compilations shows that it remained prized as a deep-cut party record.