When you take a look at each of Peter's 8 solo albums you find that every album features at least 1 re-cut of an old hit. Peter tended to rely heavily on recovering old hits. Although he was not a prolific writer, his talents as a song writer are unquestionable. When Peter put his heart and soul into producing original songs the quality really showed, such tracks as 'Jah Guide', 'Glasshouse', 'Day The Dollar Die' and 'Igziabeher' are fine examples of this.

Out of the 61 songs that found their way onto an album, 18 were re-workings of older songs, this is a staggering number and equates to almost a third of all Peter's albums containing remakes of old songs, many of which were unnecessary in my opinion.

Some of Peter's choices for remakes are a little questionable at times. I am unsure as to why he recut both 'Stop That Train' and 'Maga Dog' for his 1983 'Mama Africa' album as both had been covered many times by Peter and I feel that the inclusion of these 2 tracks did weaken what otherwise is one of Peter's best albums.

Of the 9 tracks that Peter cut for his debut solo album 'Legalize It' 4 of them were recuts, almost half of the material were songs that he had previously recorded. The original version of 'Burial' is a real gem. This recut is one of Peter's better re-cuts. A great track that is a nice alternate to the original version, whilst the dub is a real belter.

'No Sympathy' was originally cut for Lee Perry in 1970. The song was then demo'd by the Wailers for consideration for inclusion on the 'Burnin' album, the song never made the album (though was recently included on the 2001 re-mastered Burnin release) and so Peter decided to return to this for his fist solo album. A bleak and gloomy track that features Don Kinsey on lead guitar, a passable remake, the ending lifts the song from being a mediocre attempt.

The original version of 'Till Your Well Runs Dry' was a tender doo-wop with a steady R&B rhythm. The song is based on an old folk saying. Peter and Bunny sang lead on the original with harmonies supplied by Rita and Dream Walker. This recut never really gets going, even with Bunny supplying backing vocals, a questionable remake in my opinion.

'Brand New Second Hand' is a great alternate to the original. The I-Three's vocals are very crisp and one of the highlights of the song, the only shame is that they just echo Peter.

This re-cut is a lot more wittier and humourous than the recordings with the Wailers. I am very unsure of the need to recut 'Get Up Stand Up'. Andy Clayden made a very valuable point by stating that this would be like Bob recuting 'Concrete Jungle' as he was no longer apart of the trio. It was always going to be impossible to live up to the original version.

'Downpressor Man' was one of the most recorded songs of Peter's career. 'Sinner Man' was first recorded for Coxsone in 1966 with Bunny and Peter sharing leads. Tosh then re-recorded a slightly different version entitled 'Oppressor Man' in 1970, finally he recorded the song again the following year for Lee Perry as 'Downpressor Man'. This is the fourth incarnation of the song, recorded eleven years after the original. In my opinion this is one of Peter's better remakes, a great version and one of the highlights of the album. Fantastic when played lived, especially when segued with 'Equal Rights'.

'Stepping Razor' receives a recut 10 years after the original. The original recording is one of Peter's best works. The recut that was released on the 'Equal Rights' album was a fair reworking.

'Don't Look Back' gave Peter a minor chart hit in the UK in 1978 when he re-recorded the Temptations classic with Rolling Stones' Mick Jagger. The outro see's Peter and Mick trade lines back and forth and is almost like studio chatter/banter. A passable remake that did gave Peter some minor chart success. I do prefer the original recording though.

'I'm The Toughest' is a bit of a let down in my book. This was again originally record in 1966 for Coxsone. A very boastful song with Peter singing "I can do what you can't do, You'll never try to do what I do I'm The Toughest", these lyrics proved to be a big hit on the sound system for Coxsone. This recut is not a patch on the original. The original was a lot more raw and Peter's lyrics were a lot more passionate and convincing. I think this would have been best left alone personally.

'Soon Come' was originally recorded for Leslie Kong. It almost seems as though Peter was short of ideas and so decided to fall back on a few of his older songs to fill out the album.

Ditto for 'Dem Ha Fe Get A Beaten', this recut is a nothing more than an album filler and would have been best left off the album I feel.

'Mystic Man' was a fantastic album, a fresh album full of new ideas, there was only the one recut on the album 'Can't You See'. This was another disappointing recut with Peter giving it the rock vocals treatment. The song has grown a little on me but I do prefer the original. This is a real shame as the album is otherwise faultless, without question one of Peter's finest albums and showing his talents as a song writer.

There were 2 different releases of the 'Wanted: Dread & Alive' album, 1 for the US market and 1 for the UK market. Both were made up of different songs. The US release featured just the 1 recut with the inclusion of 'Fools Die'. The UK release featured 2 ('Fools Die' and 'Rock With Me').

On 'Rock With Me' Peter almost ventures into the land of dancehall, especially towards the end of the song. The original recording of the song was entitled 'Rock Sweet Rock' and featured Peter, Vision and Bunny with Bunny taking lead. This was one of Peter's softer songs. 'Fools Die' is a stunning song, one of Peter's best works, I think 'Fools Die' was one of the best of the 18 re-recordings. A quite stunning song and a beautiful remake of 'Wisdom'.

'Stop That Train' was another unnecessary re-recording in my opinion. The two previous cuts were far superior to the version that made it's way onto the 'Mama Africa' album. I can't work out why Peter recut this, especially as it was released on the 'Catch A Fire' album. I personally feel this was one of the weaker recuts.

The 'Mama Africa' album is a fantastic album but let down slighty by the inclusion of 'Maga Dog'. This song was another that Peter had returned to on a number of occassions. The original was by far the best and the version that he cut for Joe Gibbs was a nice alternate. This unfortunately does let the album down a little and an unfortunate way to close out an otherwise superb album.

I am really puzzled by Peter including 'Fight Apartheid' on his final album 'No Nuclear War' as he recorded this in 1977 for his 'Equal Rights' album under the title of 'Apartheid'. Whether it is coincidence or not but a lot of the songs that Peter chose to remake were recorded 10 years earlier. A spirited recut, though almost identical to the original except for the updated rhythm track. There are brief brilliances from Peter during the track that help lift the track from being average.

'Lesson In My Life' was released on a hard to find Italian 45 in 1978 and is one of my all time favourite Tosh tracks. Peter went back to the song for his last album 'No Nuclear War'. Although I prefer the original recording, this is still a great effort and one of the highlights of the album. A great reworking that deserved the album release it received.

Peter's attempts at reworking old songs were met with mixed reactions, some are amongst his best work ('Fools Die') whilst others ('Maga Dog') are purely album fillers with the original recording being by far the best. I guess the old saying of "If it ain't broke don't fix it" runs true for songs too.