Big respect has to go to Gamal 'Skinny Fabulous' Doyle who repeated on his 2008 feat of taken the crown as 2008's Soca Monarch of St. Vincent & The Grenadines, this past weekend at Victoria Park. Last year, Skinny took the crown with the WICKED tune Head Bad [On The Spot] which went on to make the famed Soca Gold 2009 compilation and did so as one of the, if not THE biggest tunes on the album and you can probably expect a return visit from him on next year's edition as his tune for Vincy Mas 2k9, Leggo De Beast is definitely amongst my favourites from this year altogether. With all of his successes, Skinny has also turned himself into one of the most popular (and most talented) Soca artists in the world, using a style reminiscent of people like Bunji Garlin, Ricky T and others who infuse far more lyrics, Dancehall style, wonderfully into 'standard' "jump and wave" style Soca music.
A bit of controversy has arisen since the competition as quite a few people favoured five (or six) time Vincy Soca Monarch Fireman Hooper's performance over Skinny's but I leaned toward the eventual winner. You be the judge:
For my opinion: In Monarch Competition you need to go above and beyond the normal and both certainly did that but in terms of what it is, and I consider Vincy's to be amongst the most highly contested crowns that exist, the WINNER, whoever he/she is needs to give the viewer something he/she may NEVER forget. What Fireman did was PERFORM THE HELL OUT OF HIS TUNE and I didn't like it beforehand but I think I do now! But Skinny PRESENTED his song so well that I thought he had to get the nod. With a crazy performance and a crazy tune and special effects, a nice speech explaining the proverbial 'Beast' and even a nice bit to the fallen King Of Pop, he just won me over. Of course, I was watching on a NICE satellite feed (biggup my friend Leo everytime for patching me through) and I wasn't there and I know from experience, that can definitely play a role in determining one's choice but of the 8 or so people who I've since spoken to who did attend, 5 of them said Skinny clearly won, 2 could go either way and only one said highway robbery took place to Fireman Hooper.
Regardless, it was a great show and as for Skinny Fabulous definitely keep an eye and two ears out for him in the future. His win here, like it did last year, grants him a pass into next year's big show in Trinidad, the mecca of Soca music and Soca Monarch competition and he may very well improve on this year's performance of Head Bad.
I was there to see that and I didn't see three finer performances than Head Bad, I though he definitely deserved to place and I predict that should Skinny stay on his current roll, he MIGHT actually one day win the Trinidad crown as well despite the always present reported fuck-ups behind the scenes. I'm not a judge AT ALL but the man just does really great performances to my opinion and his songs (especially Head Bad) are popular to a degree in Trinidad.
Skinny's older brother, Problem Child, took 3rd in the competition after Skinny and Fireman as one and two despite having some health problems he still gave a strong effort with his tune Mad House and Demus took forth with Rum Junkie. And after that it was a LARGE drop off in my opinion including someone named Dolpin who I've never heard of and looked like he was about 400 years old singing some song you would hear in a loose cabaret. He actually had less cheers than the gap between the previous performer, as it started to rain and the crowd cheered and went MAD (and we wished we were there) (and we will be next year) for just the rain alone.
Also biggup Alpha who took St Lucia Groovy Monarch (I thought QPID deserved to win) despite a problem with his vocals and I will be there to see him try (and fail) to take the Soca Monarch crown from Ricky T (QPID did place second and TC Brown was third I believe).
The first half of 2009, like both halves of every year before it, is GONE. It will never come back, it's time to let it go. Thankfully, the first 182.5 days of the year have left us quite a bit of material to work with in terms of albums and while I'm still trying to make out the overall vibes of the year, things have probably been better than most people have been noticing. Its definitely been surprising and to the degree that I was wondering just how Buju Banton's Rasta Got Soul managed to get as 'low' on the list as it has. However, as we still have another six months to debate the actual details of the place, I submit, for your approval, the Best Reggae Albums of The First Half of 2009.
{note 1: Only albums OFFICIALLY released in the calendar year 2009 and before July 1st qualify (sorry Mr. Thompson)}
{note 2: Only studio albums qualify, no compilations (sorry Flava)}
{note 3: No Soca (sorry Destra)}
{note 4: Albums are listed in order or placing on this list but not numbered so as to give me even more room to change my mind (which I almost certainly will) come the end of the year}
{Honourable Mentions go to King Of Kings by King Hopeton, Motherless Child by Teflon and I'm A Winner by Spanner Banner}
Sojah - Modern Revolution [Irie Vibrations Records]
In retrospect it wasn’t so surprising that Modern Revolution was as MATURE sounding as it was originally. This album was SLEEK and at the same definitely fed more into more SOLID tunes from the duo like Winner. Still calling it the dark horse of the year and even though I’ve SLIGHTLY diminished my tastes for it in the time since (and that’s not necessarily true, I just have spun it much because of so much other things I’ve been listening to), I’ll still be rather surprised to see this list sans Konshens & Delus come December.
Jah Cure - The Universal Cure [SoBe Entertainment]
The very fact that this album is so low here and probably will be this low on the final count goes to show how BIG the year has been in retrospect. The Universal Cure, while definitely not The Cure’s best work to date was full of so many HUGE tunes that, even though so many of them were very familiar to longtime listeners you still had to love it. Also, the reported very favourable commercial success of The Universal Cure was very promising and I wouldn’t be surprised at all to see the Cure on this list again next year.
Buju Banton - Rasta Got Soul [Gargamel]
Could Buju POSSIBLY finish as low as the fifth best Reggae album of the year? The most interesting thing here is that it was OFFICIALLY released on the same day as the album which precedes it on this list as well as the one which follows it and between the three, choosing the strongest is like drawing straws as there was very little to separate the three so expect any type of change between them come December. What Buju did with Rasta Got Soul, which we didn’t know was even coming after the Too Bad album, was to turn back the clock to the age of Til Shiloh and set it so FIRMLY that he would leave people wondering if he had, in fact, done the seemingly impossible and outdone himself.
Sizzla - Ghetto Youth-Ology [Greensleeves]
Take this with the knowledge that my partialities to this album over the two preceding albums released on the same day would probably be only equaled by those of Sizzla’s most immediate family members and friends but its not only my preference for Sizzla as an artist which would make him place so high on this list. The strangely titled Ghetto Youth-Ology was a return to the Sizzla of yesteryear when the man gave downright PEERLESS rhymes which presented such wonderful (and MELODIC) messages over riddims laid down by some of the best in the business and it’ll take a MASSIVE shot to knock this one out the first half of this list.
Daweh Congo - Ghetto Skyline [Gold Heart Music]
See how this works: I had finished this list in my head and then this album popped right into my head and after an hour or so having convinced myself that it indeed had been released in late 2008, I finally decided to look it up and I was wrong. Whichever year Ghetto Skyline was released in, it would be all but guaranteed to make a list like this. Certainly Sizzla, Buju or Jah Cure (or all three) threaten to catch him at some point in terms of placing but you can’t deny its overall power and that DUSTY and RAGGED sounding vibes which absolutely has stayed with everyone who has heard it.
Mad Cobra - Helta Skelta [DJR]
Call it simply the most GUILTY of guilty pleasures in the Dancehall in 2009. While Mavado seemed to try to change his image with his squeaky clean (compared to previous efforts) A Better Tomorrow, Ewart Brown, aka Mad Cobra, made no such concessions on his long awaited Helta Skelta album. This thing was HUGE, it was evil at times, it was slack, crude, violent and offensive as hell, everything that’s wrong with Dancehall music these days. Right? Then why did we love it so much. . .
Queen Ifrica - Montego Bay [VP Records]
Call this one 1b at this point but no album on this list is currently building ‘momentum’ than Queen Ifrica’s rousing VP debut album, Montego Bay. Ever since the label announced the signing of the diminutive Mobay native, her inevitable release for the largest Caribbean music label in the world has been one of the most discussed albums in the game and when it finally reached, it arguably SURPASSED those expectations. While we definitely wish it would have been a bit longer, what the Queen gave us was SPARKLING, absolutely flawless modern Roots Reggae and maybe even the best Reggae album of 2009.
Nereus Joseph - Real Rebels Can’t Die [Sirius Records]
Whether or not Real Rebels Can’t Die ends the year as number one, two or even three on this list doesn’t really matter. What does is that when Nereus Joseph and the people at Sirius put the ribbon on the album and announced it finish and ready for public listening what he did was to release what is DEFINITELY the surprise of the year. Real Rebels Can’t Diewas HUGE in praising His Majesty and did so with such a SWEET vibes that you need to add it to your catalogue immediately. And while I feel that the Queen may indeed catch Nereus Joseph, if the year ended right now, Real Rebels Can’t Die is the Reggae album of the year.
If ever you should get caught up by the grand strides being made by Women in Reggae music, here might be something to keep you grounded. In the Roots arena, things are quite a bit more crowded with Etana and Queen Ifrica sitting atop the pack in Jamaica and Dezarie, Queen Omega and a whole heap of others vying for similar respects. However, in Dancehall, despite moves being made by the likes of Spice, Timberlee, Tifa, Alaine and the addictive Pamputtae and older heads like Macka Diamond and the DIVINE Tanya Stephens still doing their things, there remains a clear choice as the Dancehall’s EMPRESS. On July 14th, VP Records delivers their second MASSIVE greatest hits compilation of Dancehall STAR Lady Saw, Extra Raw: The Best of Lady Saw. Saw can rather easily make the greatest claim of having more to do with the development of Dancehall as a functioning unit than any other woman in the game currently and probably ever as she is the one standing STILL without ever having taken a substantial break away from recording while some of her more popular peers, like Patra, haven't remained on course. Thus, to her go the spoils as one of VP's most significant and simply BEST artists over the years is once again given the royal treatment which she definitely deserves.
More than a decade ago VP delivered a similar project, the nineteen tracked Raw: The Best Of Lady Saw, which is probably one of the best greatest hits albums of the modern era. Way back then, the album was a testament to the amount of work and contributions the St. Mary native had made to the Dancehall and the fact that ELEVEN years later, she's still around and she's been around long enough to give us a sequel. The new album features, by my count, six tunes in common with the first, however, the balance of the twelve focus more on later efforts, like those from the Strip Tease album and the Walk Out album.
To my ears, one of the most AMAZING joys in Dancehall is to hear prime Lady Saw riding those almost old school riddims circa 1994 and the first album was FULL of those including hits like Hice It Up and, of course, Sycamore Tree, both of which wonderfully return on Extra Raw. It also WICKEDLY includes an underrated and not so well known combination with former Dancehall ace Shabba Ranking, Want It Tonight, which to my knowledge, has yet to appear on official CD. She also transitioned quite well and both the Strip Tease and Walk Out albums were full of very nice examples of how well Lady Saw has managed to 'upgrade' herself to keep up with the times. Songs like the moving No Less Than A Woman show that perfectly.
So! If you're looking for a bit of a history lesson definitely take a look at Extra Raw. . . The Best of Lady Saw. The album also includes a DVD, which I cannot WAIT to get my hands on, and is sure to become a collectors item as is the overall project in general. In stores July 14th, another BIG celebration of the undisputed Queen Of Dancehall Music (and TANYA has one coming too!).
Just wanted to give thanks for all the feedback I've been getting as of late. Last week was really crazy with all the reviews (and I might start trying to do that once a month, with just a week of nothing but reviews), so many people dropped a line and said thanks and such but I definitely thank you for reading and for going out there, or sitting there, and buying things up.
I've gotten a lot of response from the Soca heads educating me and thanking me same way and yes definitely I'll continue to write for Soca music. My knowledge with it is nowhere near what it is for Reggae at this point but I think I'm okay with it and yes you'll see some more of those definitely and everyone pick up that Shelly G album Work It in about a month.
Couple of people asking for more Zouk and I've definitely been slacking in that department because I actually have a couple of albums I've been meaning to review, so hopefully I can work those in, in a couple of weeks or so. And the Afrikan Reggae also, yes I have the new Takana Zion, not quite so sure what I make of it yet, however.
I think that's about it from the response directly. Oh, Alborosie! I don't know if I'm going there, I'm not an Albo fan and I don't feel like lamenting about why in a review for that album but I might feel inclined to do it anyway.
Okay and big respect goes to;
KEMAR McGREGOR! The man emailed me last night and he even has my review of the Rock Steady riddim on his myspace (See review Here) (and see review of his Sweet riddim album Here) which is seriously big there for me! That's probably the coolest thing I've done with this so far. So big up Mr. McGregor, hope to write for you again soon sir, I'm sure I will.
VP RECORDS! Finally have gotten your attention, no matter how small or big it may be. That's the industry leader right there people, you grab some VP love and you've done something serious, so that's big for me also and everybody run over to their site and pick up that Queen Ifrica album, that Mavado and pre-order that Tarrus Riley definitely.
My good friend Trish! She just had a baby and I'm coming to see her Mama! lol
Okay! I'm going on the road in the morning. Any and everyone who just reads the blog here and there biggup yourself you won't notice any changes. I'm headed to the States for the first time in how long. Going to see mi Madre y mi Padre y mi in-laws lol (biggup to them, both of their earthdays are next week and we'll be there for that). Up in Michigan. But I'll still be writing of course, you won't notice a change at all. So, yo if you ever wanted to physically send me something! LINK ME! Hurry up. I may not have wanted to give you my address (because I thought you were creepy as hell) but I'll give you my parents' address (because my Father is bad like Chuck Norris!).
And after that I'm on the ROAD! We will be in Lucia for Carnival, I will see Ricky T defend his crown. I WILL NOT be at Vincy Monarch tomorrow because there is no point. Like last year, it will be lame and Skinny Fabulous will win (unless he is stupid and chooses to go last like Fireman last year, then he will lose to either Fireman (even though his tune is pretty bad) or Problem Child. And biggup Maddzart for taking Ragga Soca Monarch (even though Dani-O didn't compete). And as far as I know, Zoelah isn't even competing this year either. So, Skinny SHOULD win but if not, then expect Fireman to come back or Problem Child.
I think that's it. Everyone who leaves those things promoting their shows on my comments on here, I don't care at all, post and promote away! And everyone who just reads and chills, definitely love you also. And check My Favourite Places Online, I'm adding a link or two. Yeah!
Its interesting that throughout most of the history of Reggae music there is a specific make up of a unit which is currently not present on the scene very much, if at all. The concept of vocal groups and just vocal units in general have all but abandoned the scene despite being so popular in the ages of yesteryear and, in my opinion, the absence of these groups, in part, is what SO obvious and noticeable that it has led man to proclaim the modern era SO far less than those of old. Of course, they’re not all gone, instead they seem to have flooded, in whatever mode they may exist, almost exclusively to the Dancehall side (and it is and has been my point that no one would can say that so many of those, both talented and not very, wouldn’t have been Dancehall acts had that genre been available (and profitable) during their time). Thus, when you say GROUPS in Reggae music, probably the most obvious two names which come up are T.O.K and Ward 2. You also have others like the now defunct Innocent Kru and of course Scare Dem, Dutty Cup and Monster Shack/Hempire in the not too distant past. However, between T.O.K and the Ward those two as UNITS specifically have made such great strides in doing what they do that they have become (unlike either Scare Dem or Monster Shack or Innocent Kru to a lesser degree or even L.U.S.T. thus far) recognizable as the groups and not as singular artists. You reading this right now, can you name, right off the top your head, the members of T.O.K? Its to the point where when one of the members of the group went Japanese and released a compilation album which he produced, Bombrush Hour, on the cover of his album he was billed as “Bay-C from T.O.K. presents Bombrush Hour; as if to explain who this guy was and what qualifications he had to being presenting such a thing (incidentally the main group T.O.K also just released their own album, Our World, in the Japanese market and it’s scheduled to reach the West in August). Also on Ward 21’s recent album, Genesis, did you have to hesitate in figuring out which member was AWOL, if you figured it out at all? I did. Now that’s strictly on the Dancehall side (not counting things like The Alliance and the Empire and such as they are STRICTLY combinations of solo artists), on the Roots side of things, things are far more anorexic in terms of groups as, unless I’m missing one I can’t particularly think of a single group which is active on any type of considerable. Of course there’s Turbulence’s once promising Higher Trod which simply hasn’t worked out as Prince Javed, Jumbo Ras’ and whoever else is there, have yet to catch on with the masses to any real degree. The same situation exists with Sizzla’s Judgment Yard, although Joseph Shepherd and Congo Judah show potential, they do so a solo artists largely as does Capleton’s ever present David House of Jah Thunder and family. None of them really stick out as GROUPS like greats of yesteryear, The Abyssinians, The Paragons, The Royals, The Itals, Israel Vibration and COUNTLESS others who stood as SUCCESSFUL Roots Reggae groups/bands throughout the years.
But the Roots Reggae group is not COMPLETELY gone. If you travel outside of Jamaica two relatively successful acts are ongoing as groups and one of which is the PERFECT example of what I mean. The first is the now famed Star Lion Family out of St. Thomas, which includes the likes of stars Pressure Busspipe and NiyoRah as well as Ickarus, Kimbe Don and other talented members. The SLF isn’t EXACTLY what I had in mind but I mention them as a testament to that same dynamic as they came up as a group, releasing an album (From The Heart) and an EP (Brighter Days) in the process. Going south, however, you stumble across a group which, unless I’m forgetting someone immensely (and I might be), in my opinion stands as the CLEAR best Roots Reggae group in the game right now as Guyana’s MIGHTY five man group, First Born, has been doing big things making music for His Majesty from even before the turn of the century. First Born is aligned with THE name in Reggae music in Guyana, Walter Fraser, and signed to his label, Vizion Sounds Records (not to be confused with Batch’s extremely similar titled Sound V.I.Zion imprint out of St. Croix). Fraser has quietly become one of the most experienced and well regarded names in the game as he has worked alongside so many popular names including Fantan Mojah (for whom he produced the VERY NICE Uplift Yourself, a combination with First Born, on his debut album, Hail The King in 2005), Luciano (for whom he produced a full album, Gideon, also in 2005, which featured another combination alongside the group) and a whole heap of others, including the man himself, Dennis Emmanuel Brown and Gregory Isaacs also. Fraser and Vizion Sounds also worked with Guyanese Reggae star Natural Black in producing and releasing his 2006 album Cool Nuh Black. Under the guidance of Fraser, the group has made major impacts all along the way including actually making a name for themselves and even voicing in Jamaica. After a 2005 in which he worked with both Mojah and The Messenjah, the next year Fraser and Vizion Sounds would release First Born’s latest and probably BEST album to date, Irits, which was also definitely their most high profile release. If I recall correctly the very first time I remember hearing about the Irits album it was on something as BIG as Sirius Satellite Radio where it spun a few times which was definitely a big thing for the group. The album was, by my count, their fourth album as it followed the very nice debut Exodus 13, Verse 2 way back in 1999; then there was Confident 2003 which was VERY good and like the first, was recorded a great deal in Jamaica and helped by the legendary head of Xterminator, Philip ‘Fattis’ Burrell and the third was Wake Up Call, also recorded in Jamaica which was another very good drop in their catalogue and a double disc bit at that. Irits, in my opinion, more than lived up to the expectations of the prior albums and even more. If I had to recommend you to buy a single First Born album, luckily it would be their most accessible as Irits is REALLY solid modern Roots Reggae throughout.
A couple of interesting things about First Born’s actual style: First, it is to my knowledge that they previously and initially existed as a strictly vocal group. Which means that you won’t hear any baritone voiced DJ à la T.O.K or Ward 21, all of First Born’s members are singers. Also it is worth mentioning that they ALWAYS keep a Roots edge, you won’t find many party songs or anything and that’s a good thing for them. Getting things started on their album Irits is another good thing with the bubbling Another Child’s Tear. The tune is one which is actually kind of rough but still really nice as it warns all that when we do something to push corruption it is not only US that suffer but sometimes those who can’t care for themselves also. Big vibes and in a small package there. Next up is the SWEET chant that is Only Love that, in my opinion really shows a nice diverse talent from First Born and is definitely one of my favourite tunes on the album. It very much has that stereotypical Afrikan chanting style and cadence and it works here so well as the group reminds us that, indeed, only love can set us free. As far as the opening few tunes go, Only Love is only topped by the nearly MASSIVE Lift Up Mine Eyes. This one could have been big given proper promotion I have no doubt as it is worked to be absolutely the finest tune that it could be and having been listening to it and spinning it for any and everyone who would listen for quite awhile now, I have to say that it really reaches a nerve that maybe even the two tunes on the album which I regard as definitively ‘better’ (whatever that means), cannot. Lift Up Mine Eyes is a very inspirational vibes and it can help you through quite a bit should you have certain things going on and I’m definitely the one to ask about that. REALLY big tune that could have been much better publicly given that opportunity like I said but you should pick it up and make it that big for you PERSONALLY.
As soon as the opening of the Irits becomes memory (good memory) the two BIGGEST tunes of the album roll in . The first has to be one of the most CREATIVE pieces I’ve ever heard as First Born makes a lyrical connection to society in the metaphor of a football match! Never once drifting into the corny category (which was very possible), the song is absolute MAGIC and not to be missed (across a lick of Gregory Isaacs Number One riddim). Players Play is only topped on Irits the album by Irits the song, which is MASSIVE! The tune follows such an interesting story style of vibes lyrically and is curiously backed by a cut of the Three Blind Mice riddim. This one is another inspirational vibes but of an EPIC degree as First Born get into territory where the song just makes you feel so good and you can call it whatever you like but as for me, when a tune can do that, to the core, it’s a Masterclass piece and that is exactly what Irits is (and is the second best tune I’ve heard from them, you’ll have to track down PRINCE OF PIECE on their debut to hear their best). Of course that level isn’t matched on the album but that doesn’t mean that the vibes dip at all because they really don’t. Immediately up next is the bouncing Why Should A Man, which I’m sure I know from somewhere and First Born uses quite well (incidentally, I’ve always said one of the members sounds a lot like alien voiced Jamaican singer Ghost and its clearly evident as he pervades on Why Should A Man). The anti-violence piece Rudy Gun Laddie is another fantastic vibes and its particularly crucial as it ‘aims’ itself as largely a message to the youths and those who more susceptible to living (and falling) by the gun, no matter the material rewards. First Born and Fraser also tap Gregory Isaacs vast hoard of compositions on the obligatory tune for the ladies, Special Queen as the tune comes across the immortal Night Nurse riddim. Of course, the guys don’t do the riddim what Isaacs did to it but their effort on the tune, which honestly isn’t amongst my favourites, is definitely respectable. Black Struggle is another tune which strides in a similar levels as those attained by Lift Up Mine Eyes as it sounds downright ROYAL and throws itself in the direction of those who have harmed the children of Afrikan along the way. And the tune is LOVELY but I’ll briefly mention it because I know you’re wondering, Frustration Part 2 is the ‘sequel’ to a tune on the Confident album (the first version is slightly better in my opinion). The aforementioned Luciano makes the only guest appearance on Irits as the same tune which appears on his Gideon album is present on Irits as well, Cut & Go Through. You have to be REALLY bad to make a bad combination with Luciano and thankfully First Born and Fraser aren’t that AT ALL and Cut & Go Through, from every possible angle of scrutiny and analysis is one of my favourites on the album. Also be sure to let that one grow on you a bit, its not such an ‘immediate’ tune in my opinion. As Irits winds down it keeps STOCKING big vibes. Check the BIG tune praising His Imperial Majesty, Vision Or Sight which is SO BIG and definitely one of the highlights here. It goes off on those who are blinded to His Majesty (by choice) and blinded to righteousness in general and definitely be sure to pay attention to the lyrics on that one. Nazarite is BEAUTIFUL with another big old school spiritual vibes (any time I see a tune with the word Nazarite, my eyes light up because I remember an old tune from Chrisinti name Land Of The Nazarite, definitely check that one on his Comfort My People album) which just work so well here. And ending matters on Irits from First Born is another HUGE spiritual tune, Know HIM. This one is literally SPARKLING at times and is one of the more subtle tunes on the album as well. This one got me really close a few times as the vibes are just so strong and nearly overwhelming at times. EXCELLENT way to end things with one of the best on the album.
Overall (and YOU KNOW I just dug up that Chrisinti tune), Irits and all of First Born’s catalogue get a rather easy seal of recommendation from me. I think you could have very well took them to any era of Reggae music and had them be so successful (and probably more so) as the music is just so nice and I love Walter Fraser’s production in terms of putting them with largely older and older sounding compositions on which to work their magic. It should also be said that they aren’t exactly too young anymore with my research saying that the youngest of the five was born in 1980 and the second-youngest being back in ‘75 so definitely they are in their musical prime in terms of the type of music they make. Irits, in my opinion, is the best they sound in a complete album form and I was so happy to see it made available digitally and hopefully Fraser and Vizion Sounds will do the same with the rest of their music as well. What you have here is a literal and figurative statement of the power of modern Reggae. No. There aren’t so many GREAT or so many in general vocal groups but with material like Irits, I’d put First Born as the best such group to come around in quite awhile (and hopefully they give us a new album this year!).
Pressure - The Pressure Is On (Tsuni Records, 2005)
Making a debut album can be quite a tricky thing, especially in Reggae. When you take an artist that is potentially an unknown and try to expose him/her to audiences who potentially know ABSOLUTELY nothing about them, you're selling so much more in my opinion, than someone who they may not really know about but see on their televisions and hear on their radios on a daily basis. Unfortunately in Reggae we don't actually have those type of luxuries but WONDERFULLY some still get it right. Back in 2005, Dean Pond and company got it right when they introduced the world to one of the most powerful rising talents in Reggae music and an artist who would, just a couple of years later, EXPLODE on the scene to a MASSIVE degree. Pressure's debut album, The Pressure Is On, marked the arrival of an artist who would become a household name in Reggae and did so, not as an artist in some random state of development but as an already finished product. What came later notwithstanding, The Pressure Is On was AMAZING and probably one of THE, if not THE, greatest debut in Reggae for the past quarter century.
#1. The Pressure Is On
By far, this tune stood as not only the signature song for the album named after it but Pressure’s entire career as a whole up until the boom that Love & Affection dropped. The song is a mid-tempo MARVEL and sounds so much like something one of Pressure’s then more popular Jamaican peers not only might have done but done at the same time. Each and every one of them would have struggled to do it the justice as Pressure, indeed. The song with the HUGE unifying vibes was utter brilliance.
Line of the song: “Tell me something Mr. Jacket and Tie cause straight from the ghetto I come”
#2. Zion Is Home
Four years later and the SWEET SWEET Zion Is Home remains my favourite tune altogether on The Pressure Is On. Talk about UNIFICATION, Zion Is Home did everything the title tune did but with such a LOVELY vibes and even more lyrical depth in my opinion. The song just flowed so nicely and personally for me from each and every technical aspect even besides the vibes, the song is probably the best he’s ever done to date. Period.
Line of the song: “Red, gold and green laces, we’re a nation not races. In our heart is where the word of JAH appears” (BRILLIANCE!)
#3. Feel So Right
One for the vibe itself. Not the most expected tune and a definite change-up of sorts Feel So Right, in retrospect perhaps wasn’t so out of place after all. Especially considering its place on the album, the song had such a wonderful vibes and PACING to it that it changed things from one side. . . But really not from the other and when held up to even more scrutiny than most of the other tunes on the album, Feels So Right did exactly what the title suggested it would.
Line of the song: “Haffi have it inna mi car, have it inna mi home. Tell dem I was born with Reggae Music Syndrome. Dance to the riddim, keep your body in tone. Di music bring us together like toenail ingrown”
#4. In My World
Over a very complex riddim (which features a Spanish sounding guitar, what sounds like handclaps and a Arabian sounding sample) the vibe takes an unexpected step up in pace and degree when the kind of aggressive lover’s tune In My World stepped in. The song wasn’t quite what I’d (or you’d, hopefully) call Dancehall at all but if the first three tunes on this album were the first three you’d EVER heard from Pressure, he suddenly gave you a reason to think that he might be successful on that side as well with In My World.
Line of the song: “She say she used to deal with Ricky but Ricky like licky licky; what a pity. So she checked the Pressure quickly”
#5. Light In You
This one was more the standard sounding lover’s track but it wasn’t that from a lyrical standpoint. Instead, Pressure makes the case that the title specified ‘Light’ in us all was in fact His Majesty. The song also featured quite a bit of versatility from young Pressure (including a very Sizzla-like alto in the second verse (which is much better than Sizzla’s)) throughout. Some have called it sappy but to my ears, it was near magic.
Line of the song: “Look what Jah has done for us” (chorus punch line, dominant line of the song)
#6. When Dem Come featuring Glen Washington
It was veteran singer/musician Glen Washington from out of Clarendon of all people Dean Pond and co. tapped to work alongside Pressure and the results were OUTSTANDING. Young Pressure more than holds his own alongside Washington’s downright EPIC sounding earthly vocals. The song is backed by a sweet one-drop which provides the duo with such a simple backing over which to craft the HUGE vibes which they ultimately do. Years later and I’m still waiting for a sequel.
Line of the song: “When dem come, we’re gonna chant dem down with LOVE”
#7. Ancient Woman
Even more Dancehall-ish than In My World and the definitive ‘gal tune’ on The Pressure Is On, Ancient Woman was a tune I could probably best describe as SHARP. It can also be regarded as one of the most impressive tunes on the album as, if Pressure can ride this CRAZY riddim (which sounds like something you might hear backing a scene in an Indiana Jones film (biggup Raz Bin Sam)) then he can probably ride anything. Later efforts would prove just that but Ancient Woman might STILL have a claim to being one of the better of the crop.
Line of the song: “Empress straight from the ancient. Fragrance smell of myrrh and frankincense”
{note: There’s a controversial line in the tune which I disagree with if you take it from one side (and I don’t), as Pressure says in the first verse, “. . .Girl come and let us spend time so we can talk about what’s on your mind. She say ‘Queen Omega is divine and KING SELASSIE KEEP HER IN LINE‘”. Now the line is a quote from Pressure quoting ‘Girl’ and as I THINK he means keep her in line as in keep ‘Girl’ in line not Queen Omega and in the broader scope, man keeping woman ‘in line’. However, if he does mean it like that, then I definitely disagree. Everyone knows man doesn’t keep woman in line, woman, in fact, keeps man in line.}
#8. Mama
The obligatory (and well titled) Mama song and a LOVELY one at that. Had this album been sans a tune of this nature you’re almost tempted to look at Pressure funny for not making it, however, that he did make it and BLEW AWAY pretty much all expectations, he should be commended just as strict. The song doesn’t actually break any new ground in terms of songs like this (that may very well be impossible at this point) but the lovely kind of ethereal vibes the song has compiled with, of course, very solid wordplay by Pressure makes it a real winner and definitely one of the album’s finest efforts (the highlight being when Pressure movingly personalizes the tune by name-dropping his Mother! Biggup Carol Brown).
Line of the song: “I’ll be there for you when you’re down and feeling blue. So much love I have, that’s due. Carol Brown I honour you. May your blessings see you through. Mama you‘re the one from a chosen few”
#9. Buss Dem Brain
Fitting isn’t that regal and royal Rastafarian Pressure would voice a tune name Buss Dem Brain and go on to link with the self-proclaimed ‘Gangsta Ras’, Munga Honourable at Don Corleone’s. The tune, however, while definitely aggressive doesn’t come anywhere near where you might imagine it might (and definitely not if Munga himself had voiced it). Instead, Pressure aims his lyrical and proverbial attack at the brains of corruption and just utter nastiness wherever it may exist (as opposed to Munga who would aim them at a wide array of people depending on his mood) and if that’s you, Buss Dem Brain definitely caught you for the fatal shot.
Line of the song: the entire first verse but in particular “. . .That’s why mi haffi praise Emperor Selassie I, who give I the strength to spread the music worldwide. All dem a gwan like everything deh pon file but them caan keep count the words of every Black child”
#10. Ganja
Just as on the Mother’s tune, Pressure gets to the point with the title of the obligatory herbalist tune on The Pressure Is On, Ganja, and does so in mighty fine style. With an electric guitar (and maybe a tuba) livening up a SOLID old-school vibed one-drop riddim backing him, Pressure delivers a very nice and somewhat ‘edgy’ ganja tune. This one, probably more so than any other on the album, takes awhile to grow on you as it is considerably less structured than most and has a very free-flowing type of an appeal. But when you catch that bit, you see the tune’s REAL strength.
Line of the song: “. . .Fi smoke the crack and cocaine I will not. Hey! Bad weed mi root it up and kill dat”
#11. I Tried
I Tried was another changeup for the album and probably, in retrospect, the most underappreciated tune on The Pressure Is On. It had a decidedly kind of ‘groovy’ or ‘funky’ type of vibes which can sometimes clash with the vibes on a Roots Reggae album but in my opinion that’s not what happened here. Instead I think the clash came with the actual tune itself as on the surface its a bit negative (it’s a jilted lover’s type of a tune) unlike most of the tunes (if not ALL) of the other tunes. HOWEVER, at times he also seems to lyrically point at not only better times of the past but also of the future (and even if it is negative, there are stretches in the tune which are absolutely BRILLIANT lyrically).
Line of the song: “Baby girl just give me what was. Remember love created what is and what was”
#12. Live What U Talk
The first of two signature tunes which bring the album to a close, Live What U Talk has gotten even better over the years than it originally was. The real attraction here (as it is on the entire album) is the message, even though it comes across a KNOCKING one-drop riddim. Pressure urges all to exude some honesty and in it some humility and live what you talk and talk what you live. Indeed.
Line of the song: “Its all about what you do, not what you say. You wanna lead? Hey! Lead the likkle youths the right way”
#13. No Limitation
EXCELLENCE! In it’s entire four minutes and fifty seconds of time, No Limitation establishes and maintains such a ROYAL level of vibes that if you really wanted to call it the best tune on The Pressure Is On, I wouldn’t put up any argument, none at all. The song is absolutely perfect throughout: Blessed with one of the biggest riddims on the album and of course Pressure himself in top form on the lyrical aspect of the song. Even though I consider Zion Is Home the best tune on the album, if you asked me for one tune which probably gives the best example of his talents on here, I would definitely point to No Limitation. The message is on point as I said as Pressure seeks to inspire to
Line of the song: “Never say you ‘can’t’ cause dat nah work. Get up and make a sacrifice cause dat caan hurt”
Synopsis: The prevailing message of Pressure's album The Pressure Is On, to my opinion, is UNITY. Even the songs which don't REALLY obstensibly deal with the subject, like Mama or I Tried, kind of do below the surface. Also, of course when you take a deep look at the title track (which has to mean something in terms of the general course of the album) that song is obstensibly and on every level about UNITY. Of course, unity alone isn't enough to make strides (if you are doing nothing and you unify, you will be nothing with someone else next to you doing nothing also) so we get WONDERFUL complimentary vibes like Mama and No Limitation and even Zion Is Home all of which, even in the case of Mama, expand on the concept of unity in giving a tangible direction to take it. To my ears, that's A+ material and in particular coming from what was a new artist at the time. These few short years later and I'm definitely not surprised on what Pressure has achieved alongside Don Corleone (who I even mentioned (as 'Vendetta') how nice it would have if Pressure could link with in my original review of the album three and a half years ago See Here) as this album EASILY showed someone who was capable of such output and even more. The Pressure Is On may still be the best debut album I've EVER heard and even if it isn't, from beginning to end it is absolutely SPARKLING! A wonderful testament to the artist and the vibes themselves and a bonafide MODERN REGGAE CLASSIC!
