Barrington Levy

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Englishman/Robin Hood (Greensleeves, 1991 [orig. released 1979-80])

It’s always great to get two albums on one CD, but when the two fit together as seamlessly as Englishman and Robin Hood, it’s twice as nice. The consistency of the material across the two albums – thanks in part to producer Henry “Junjo” Lawes and musicians Roots Radics and in part to Levy’s own writing – is remarkable. The Lawes-Radics combination, a major force in the early development of dancehall, is one of my favorites, as they tend to craft funky, FUNKY, echoing grooves that, typical of early dancehall, shift the focus onto the percussion and bass lines. One of the riddims on Englishman is so wicked it carries two of the album’s best tracks, “If You Give to Me” and “Send a Moses,” each with a distinctly different message. I shouldn’t short-change Levy’s vocals, though. While they may be an acquired taste, his choppy melodies and yodeling delivery can add a borderline jazzy scatting vibe to the songs, as on “Black Heart Man.” The title track to Robin Hood is one of Levy’s best and is amply supported by album cuts like “You Come to Ask Me What Is Love” and “When Friday Come,” whose bouncy feel belies the serious tale of a man working for a shady contractor who doesn’t pay “when Friday come.” I don’t feel that Englishman and Robin Hood are the outright classics that some people claim – they have their share of mediocre tracks – but they’re quite enjoyable, and you certainly get your money’s worth with both on one disc. Listening to these tracks, it’s apparent that Too Experienced: The Best of doesn’t contain all of Levy’s best work.

Englishman:

Robin Hood:

Englishman/Robin Hood:

Track Listing
Englishman:
1. Englishman
2. If You Give to Me
3. Sister Carol
4. Don't Fuss Nor Fight
5. Look Girl
6. Look Youthman
7. Send a Moses
8. Black Heart Man
9. Money Makes Friends
10. Bend Your Back
Robin Hood:
11. Robin Hood
12. Rock and Come In
13. Love Sister Carol
14. Gonna Tell Your Girlfriend
15. You Come to Ask Me What Is Love
16. Why Did You Leave Me
17. Many Changes in Life
18. Na Broke No Fight Over No Woman
19. When Friday Come
20. Like How You Kiss and Caress Me

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Too Experienced: The Best of Barrington Levy (VP, 1998)

In the fleeting world of dancehall reggae, Barrington Levy has displayed remarkable resilience in maintaining his stature through more than 20 years of performing. Throughout the '80s and into the '90s, he had a string of massive hits that became anthems in the dancehalls of not only Jamaica but all over the world, and since then, he has even enjoyed crossover success as a guest vocalist on a pair of hip-hop hits by Shyne. Those of you who were hypnotized by Levy's trademark scatting/wailing on these rap songs and want to hear more of him owe it to yourselves to check out a "best of" collection like Too Experienced, which compiles most of his hits from the early '80s to the late '90s. This album leads off with perhaps his two most recognizable (and best) hits, "Murderer" and "Under Me Sensi," each riding classic old school digital riddims that have been used and re-used to death since then, but rarely as well as on these monster tracks. "Murderer" and "Under Me Sensi," along with the equally potent "Teach the Youth," display Levy’s admirable ability to slip social messages into modern (post-1985) dancehall, a sub-genre of reggae that has lyrically always been more about boastfulness, partying, sexual innuendo, and violence than anything else. Other tunes here that will undoubtedly sound familiar to even casual reggae fans include "No Fuss, No Fight," "Shine Eye Girl," (these two have an older, non-digital sound which makes Levy sounds somewhat like Horace Andy; normally, he’s sort of a combination of Horace Andy, Michael Rose, and maybe even a little Eek-A-Mouse), "Black Roses, "She’s Mine," the irresistible title track, and "Girl Salute," which may sound familiar because it’s a re-working of the classic Cables hit "What Kind of World," the music of which has been sampled heavily in recent years (most notably on Morgan Heritage's "Down By the River"). Some of the songs on Too Experienced -- "Living Dangerously," "Work," "Prison Oval Rock" (which borrows from the Wailing Souls' "Fire House Rock"), and "Dancehall Rock" (a take on Bob Marley's "Trenchtown Rock") -- deserve to be on an album of Levy's hits, but I don’t consider them among his best. A couple of other tunes -- the poppy "Don’t Throw It All Away" and the sappy ballad "Vice Versa Love" -- frankly need to be erased altogether. In their place should be the legitimate classic "Mini Bus" and any of several cuts from the Englishman and Robin Hood sets.

Track Listing
1. Murderer
2. Under Me Sensi
3. Prison Oval Rock
4. My Time
5. She's Mine
6. Shine Eye Girl
7. No Fuss, No Fight
8. Black Roses
9. Girl Salute
10. Teach the Youth
11. Too Experienced
12. Don't Throw It All Away
13. Vice Versa Love
14. Living Dangerously featuring Bounty Killer
15. Dancehall Rock featuring Cutty Ranks
16. Work featuring Jigsy King

Wanted: Live in San Francisco (2b1, 2006)

2b1's Live in San Francisco series continues with the solid production, sound quality, and song choice that we've come to expect, but Wanted falters when it comes to music and crowd participation. This live album opens, oddly enough, with a non-live track, a funky hip-hop remix of "Under Mi Sensi," before transporting us to San Fran. It becomes apparent early on that the concert audience isn't the most vocal bunch (or perhaps the microphones were to far away to pick them up), but Levy insists on keeping them involved, pausing for them to finish lines and exhorting them to repeat after him (of course, "shiddi-liddi-liddi-liddi-liddi-liddi-liddi-liddi-waaay-o" might be a bit much to expect), thus leaving us with frustrating holes of near-dead air. He even stops during "Too Experienced" and "Murderer" and admonishes the crowd, sounding a little pissed at their lack of participation. Complicating matters is the fact that when he goes to the audience, the band tends to minimize its playing to a basic, dull drum beat. Hearing a dancehall artist who relies on digital riddims perform with a live band is always an interesting -- for better or worse -- prospect, and in cases like "Under Mi Sensi," the hard rocking "Murderer," and "Here I Come," the band just can't properly recreate the sound. "Here I Come" in particular is painful, with generic music not resembling anything close to the original riddim, and with Levy pausing every other line to have the crowd sing along. That said, this is still Barrington Levy, and he does perform a lot of his biggest hits -- most successfully "Too Experienced," "She's Mine," "Teach the Youths," and "Prison Oval Rock" -- and he does so with his unrivaled energy and distinct style. As is to be expected with a legend like Levy who's recorded so many fan favorites, there are a few songs left off that you'd probably like to hear -- such as "Mini Bus," "Living Dangerously," and "No Fuss, No Fight" (especially in light of the inclusion of the lesser-known "Mandela Free," "Love of Jah," "Be Strong," and "Loving You," only the latter of which strikes a chord).

Track Listing
1. Under Mi Sensi [Remix]
2. Intro
3. Teach the Youths
4. Mandela Free
5. Under Mi Sensi
6. She's Mine
7. Be Strong
8. Too Experienced
9. Murderer
10. Love of Jah
11. Work
12. Prison Oval Rock
13. Vice Versa Love
14. Black Roses
15. Here I Come
16. Loving You