Mr. Energizer (Polybeat, 1998)

I didn't think they still made dancehall albums this overtly crossover anymore.  Is it really dancehall, though, if the beats are primarily R&B/hip-hop/dance?   Just because there's a DJ chatting, does that automatically make it dancehall?   Certainly, nowadays there are people rapping over all types of music, but it's not all considered hip-hop.  Just a thought.  I'm digressing because I'd rather not talk about this obscenely horrible album, but I suppose I must.  Mr. Energizer has all the sound of a poppy European dancehall album, but it's actually an American release (I don't know whether General Grant is American or not, and frankly, I don't care.).  I must admit, though, that a few of the hooks are rather catchy -- "Bad Life," "Do It Anyway You Wanna Do It," "Da 1 U Run 2" (How cheesy is that title?) -- almost making you forget how painful the majority of the material is.   General Grant's DJ style is quite generic, as are the beats, and the unoriginality of the songs sampled and/or covered -- Bob Marley's "So Much Trouble," Chic's "I Want Your Love," The Four Tops' "Ain't No Woman Like the One I Got," and Peter Brown's "Do You Wanna Get Funky With Me" -- make Mr. Energizer all the more paper weight-worthy.