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Eighteen tracks of vintage Beenie Man, focusing on his work between 1999 and 2003 -- what could there be to complain about? And indeed, this collection makes it very clear what a powerfully talented DJ he is. The way he rides the rhythm on bangers like "Let Him Go," "World Dance" and the calypso-flavored "Blackboard" is like a seminar in toasting fluency, a class that should be taken by any number of his less-gifted colleagues. His popularity has ensured that he attracts nothing but the finest rhythms from his producers as well (with perhaps the exception of the dreary and rhythmically awkward "Press Button"), and this album is filled with gems from the likes of King Jammy, Shocking Vibes Crew, Jack Scorpio and Steely & Clevie. The problem is a really frustrating one: it's his own unwillingness to pay attention to the tonality of the music over which he's chatting. On this collection, his vocals are actually in the same key as the instrumental backing track on fewer than half of the 18 selections. This is what makes listening to Beenie Man's work so maddening: his toasting is brilliant, the rhythms are top-notch, and yet they're harmonically so dissonant that the combination is painful to hear. Someday Beenie Man will find a producer who's willing to help him figure out what key his songs are in -- and when he does so, there will be a quantum leap in the quality of the recorded results. Here's hoping it happens before too long.
CONDITION: NEW
TRACK LISTING
1 World Dance
2 Big Up And Trust
3 Defend Apache
4 Mobster
5 Press Button
6 Ban Mi Fi Di Truth
7 Blackboard
8 Who Am I (Zim Zimma)
9 Let Him Go
10 Tell Me
11 Yaw Yaw
12 Gwaan So
13 Always Be My Baby
14 Year 4
15 Battery Dolly
16 100 Dollar Bag
17 L.O.Y.
18 More Prayer
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