Trojan Box Set: Lovers CD

Take note of the title Trojan Box Set: Lovers. It was carefully chosen to avoid the amorphous lovers rock tag, and thus allows Trojan to dodge the genre bullet and its chronological mid- to late-'70s straightjacket. In reality, this box is an object lesson in just how meaningless the lovers rock label is. The majority of the songs are drawn from the late '60s through the early '70s, and their reggae-light stylings, pop inflections, and relatively lush production are a strong indicator of how long "lovers rock" had been on the Jamaican scene before the British media came up with a name for it. So, Lovers it is, and Trojan rounds up romance across three CDs and 50 tracks, the perfect way to inflame a candlelit night of passion. All the emotional touchstones are brought to bear, pain and pleasure, the lovelorn and the loving, heartache and hearts joined, love is indeed a many splendored thing, and love lost is desolation. The vocal groups included are Jamaica's crème de la crème -- the Paragons, the Uniques, the Heptones, the Melodians. The singers are some of the best -- Alton Ellis, John Holt, Slim Smith, Pat Kelly, Ken Boothe, Dennis Brown, Gregory Isaacs, and so many more. By and large, the songs are equally exemplary, although there are a full clinkers, poorly conceived covers like Brown's "Silhouette" and Smith's "Turning Point (Where Do I Turn)," although there's no faulting the actual performance, just the choice of song. However, the masterpieces far outweigh the dross, with Jackie Edwards' "In Paradise," Ellis' "I'll Be Waiting," Boothe's "Now I Know," Keith & Tex's "Tonight," and B.B. Seaton's "Thin Line Between Love and Hate" just a handful of the many memorable moments found within. In a few years, many of these same artists will be churning out Euro-fied horrors smothered in strings, with only the syncopated beat a dim reminder of their roots. Lovers box stands as a monument to how sublime Jamaican pop sounded before the British stamped their imprint all over it. ~ Jo-Ann Greene

3cds-Chi-Lites/Bob Marley/John Holt/Ken Boothe,Gregory Isaacs

All tracks have been digitally remastered.