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Maverick A Strike

Finley Quaye

1997

Buy At Rough Trade
Maverick A Strike
Album Summary

Maverick a Strike is the debut studio album by Scottish musician Finley Quaye. It was released on 6 August 1997 through 550 Music and Epic Records. The album spawned five singles: "Sunday Shining", "Even After All", "It's Great When We're Together", "Your Love Gets Sweeter", and "Ultra Stimulation", all of which charted on the UK Singles Chart. The album peaked at number three on the UK Albums Chart. The album has been certified double platinum by the British Phonographic Industry.

Wikipedia

Rating

2.8

Votes

9918
Genres
Reggae

Reviews

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Mon May 24 2021
2

Feel like I should be sat drinking lattes and reading the guardian in a penthouse flat in Chorlton on a Sunday morning in the 90's.

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Thu Jul 15 2021
3

I have some issues with Maverick A Strike. Finley Quaye's take on dub and reggae is so light it almost floats away; he makes someone like Alpha Blondy look like an exemplar of hardcore roots reggae, which takes some doing. While I was listening to this album, my immediate thought was, \"This is some Brit pretending to be a Jamaican,\" and it turns out that I was almost right. Finley Quaye is actually a born and bred Scot. He can't even claim to be a 2nd generation Jamaican because his dad was born in London and has Ghanaian roots. Now, this is not the same as what bands like The Specials were doing, because it was clear they were playing Brit fanboy versions of their favorite music. Rather, Finley Quaye is trying to pass himself off as a Jamaican singer. This is a little like someone putting on a Southern drawl to sing country when they were raised in Newark, NJ or Michael McDonald trying to sing soul. To be clear, I'm not offended or anything. Hey, if Finley Quaye can pull it off, more power to him. And he almost can, but his singing is by far the weakest element in Maverick A Strike. I suspect you could throw a rock in Jamaica and hit someone with more dub and reggae skills.Which brings me to the music itself. While, compositionally speaking, these songs are as simple as nursery rhymes, they sound amazing. I fully expected to find some star producer calling the shots in the background, but surprisingly, given his weakness as a singer, all of this is due to Finley Quaye himself! He arranged all of the tunes and wrote the originals. And the band consists of his buddies instead of studio musicians. His half-brother was a guitarist with Elton John, so that gives some indication of the pool of talent he had available. And you've got to give credit to Quaye for how tastefully and naturally he has managed to incorporate rock, soul, pop, and triphop touches into the dub and reggae. I've never heard this particular combination of genres--it's wholly original, and pretty darned cool. And the sound! There isn't one horrible sounding synth patch anywhere! The horns and strings are tastefully arranged, never overwhelming the slight songs.If Quaye had been as gifted a composer and singer as he is a producer and arranger, Maverick A Strike would have been a masterpiece, but I'm sorry to report that, as it is, Maverick A Strike is just listenable.

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Fri Nov 12 2021
1

This album struck a wrong chord with me, a Scottish musician with Ghanaian roots playing pseudo reggae with a fake Jamaican accent. I was born in Jamaica so I just found it to be so wrong from the get go. This was a big miss for me

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Sun Apr 17 2022
2

Bro who even is this guy. I google his name and the first result is "Finley Quaye found guilty for headbutting terminally ill friend over Game of Thrones" and the image is some black-and-white Gilbert Gottfried lookalike (rest in peace by the way) and Peter Dinklage. Then the literal next result is "Finley Quaye admits criminal damage after he threw metal road sign through glass bus door". The third result is "Finley Quaye threatened to stab cop and 'get a grenade' for bar manager he vowed to shoot". This guy is just smashing everything in his path, pulverizing innocent citizens with his laser beam eyes, and I'm supposed to listen to his album? I listened to his album and it was pretty alright. Not a huge fan of reggae or obliterating people with metal rods, but I enjoyed "Sunday Shining". Hope he doesn't throw a comically large piano down a flight of stairs at me for giving his album a 2/5.

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Mon Jul 12 2021
1

This is the first 1 I've encountered where I was completely unfamiliar with the subject matter. The vocals feels completely divorced from the music and both are absolutely inane. This is directionless and passionless and reflective of bad 90s reggae in general. I have no idea how this made the list.

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Sun Jul 30 2023
2

Definitely don’t need to listen to Scottish Reggae.

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Wed May 12 2021
5

Fantastic album👌🏽 The track Even After All was especially good.

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Fri Oct 09 2020
4

Quite enjoyed it, a groover for sure, lots of tracks that get better as you listen to them start to hypnotize the ears. Standout Tracks: It's Great When We're Together, Ride On and Turn the People On, The Way of the Explosive, Supreme I Preme, I Need a Lover

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Wed Dec 22 2021
4

Super mellow and smooth, especially for a Sunday afternoon. Very chill with hypnotic (but not numbing) vocals.

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Sun Jan 16 2022
4

Though it came out in `97, I always associate this album with the middle of 1998. At the time, this album along with Eagle Eye Cherry's Desireless and Ian Brown's Unfinished Monkey Business were my Sunday afternoon chill out albums. Shaking off the hangover from the night before they hit the rest button before I went off and did it all again. I remember getting paid out for liking these albums but they were important to me at the time. Listening with fresh ears after not having played Maverick a Strike for over a decade, the parts I loved are still as good as I remember. Flawed in places, it still deserves the acolasdes it got in Britain and I wish it took off more in Australia.

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Fri Oct 15 2021
2

I don't know what's more interesting - the cultural history of the Ga-Dangbe ethnic group of Ghana, from which Quaye's father is from; or the fact that Quaye once headbutted a terminally ill friend in an argument over Game of Thrones. I'll tell you what is not most interesting. This album. I mean, I think he probably thought he was making interesting music, but I didn't find it interesting.

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Thu Jan 20 2022
2

Pretty chill reggae, but including this while having 0 Toots & The Maytals albums should be illegal.

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Tue Dec 12 2023
1

That’s it, I’m calling for a constitutional convention among the users of this site. For too long, we have been subjected to the whim and whimsy of one “Robert Dimery” and the time has come for us to agree upon some self-evident truths. It is high time that we free ourselves from the tyranny of mediocrity. Are we not civilized beings, should we not be allowed to once again hold our heads high, unburdened by the choices made by one man several decades ago? As such, I have drafted the first article of our bill of rights, a reference point to be used by any user in good standing with the site: We, the people of the 1001 albums generator community, do hereby establish the following: Article I Section I. When, in the course of daily listening, a user encounters an album or artist that no reasonable person has talked about in 25 years, the user may apply “The Rule” when providing a poor rating of the album. Section II. “The Rule” states the following- If you haven’t heard anyone of sound body and mind talk about the suggested album or artist in 20 years or more, the album can be deemed inessential on such grounds. Section III. No user shall be admonished for applying “The Rule” to an album, so long as the criteria laid out in Section I appears to have been met.

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Mon Apr 26 2021
3

I was not familiar with this guy and really liked this, particularly on a sunny Sunday.

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Mon May 17 2021
3

Un mélange de soul et de reggae sur fond d'ustensiles de cuisine ; Finley Quaye a réussi son pari. Tout y passe : les casseroles, les poêles, la râpe à fromage... on peut même entendre un épluche-légume marquer le rythme sur plusieurs morceaux. Un véritable tour de force.

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Wed Dec 22 2021
3

Ah, more like it, some traditional Scottish music. It's the sound of late 90s sophistication again. Nice enough lite reggae with a sprinkling of trip hop. Inoffensive.

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Fri Oct 01 2021
2

It's very pleasant. Sunny. Lyrics not always sunny. Like the production in headphones. Red Rolled and Seen is good. Sone interesting stuff going on here.

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Wed Apr 28 2021
5

Definitely in the top ten of my favourite albums of the 90s. An absolute Eton Mess of styles and sounds all mashed together deliciously.

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Sun May 08 2022
5

Zonnige zomervibes en feel good reggae muziek. Met veel plezier naar geluisterd

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Fri Aug 19 2022
5

This one is nostalgic for me

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Fri Aug 19 2022
5

Loved listening to this again.

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Mon Jul 24 2023
5

One of mi nineties preferred

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Tue Aug 29 2023
5

10/10 what genre is this?? post-reggae?! it sounds awesome!!

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Wed Nov 15 2023
5

Is this really from 26 years ago? Back in the 1990s I took an ill-advised job as a door-to-door lead generator for a double glazing company. Five of us would climb into a decade-old Ford Granada and get ourselves to some part of town where we'd knock on people's doors and ask them if they'd like double glazing. Surprisingly few people did. A couple of things stick very clearly in my mind from that awful fortnight. The first is the the driver of the Ford Granada had spent more money on the car's stereo than he had on the actual car. The second is that he didn't have a driving licence. Or insurance. Pretty sure he didn't tax it, either. Any rate, the stereo was pretty good; CD players in cars, especially cars as old as a Granada, were incredibly rare. Most that could play CDs were serviced by a cassette adaptor plugged into a Sony Discman stuck to the dashboard, and this was exactly the situation here. Each day one of the five would bring in a CD to listen to as we were driven from area to area to flog double glazing. Even after all this time (see what I did there?) I remember that one of the people enjoying the back seat of that enormous Ford was a girl called Hannah, who brought this CD with her one day. And it was by far and away the best album anyone brought along for the whole ten days I dragged my teenage arse to that terrible job. Looking back, I have absolutely no concern about what the rat-like Granada driver did with his life, if anything. I couldn't care less what the other two scrotey teenage boys have become. But I do wonder if Hannah ever amounted to anything, with her impeccably awesome music taste. This album is the easiest five stars of the week, and I wish I'd spent more time with it over the past twenty years, with its lovely wobbly bass, catchy tunes and questionable appropriation. No, it isn't authentic. It doesn't have to be. Listen to it, relax to it and enjoy the vibes.

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Mon May 10 2021
4

Super quality reggae, much needed

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Tue Jun 01 2021
4

quite nice and musically not just the simple cliche reggae everyone knows

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Fri Jan 29 2021
4

Like it. No stand out songs, but overall good-mood music. Probably liked Sunday Shining best.

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Fri Jan 29 2021
4

Jammy, psychedelic reggae. I liked it.

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Sun Feb 21 2021
4

This one is going on the playlist

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Tue Jul 20 2021
4

Reggae muy fino, estoy seguro que le encantaría a mi Johnny Greenwood.

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Sun Jul 04 2021
4

Would be 3 now, 5 when it came out. Not dated that well as I find the voice a bit irritating

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Wed Jul 07 2021
4

I enjoyed this way more than I expected I would. Great beats and fun vibes all around.

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Wed Jul 07 2021
4

Liked it! A little groovy, liked his voice. Sunday Shining was my favorite song.

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Tue Jun 29 2021
4

Fun album with innovative production, and a great vocalist. Didn't blow me away but still a great album!

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Fri Aug 13 2021
4

I didnt know what to make of this album - but loved it, some really great tracks on it. A great discovery this one.

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Thu Oct 07 2021
4

Great album. Really enjoyed listening to this one again.

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Fri Nov 12 2021
4

Finley has a beautiful voice and knows how to write catchy tunes. I had "The Sun is Shining' on high rotation back in the day and there are a bunch of other great songs here, though the CD is a bit front-end loaded. He dips in and out of reggae the way k-os dips in and out of rap.

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Thu Nov 18 2021
4

I've never heard of this dude at all, but this music is great. Right up my alley. Some cool funk/reggae vibes.

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Tue Nov 23 2021
4

Meh, some bangers bood as a whole not that good

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Thu Nov 25 2021
4

I don't know much 'modern' reggae and don't often listen to it, but this is good stuff. I can see myself listening again in the right mood.

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Thu Dec 02 2021
4

Wow! Did not expect this. Fantastic listen

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Sun Dec 19 2021
4

This might be the most recent reggae album I've ever listened to. Really deep grooves here.

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Mon Dec 20 2021
4

Nearly gave this 5 stars for sentimental reasons, spent many a hazy afternoon listening to this in the 90's. Really enjoyed playing it again.

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Wed Dec 22 2021
4

Loved it. I knew Quaye from Massive Attack and Tricky, but this was the first time I have listened to this album. Sunday Shining must have been on a soundtrack or mix tape or something. Def a good bop. Very listenable album, but some of the tracks were just a little too empty of sonic or emotional value to make this a true five. A *lot* of highlights, though.

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Fri Jan 14 2022
4

Great album, r&b, reggae influences

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Wed Mar 09 2022
4

gosh i love when i am caught off guard for an album! this album was so mellow to listen to. perfect for a workday. some real gems could be found--"sunday shining" is such a beautiful song, full of hope. "i need a lover" reminds me deeply of prince. i love this combination of blues, reggae, soul, jazz in this album. such creativity! i am looking forward to listening to this again.

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Thu Mar 31 2022
4

I'd never heard of Finlay Quaye before and did not know what to expect. I found it an absolute delight, a terrific mix of reggae and pop unlike anything else I've heard. Really enjoyed it.

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Fri Apr 01 2022
4

I wasn't expecting much from this but really enjoyed it. It sounds very Bristol influenced. A bit dubby, a bit trip-hoppy. Thumbs up. Smiley face. Sun is shining emoji.

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Thu May 26 2022
4

This is a really nice discovery. Fantastic mix of reggae and trip hop that sounds amazing. Beautiful production and I love his voice; sort of a mix between Winston Rodney's gravely intensity and Gregory Isaac's silky smoothness. 4.5 🌟

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Fri Jun 24 2022
4

A dub and reggae album with flourishes of the then-contemporary sounds; this is a rather ambitious and auspicious debut album from 1997, a year chock full of ambitious albums that looked toward the future rather than mine from the past. Maverick A Strike seems to have gone under the radar, which is a shame seeing as though it is looking to be re-discovered and re-evaluated as it should. A hidden gem, for sure. Favorites: Ultra Stimulation, It's Great When We're Together, Sunday Shining, The Way of the Explosive, Your Love Gets Sweeter, Sweet and Loving Man.

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Wed Aug 10 2022
4

Let's be honest, it's soft rock/Reggae from a Scotsman trying to sing with a Jamaican accent. The singing could also be better. That being said, there are some great chill songs here, the composition and musicianship is great.

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Fri Oct 28 2022
4

Hearing this for the first time, I'm surprised this guy is not more of a household name. He's like a modern sounding Bob Marley, but even more accessible to a mass audience. I found these songs to be great listens, really grooving.

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Mon Nov 14 2022
4

Tracks 1-5 are all undeniable bangers. This is way better than I remember (I think I borrowed it off a mate, taped Sunday Shining and Love Gets Sweeter and bunned off the rest of the album as boring). The second half of the album may have justified my young opinion, but this album was SO strong out of the gates it's still great.

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Wed Nov 30 2022
4

I wasn't in the mood for this style of music at all today but it was still a good listen.

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Fri Dec 23 2022
4

Kind of a grower. Apart from happy-go-lucky songs there‘s a certain depth to the whole project which cannot only be explained by the use of dubby reverb. Sincere 3.6

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Wed Dec 28 2022
4

Loved this album back then Great to go back to the dub grooves … top musicians on it … Great bass, guitar and drums even after all … A strong 4

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Wed Feb 01 2023
4

This is a great album, 4.5 stars. Reggae influences without being full-on reggae/repetitive. Balances blending lots of different instruments with still feeling simple. Vocals set a tone that feels 'relatable' and guitar is given freedom to shine at times. Pace changes throughout but is never too fast or too slow. Standout is "Sunday Shining"

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Fri Feb 03 2023
4

I'd forgotten just how good this album is! But the second half does let it down a bit.

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Thu Feb 23 2023
4

Nostalgia filled me to the brim and then I spilled over with joyous bubbles of musical pleasure. Maybe if you didn't listen to this weekly in your teens, your feel differently.

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Sun Mar 12 2023
4

Reggae. Me ha gustado. Un 4.

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Thu Mar 23 2023
4

Really enjoyed this. And nice to see a reggae album make a list from an artist I’d never heard of

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Thu Mar 30 2023
4

Finley Quaye's best song (“Dice”) isn’t on this album, but this album is just as perfectly mellow. Wonderful listening experience.

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Fri Apr 28 2023
4

Fun album that’s fairly varied on top of it’s reggae sound

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Thu May 04 2023
4

Good lord, there's a blast from the past. I think I must've had this on cassette, I know all the songs so I must've done, and it still sounds really good to this day. Highly enjoyable, infantile lyrics (and Jamaican accent) but really great beats, rhythm and sounds (hence the mobo award). Added back to collection without hesitation. Great to bring myself up to speed with his shenanigans, only to find out he headbutted his (terminally ill) mate because he wouldn't turn game of thrones off, for which he was fined and given 225 hours unpaid work, was declared bankrupt with over £383k debts and was kicked off stage by an organiser because he was intoxicated. Jolly album though, can barely tell he was born in Edinburgh.

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Wed May 24 2023
4

Really quite good. Surprised.

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Thu Jun 01 2023
4

Quite relaxing raegge, really liked the bass work in there.

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Fri Jun 09 2023
4

Cool, refreshing, vibe of reggae meets psychedelia with velvety smoothe vocals topping off the whole concoction. A keeper from the start.

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Thu Jul 27 2023
4

A surprisingly good album. I never heard it at the time and was surprised by the depth and variety. Even After All and Sunday Shining are the standouts, but there are so many great little moments - the use of the Amen break in Ride on, the sweet little rock n roll rhythm in Your Love Gets Sweeter, the trip-hop atmosphere on Supreme... The lyrics are quite stream-of-consciousness - sometimes this works really well, sometimes it's a little repetitive, but as an album to put on for a laid back Sunday evening, you couldn't do better. So close to being 5 star, but the lyrics (and a couple of filler tracks in I Need A Lover and Red Rolled and Seen) drop it to a 4. Well worth a listen though.

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Fri Aug 04 2023
4

Tails off toward the end but the singles are all high quality. Generous 4.

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Sun Aug 13 2023
4

Excellent 90s shag and spliff vibes, groovy

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Wed Aug 16 2023
4

If there was a dedicated algorithm, quantifying music that I love, I doubt Finley Quaye would make an appearance. However, I absolutely love him. My favourite song of his, Dice, is not on here, but I can’t play any Finley Quaye without bookending it with that song. The timbre of his voice, the beats, the melodies – I’m sold. Unfortunately, he’s in the news at the moment for domestic disturbances and aggravating his ex-partner. Such a shame when that just tarnishes a beautiful body of work.

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Fri Sep 01 2023
4

Album #13 I was not familiar with this artist or album and went into this listen blind. I am a fan of late 90s-early 00s trip hop, so hearing that familiar dub sound was a pleasant surprise. It kind of had a Thievery Corporation meets Zero 7 vibe going for it. Some of the lyrics seemed repetitive or redundant despite being different songs. I don't know why, but I got a "poser" feeling from some of them, but I can't really believe the judge of that, especially since it is not my culture. Overall, I really enjoyed it, but it wasn't something that I'm dying to listen to again. If it randomly came on, I doubt I'd skip it. 3.5* rounded up to 4*

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Fri Sep 01 2023
4

Interesting listening. This would be good to just chill with or put on in the background.

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Mon Sep 11 2023
4

The first half or 2/3rds of the album was great, but it kind of lost the magic toward the end. Overall solid though

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Wed Sep 20 2023
4

Never heard this. Really liked it. Obviously some Bob Marley vibes, but a really unique "psychedelic reggae" feel to the whole thing. I was also getting a real Sam Cooke vibe from his voice as well - which was awesome.

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Wed Sep 20 2023
4

Rating: 7/10 Best songs: Even after all, Your love gets sweeter

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