Maverick A Strike

listened to one song didn’t like

I think it was ok

“Pass me the headphones, I’m dying and I forgot to listen to Maverick A Strike, by that Finley Quaye chap,” said no one ever! This came out at the time there was a mad passion for reggae influenced music. I thought this was pretty soulless soul and clichéd reggae in 1997, and I haven't changed my mind in the intervening years. His voice is like 2 day old bath water and his music is what porridge would produce if it could. It’s bland, it’s passionless and it’s not even worth hating.

Another of those albums which aren’t bad, per se, but I didn’t enjoy. While some of the instrumentals are pretty good, on the whole, it was too repetitive and boring. I also found the fake Jamaican accent offputting. 2.5

Like Marley evolved. Perfection.

Really like this album. Not your everyday reggae. Groovy, chill, and cool. Something I’d never heard of and probably would never have listened to. This is one of those hidden gems I was hoping to find by doing this project.

Have I not voted on this before or maybe only just listened to it. Feels new now even though it’s a late 90s album.

Not music.

Sunday Shining is pretty great; the rest of the album sounds kinda generically reggae, not really my style. Don't know enough about the genre to say if it's groundbreaking or not.

Album

This album did not deserve to be on the list

What is this? Who even is this guy?

I’d never heard of this artist before so it was extra nice to have a really enjoyable time with this album. Favourite tracks were It’s Great When We’re Together and Ride On Turn the People On. Just cool and easy listening! (4.5 stars)

Sometimes music that is different really strike your fancy and catch your attention. Sometimes it just blends into the background. For me, forgettable, despite sounding so unique.

I dig how bass forward this album is. Lyrics are kind of cheesy but the overall sound is great.

Enjoyable album. The music is rooted in reggae but stretches out into a few other neighboring genres. I love that deep and funky bass throughout. Finley Quaye is a nice singer too. His vocals are front and center in the mix — soulful and charismatic.

Pretty nice chill dub~adjacent tunes. I liked listening but not sure if it's an album you need to hear in your lifetime, unless I'm missing that it was super influential or something like that. I've been reserving 2/5's for albums that I think should both "potentially not be on this list" and also "aren't really that pleasing to my ears", and this one definitely sounded nice, so I'm giving it a 2.8 or so, enough to round to a 3.

I'm sure it's a great album but not for me

For a reggae album from the 90s this was more passable than I thought.

A bit of a mixed bag, the reggae parts were my least favourites ("Ultra Stimulation"), but the more mellow tracks like "Even After All" or "Your Love Gets Sweeter" were great. I felt his delivery also worked best when it was more laid back, not leaning so hard into the reggae side. The triphop ones were also pretty nice. I felt the record got better as it advanced, the second half was much better than the beginning.

Trip hop reggae vibes

Wow, dette var sjokkerende dårlig! Ekstra minuspoeng for elendig falsk aksent.

I’d heard the name Finley Quaye but didn’t know anything about him or his music before listening to this album. I’m pretty sure I’ve never heard any of his tracks before, but was vaguely hopeful as Spotify also had him appear on some chill out Ibiza playlists… but I can only guess that was a trancey remix or something. Now I don’t know much reggae, obviously Saint Bob who is a favourite summer chilled listen. When I worked at Camden Market back in the 80’s a lot of reggae was played, which I enjoyed, but apart from aforementioned Saint Bob I’ve never brought any reggae music myself. I guess Finley Quaye is pretty good to have made it onto the top 1001 list, but he’s not really my thing. Doubt I’ll ever listen to this again.

Not for me. Couldn't get through it

Reggae always turns into background music for me. But that said I enjoyed the Album

Decently enjoyable neo-reggae, I suppose. 3

23/09/2025 I'm really not a reggae man and I don't look forward to listening to the albums, but this sat well with me. Spotify listeners: 379.7k

I remember the “sun shining” single. Stoked to listen to this album today. Oh snap—even after all—a new favourite, a deeper-encountered memory of it. Other than that, the album rolled through.

Sometimes I Feel Lighter Than The Air 1001 Albums Generator 124 (09/23/2025) Dude what did I do to deserve 2 reggae albums in a row? It's one of my least favorite genres and this album is a particularly poor example. If Bob Marley was boring, Finley Quaye is offensively bad. You know, I had some relatively high hopes during the first couple of songs. There is a sort of psychedelic edge to this poppy reggae that gives it a bit of an intrigue. Supreme I Preme features this as well. However, the other 40 minutes of this album have next to nothing to offer. The instrumentals are all boring and blend together, and the vocals are quite bland. This was one of the few albums that I only listened to once because I just can't justify spending almost 2 hours of my life listening to it twice. 1/5 and fuck you Robert Dimery. Favs: Ultra Stimulation It's Great When We're Together Supreme I Preme Least Fav: Red Rolled And Seen

The singles are the obvious highlights here, but the rest is drab. Overall this album just sounds shallow and unauthentic. Nobody needs to hear this album before they die.

Listening to the Explosive song, which has a prominent baseline drone accompanied by an unintelligible pseudo Rasta babbling. Sometimes I wonder why I listen to these 1001 albums that can be so incredibly painful. The song Supreme goes absolutely nowhere, there’s no emotion, no sense that he cares at all about what he’s singing.

Sigh. Again, the British bent to this list asserts itself. This was a hit there but not in the U.S. and I’ve never heard of him. It’s quite fine reggae and dub stylings that I wouldn’t hate if on in the background.

Es un Dub bastante planchado que acelera poco y mucho tiene que envidiarle al reggea jamaiquino. Que se dediquen a otra cosa los yankees.

It's fun, but it doesn't make me more fond of reggae.

Yes surprisingly good

I've never heard of Finley Quaye before. Sounds like Bob Marley Lite? Dollar store Bob Marley? Bob Marley from Temu? Whatever, this was pretty fun. Ultra Simulation got a bit repetitive, but the chill reggae beat was nice. Sunday Shining had some great music. Even After All was nice and relaxing. You Love Gets Sweeter was wonderful. Sweet And Loving Man was also good. The last few songs kind of lost that energy though. And there were a copule, Ride On And Turn The People On and Red Rolled And Seen, that were terrible. Hard to rate, I feel like the average pulls down to a 2, but all together I feel like Finley deserves a 3. Best song: Your Love Gets Sweeter

Sort of faded into the background without much of a mark.

A few decent songs, but overall not particularly enjoyable

loved just about every minute of this!

The most listenable song was probably Sunday Shining and that wasn’t even a song I’d put back on.

I typically listen to these on YouTube. Someone posted this full album over a year ago. It had only 400 views, and I can see why nobody else has been foolish enough to seek this thing out. Some songs were alright I guess (I dug the horns), but something about that Jamaican-ish accent was giving me Mr. Nice Guy vibes.

This is decent. I never heard of Finley Quaye, so when I saw it was a Scottish musician, I was afraid it was gonna be some more bullshit like The Triffids. The first song was a nice surprise - probably my favorite of the album - but the album gets a little cumbersome after a while. 2.5 rounding up.

Blown away, absolutely unreal.

01) Ultra Stimulation - 7,0 02 ) It's Great When We're Together - 6,5 03) Sunday Shining - 7,0 04) Even After All - 8,5 05) Ride On and Turn the People On - 6,5 06) The Way of the Explosive - 6,5 07) Your Love Gets Sweeter - 8,0 08) Supreme I Preme - 7,0 09) Sweet and Loving Man - 6,5 10) Red Rolled and Seen - 7,0 11) Falling - 6,5 12) I Need a Lover - 6,5 13) Maverick a Strike - 6,5 TOTAL: 6,92 (69/100) Current ranking: 411/672

Maverick A Strike is another one of those albums where the music is good but the lyrics aren't so good. I really do like the fact that it is an album that goes beyond it's main genre by taking influence from others. I always love it when albums do that as it adds more flavor to them. This one mainly is reggae but takes quite a few influences from genres like rock, R&B and hip-hop. My main problem with this album though is the lyrics. These lyrics felt like they were written by someone who was incredibly desperate for a lover (especially in I Need A Lover) Finley just says some pretty creepy things which just feel very off-putting. Other than that, it's a good album, just wish it had better lyrics. Best Song: Supreme I Preme Worst Song: Red Rolled and Seen

Pretty forgettable, not the worst thing I've heard but not that far off.

I was excited to see Finley Quaye show up, as I was pretty sure that I had an album by him, although I couldn't recall either the name of the album (turns out to be "Much More Than Much Love" (2003)) or what exactly he sounded like, which turns out to be completely different on my album than this one. I enjoyed this album, but in a kind of pleasant background music sort of way rather than an engaging listen; it seemed like he was sampling various chill sounds and styles, reminding me of debut albums by Norah Jones or Amy Winehouse, where it's like they were testing out different voices and hadn't quite found their way yet. The highlights for me were probably "Sunday shining" (although not the video so much; actually none of the videos did much for the songs), "Ride on and turn the people on" , and "Supreme I preme".

Got off to a rough start but I really liked Sunday Shining and a few other tracks. Nice debut!

I've never listened to this album (13). Not the biggest of reggae. It wasn't bad though, especially when it melts in other genres.

This was better than I had expected, but it still didn’t blow me away and I probably didn’t need to hear it before I die.

4 stars

Marvelous bass throughout-- next time I listen to this album, it will be for the bass. A lot of reggae, but this is more than just reggae, so much soul and some jazz adds so much to this album. Great stuff. 4/5

It is the first time I have heard this singer. I liked the album very much. My thoughts on the idea that the person singing Reggae is Scottish, my answer is: So? Reggae, just like any other musical genre, has impacted people in the World, not only from one particular geographical location. I am remembering a Salsa group from Japan- Orquesta La Luz. They did very well, but people were too critical of them because they were from Japan. Really? C'mon...4/5

Great mix of reggae, jazz and even hip hop. I really enjoyed listening to this album and will revisit.

3.5/10 Wasn't quite prepared for how bad this was. Low 2, just because at least it was varied.

Wasnt as bad as the last few

I like the sound and the production. I don’t like the songs. With the exception of Sunday Shining and Supreme I Preme, which were rather nice

Modern dub reggae sounds. Interesting but uneven album.

Reggae with bonus slightly odd sound effects. We enjoyed at points. At others, we did not.

REALLY good - demoted to 4 stars only because there weren't any standouts (it was more of a good wash) except for: Great bassline in 'The Way of the Explosive' Loved 'Supreme | Preme' in general - reminded me of Moby

This was ok, I was suprised how much the reviews here grill it. Scottish Reggae wasn't on my bingo sheet, but it was just about fine for the time I had to listen to it.

Chill reggae ish vibes. Scottish? Odd.

Scottish regae/soul?? That was unexpected. I recognized a couple of the hits off here but haven't heard them in years. This was a really good album. I could see this guy touring with Michael Franti. 3.5 rounding up.

Salut Cyril! C'était vraiment un superbe voyage! Les photos ne rendent pas justice aux paysages, c'est vraiment un des plus beau coin du Québec, je te recommande grandement si tu compte explorer notre belle province! Le générateur a été assez clément concernant le post-punk pendant mon absence, j'ai peut-être passé à travers tout les albums de ce style, qui sait? Merci aussi pour la petite leçon d'histoire, je ne me doutais pas qu'il y avait autant de ramification partant du post-punk. J'ai revérifier la quantité d'album post-punk généré à date, j'ai été surpris de voir qu'il n'y en avait que 39! Je pense que j'ai amalgamé un peu le post-punk avec le New-Wave généré 71 fois et l'Indie à 106 fois (on va se le dire, ça sonne assez similaire la majorité du temps). Pour le jazz, par contre, seulement 48 albums sur 865! Et moi qui pensais approfondir mes connaissances en jazz avec cette liste... Je trouve aussi que la liste manque cruellement de musiques du reste du monde. Je peux pas concevoir l'idée que 90% des meilleurs albums de tout les temps proviennent de deux pays seulement! J'veux de l'afro-jazz, du funk japonais, de l'électro mexicain, du prog italien, de quoi de neuf! En parlant de cette foutue liste d'amour-haine, quels albums étais-tu le plus surpris de ne pas y retrouver? Il faudrait que j'y pense moi-même... Et bien, un autre enthousiaste du CD! Je serais curieux de savoir combien de disques tu possèdes. Je dois en avoir moins d'une centaine à tout péter, et je commence déjà à manquer de place! J'ai aussi commencer à brûler sur CD certaines de mes playlists et à faire des bootlegs des albums que je suis convaincu de ne jamais trouver ici! Je me fais même chier à reproduire et imprimer les pochettes! J'espère que ton écoute de mes albums proposés avances bien! ;) (Y'a aucun stress, c'est pas un devoir!) Passe une bonne rentrée! (si c'est pas déjà passé)

A solid album, with a few catchy highlights.

Guess it's a reggae album...

It was interesting to hear a British reggae artist, but I didn’t connect with the songs or grasp the concept—it just wasn’t for me.

no me gusta reggae

Reggaeraggaragga!! Från Skottland! Känslan är att det är meningen att det ska bli lite sköna, avslappnade vibes. Men, det är så pass avslappnat att det blir långtråkigt. Händer väldigt lite. Många låtar låter som att käre Finley halvhjärtat svängt ihop något på en kafferast. Inget inspirerande. 'Even After All' är literally hissmusik. På något sätt är den låten hans mest spelade på Spotify. Troligtvis just för att den spelats på repeat i hissar. Allt är dock inte skit. 'Ride On and Turn the People On' och 'Supreme I Preme' är rätt coola. 'The Way of the Explosive' har en tung basslinga. 'Your Love Gets Sweeter' är söt. Bästa låt: Your Love Gets Sweeter.

Some interesting moments but mostly weak faux-reggae.

This felt like something was off the whole time. I usually listen to these things blind. No reviews, no wiki, no google. Something was just not right here, and it turns out, he's Scottish, not Jamaican. Not even from Jamaica, but Ghana. Idk about you, but I know that's a whole ocean apart. Now, there's nothing wrong with being a Scotsman from Ghana and making reggae, but it felt like he was trying really hard to not be himself. The album as a whole is totally fine. Nothing jumps out of the speakers, but nothing was like nails on a chalkboard. I Need a Lover was cool, though.

Kinda like pop reggae... a lil too clean for me

Je ne connaissais pas cette album ni l’artiste alors c’est parti pour une découverte. Déjà c’est un peu style reggae. Je suis pas une grande fan mais écoutons. Le style est vraiment particulier, je n’aime pas trop personnellement à part Sunday Shining et deux autres mais pas du tout mon genre personnellement.. Comme je me suis ennuyé à l’écoute mais que quelque musique sont pas mal, je met 2/5.

Reggae gfallt mer eher nid so. "Sunday Shining" aber en banger.

I got this album as a teenager and I didnt care for it, back then I had no idea what dub was. It's fine now.

I genuinely enjoyed this so much. The second half is not as good as the first few songs. Overall fantastic production. Strong strong 3

Nice lowkey reggae but otherwise nothing extraordinary.

this is totally fine but I'm kind of baffled by the idea that it's on the list, we get like 7 reggae albums, and we're gonna have one of them be this?

Reggea-Vibes aus Schottland. Schönes Album für den Sommer 3/5

Some great stuff on here. Also some annoying stuff on here. My first introduction to Finley Quaye, and I look forward to hearing some of these songs in the future.

Reggae from a dude from Scotland........ Better than expected but the album got progressively shittier as it went on.

i enjoyed the mix of pop and reggae, good vibes on this, good instruments, enjoyed it a fair bit

A handful of the songs were ok, but I wouldn't listen to the album again.

Sort of a mixed bag. The more soul influenced pieces are really quite good, and will be added to my regular rotation. Some of the other songs are less inspired, but nothing is too bad that I would skip it.

It was kinda like funk reggae?

Well I had so many mixed feeling listening to this. At first I hated but then some soulful songs would come and I would love that, then weird reggae comes back again, and no, I wasnt feeling it...Overall I felt an ok album, it is all over the place but cohesive. . I can see it was acclaimed but it makes me wonder why is this on the list. I've never heard of him before and some easy listening songs remind me sooo much of Morcheeba. It feels weird. 3/5

Oh my god why is his mouth so big? Seriously, it's the stuff of nightmares... Sorry Mr. Quaye, you don't need a lover, you need therapy.

it's good but not my thing for a whole album

All my points go to how this record holds some very unique takes on the sounds of roots in dub/raggae and blends it with all sorts of sounds in a nuanced way! “It’s Great When We’re Together” is a wonderful song with a soulful, more expansive lifting of the typical dub/raggae sound into something more soulful and mass-appealing. Excellent chorus on this one. And for some reason I can’t quite put my finger on, this sounds like a drum less Jamiroquai song?? Does anyone else hear that or am I going insane after 520ish albums. The next song “Sunday Shining” starts out much more rough and I admittedly didn’t like the beginning of it, but it actually develops into a nice big band rocker towards the end. “Ride On And Turn The People On” is incredible and a blend of genres right up my alley. Still using that dub/raggae foundation, but this time taking on some new age and even jungle production aesthetics! And also a stream of consciousness/personal slice of life subject matter I think? This song is so cool and I’ve never heard another song like it, which is impressive because dub/jungle/raggae/breakbeats/new age we’re all getting their moments in the sun around the turn of the century. “Supreme I Preme” is another interesting sound, it kinda throws in some early trip hop into the mix. I really like how fuzzy it all sounds. On this list I often hear albums that dip drastically in quality on their second leg; that isn’t necessarily true for Maverick A Strike, but it does get decidedly more mellow. Not a complaint, just more of a listener beware. Firm 3/5, Ive been wishing for a 10 star system again lately because this probably sits more at a light 7/10 on a good day for me

Definitely front loaded, but the first few songs are so good it lifts the whole album.

Snelle inhaal review #18: The fuck is dit man. Halve indie rock reggae vibes met echt de meest ongeïnspireerde teksten in deze lijst tot nu toe. Misschien moet het nog klikken, maar ik weet niet of ik daar ooit achter ga komen.

Er zat eigenlijk 1 leuk nummer in (even after all), de rest trok mij niet bij eerste keer luisteren.

Shouldn't be on this list. imho

meh

Fav : Sweet And Loving Man A part ça, plutôt mid, monotone, très instrumental mais pas soulful et c’est pas très bien recherché dans l’écriture

Pretty boring pop reggae.

2.5

2.5

3.5

Back in high school my friends and I used to kind of romanticize British popular music as better than the US. The more I delve into Robert Dimery's book, the more I'm finding that's a load of bollocks. And this is a prime example. I can see why this was not double platinum in the US, I cannot see why it went that far in the UK. Nothing groundbreaking and safe as milk. This album at its best is cliche 90s pop reggae. At its worst it is no better than run of the mill adult contemporary of the time. The only song on this album that I even remotely liked was "Your Love Gets Sweeter, which in itself sounds like it could be used in an ad for a Caribbean vacation, but at least it was catching enjoyable. Honestly, the rest of this album I can completely do without. I definitely don't consider this a must listen. (4.6) ★★

Several lacking in hooks, and overall mostly boring. 2.5 stars

I expected worse based on some of the comments, but I thought this was decently enjoyable. Probably not essential, but I did enjoy a fair number of tracks here. "Sunday Shining" was the highlight. 3.5 stars.

Starts off Finley Okay Enough even though it is pretty lame, soupish, generic pop reggae. About 5 tracks in is Ride On And Turn The People On which is an insufferably cheesy turning point though and the album becomes Finley Definitely Not Okay. Also the guy ended up having a long history of violence, domestic abuse, bankruptcy and being chucked out of venues for being shambolic so is a bit of a Finley Qunt.

I felt myself tapping along but didn't actually save any music here. Not bad, but not good enough to stand out for me.

Three strikes.

should have been struck from the record

From that album cover, not at all what I was expecting

## In-Depth Review: Finley Quaye’s *Maverick A Strike* (1997) ### **Background and Context** Released on August 6, 1997, *Maverick A Strike* marked Scottish musician Finley Quaye’s debut studio album. Blending reggae, trip-hop, soul, funk, and rock, it peaked at #3 on the UK Albums Chart, earned double-platinum certification (600,000+ sales), and spawned five hit singles: "Sunday Shining," "Even After All," "Your Love Gets Sweeter," "Ultra Stimulation," and "It’s Great When We’re Together" . Quaye won the 1998 BRIT Award for Best British Male Solo Artist, cementing the album’s commercial and critical legacy . --- ### **Lyrics and Themes** **Optimism and Spirituality**: The album’s lyrics center on upliftment, resilience, and introspection. The title track "Maverick A Strike" repeats the mantra *"Lift up your art / If it ain’t of optimism / I will pay no attention,"* emphasizing creative positivity as antidote to pain . Tracks like "Even After All" and "Your Love Gets Sweeter" explore love’s healing power, while "Sunday Shining" (a Bob Marley reinterpretation) celebrates joy through nature . **Abstract vs. Literal**: Quaye’s writing oscillates between poetic abstraction ("If it ain’t of no flower dew / It’ll sure make you blue") and direct emotional pleas ("I really need you / You would overcome feelings") . This vagueness invites interpretation but occasionally lacks narrative depth, leaning on repetitive hooks . --- ### **Musical Style and Production** **Genre Fusion**: Quaye merges roots reggae with 1990s trip-hop, creating a sun-drenched, accessible sound. Tracks like "Ultra Stimulation" blend dub basslines, swirling organs, and rock guitar solos, while "Your Love Gets Sweeter" channels acoustic Jamaican folk . The instrumental "Red Rolled and Seen" incorporates tribal rhythms and Tricky-esque trip-hop atmospherics . **Production Strengths**: Produced by Quaye with Kevin Bacon and Jonathan Quarmby, the album’s "airy, bright universe" (BBC) avoids over-complication. Minimalist arrangements—e.g., the sparse orchestration on "It’s Great When We’re Together"—highlight melodic simplicity . Quaye’s use of live musician friends (not session players) lends organic warmth, with layered backing vocals and crisp percussion . **Vocal Style**: Quaye’s laid-back, patois-infused delivery polarizes listeners. Critics note his "questionable" Jamaican affectation (as a Scottish-Ghanaian artist), though supporters argue it complements the genre-blending intent . --- ### **Themes: Unity and Escapism** The album radiates utopian idealism. Songs like "Ride On and Turn the People On" and "Supreme I Preme" advocate collective joy and artistic freedom, framing music as a unifying force. Tracks such as "Sunday Shining" offer escapism, evoking "sunny afternoons outdoors" (BBC) . This optimism contrasts with Quaye’s later personal controversies, making the album a time capsule of his brief cultural ascendancy . --- ### **Influence and Legacy** - **Commercial Impact**: A late-1990s staple, its singles dominated UK radio and compilations, influencing "chill-out" trends . - **Artistic Legacy**: It pioneered reggae’s fusion with electronic genres, though Quaye’s follow-up (*Vanguard*) faltered by forcing "reggae with electronic backgrounds" . - **Cultural Debate**: The album ignited discussions on cultural appropriation in British music, with detractors dismissing it as "Scottish reggae" . Despite this, its genre-blending inspired artists like Gorillaz . --- ### **Pros and Cons** | **Pros** | **Cons** | |-------------------------------------------|-------------------------------------------| | **Genre Innovation**: Masterful fusion of reggae, trip-hop, and soul . | **Vocal Limitations**: Quaye’s singing is often overshadowed by production; accent authenticity debates . | | **Production**: Warm, organic textures with minimalist elegance . | **Lyrical Vagueness**: Abstract phrases ("flower dew") risk incoherence . | | **Hit Singles**: Infectious, radio-friendly tracks ("Even After All," "Sunday Shining") . | **Cultural Appropriation**: Criticisms of inauthentic Jamaican styling . | | **Cohesive Mood**: Consistently uplifting and immersive . | **Filler Tracks**: Lesser cuts like "I Need a Lover" lack innovation . | --- ### **Verdict** *Maverick A Strike* remains a landmark 1990s debut, celebrated for its sunny genre alchemy and production finesse. While Quaye’s vocal authenticity and lyrical abstraction divide listeners, the album’s enduring charm lies in its effortless optimism and musical adventurousness. As the BBC notes, it’s "full of quirkiness, sophistication and well-written tunes"—a flawed yet influential classic .

I liked the reggae vibe but not so much his voice

*Low budget Bob Marley mixed with Boyz 2 Men and sometimes Jack Johnson and a lot of autotune or something going on. *I would probably like this a lot more if I couldn’t just listen to Bob Marley instead… *Wait, he’s Scottish? Definitely wouldn’t have been my guess. RATING - 6.5/10

Should be zero stars.

I didn't hate it, pretty non-offensive but also kinda boring reggae/reggaeton faire.

I once saw Finley Quaye perform at V Festival in 1999. Outside of the hits, I was only reasonably familiar with Maverick A Strike, but I recall his set seemed much more rootsy and stripped back than the recordings, and he ultimately cut his set short because he "wanted to go and catch James Brown" who was headlining on the main stage. What I remember most about the performance though, is how effortlessly he could sing. I don't think I've seen anyone else, before or since, be able hold a microphone so far away from their mouth so consistently and still have such volume and clarity in their voice. Really impressive stuff if you were there, even if the set itself seemed a bit rough around the edges and a bit half-arsed - which seemed fairly cool back in 1999. Sadly, it would seem, he took his half-arsed approach to gigging to the extreme in more recent years, which is a shame, because for a while he was certainly a promising artist as Maverick A Strike remains testament to, without necessarily setting the world on fire.

Know nothing about this artist. Sick dub on the first song but the voice is not hitting me. The lyrics are not great. Nothing really sticking out to me

Pretty catchy, though I did get a bit bored by the end.

The singles are good, and made him briefly well known. The rest of the album is a solid, but less memorable set of reggae tracks. I could probably listen to a lot more like Red Rolled and Seen / Maverick A Strike dub tracks.

The acquired Jamaican accent is annoying. The singles are okay.

Finley sets out a set of nice, chill, dubby, reggae grooves. So chilled in fact that he doesn’t feel the need to write any hooks into his songs, which float around cheerfully for the best part of an hour. Music for patient, kind hearted souls.

Surprisingly solid to high 3, never heard of this but nice for a chilled Saturday

Very funky. Feels like they could be an inspiration for Alt-J

This is a cool and interesting record and one's glad to have got to know it via this list. Certainly it's much better than Seal. Or Terence Trent D'Arby. One has no clue what Maverick A Strike could possibly mean. Sounds like the guy was difficult and maybe overrated himself and his potential for long-term stardom. Still this holds up and is well worth a listen on its own terms.

Interesting reggae sound just ok nothing particularly special about this.

3/10

Lekker

Can’t stand reggae, couldn’t get through is

Not a huge fan

Fine. I like reggae in general, but this album felt unexceptional on first listen.

Fine, not really my thing but reggae done very professionally. Good on them.

It was fine.

Kind of liked it, kind of annoying at the same time

I'm not really a fan of him faking a Jamaican accent, nor of his real world violent tendencies. I would have preferred to hear him with his native Scottish accent, and I'm not sure he deserves much attention after over 22 convictions. Without that out of the way, I do love the jazzy and reggae influenced backing tracks. Lots of fun in a bunch of different genres. His backing band is a fantastic group of performers. But I cannot in good conscience give it more than a 2.

Meh

Utter turd

++: It's Great When We're Together, Sunday Shining, Ride On and Turn the People On, Sweet and Loving Man, I Need a Lover +: Even After All, The Way of the Explosive, Supreme I Preme, Red Rolled and Seen +-: Ultra Stimulation, Your Love Gets Sweeter, Falling, Maverick a Strike 6,4/10

A teenage favourite that opened my ears to reggae adjacent stuff. The songs are also very soul oriented, date night, n loving soundtrack. It's hard to argue with how pleasant many of these songs are.

Definitely wasn't up my street, was some sort of laid back reggae house. Went by quickly enough, preferred it when it was more reggae than house, but definitely wouldn't go back.

Super boring and bland. Pretty forgettable rhythms, really middling cover of Sun is Shining. I felt drained listening to it.

This was ok, but a little bland. I like the reggae and dub sound generally. Knew a couple of the tracks, so must've heard him before at some point, but completely forgotten about him. Love gets sweeter is pretty good. Sunday shining too, but it's basically a cover. I'd had enough by the end of the album, I think probably enough for a 3 but it's not great. 2.5

Initially I thought this was another random admin fav, but nope, it’s right there in the original book. I could see myself having liked a few of these had I heard them back in 97 and mostly being indifferent to the rest. Maybe I would’ve thought it bought me some cred for being into a reggae-influenced soul singer from Scotland? Maybe I’m hoping for too much from music sometimes.

A fun and unique album, fusing reggae, jazz, and funk. While the tracklist does lag towards the end, this album remains an enjoyable and exciting adventure

Sunday Shining is the only song that is both tolerable and has something remotely interesting going on. Almost every other song can’t check off either of those boxes.

Found a lot of this interesting and fun, some of it was a little meandering. Liked "Supreme I Preme."

Pretty good.

This album is the reason the Scottish invented the word “shite.”

Im a fan of reggae and many of its offshoots. And also this sucked.

Skottilaista jonkin sortin reggaeta? Jotkut kappaleet aika puhdasta reggaeta, joissain aika erikoinen elektroninen kulma, vähän jopa trip hoppinen. Aika radio kelpoista kamaa kuitenkin. Parhaat: Supreme I Preme, Sunday Shinimg

Love the reggae vibe but repetitive and slow and times

Por un lado, la lista cumple y me entrega un disco que nunca había escuchado, abriendo los horizontes sonoros, pero por otro lado ofrece un disco que, en mi limitada experiencia, tiene casi cero influencia o registro cultural. Así las cosas, califica como disco oculto.

I went in with the lowest expectations, but was pleasantly surprised. The first half of the album has some super interesting and memorable tracks, but it really lost the momentum at that point. 3/5

Nice mix of reggae and soul. Mellow album and a good listen.

This was some of the most disappointing Dancehall/reggae/dub I've had the displeasure of hearing in a long while.

So incredibly boring it’s crazy. A few decent tracks, but nothing that makes me want to come back for more.

Det vise sæ at æ like reggae anno 1997 mye bedre enn æ hadde trodd??? I alle dager.

Voice is annoying af. Music is alright.

Solid album, easy listen

I think I could've died without having listened to this one actually

Soft vocals

Very good, a great blend of reggae into soul and r&b, a cool combo I hadn't heard much of. Would listen again

Extremely enjoyable reggae

Bueno…

chill raggae

Utterly forgettable.

I honestly have no clue how this album ended up on a top albums list, but here we are. It’s not bad, but the lyrics feel very run of the mill and borderline stereotypical. I mean, we already know there’s “no room for fighting because the sun is shining.” Bob Marley taught that decades ago, and said it better. The production leans into that typical 90s dub and trip-hop blend with some pop rock flourishes. Like I said, the music isn’t terrible, but it’s not all that enjoyable either. Everything about this album feels so typical and predictable that it starts to feel like we’re just beating a dead horse.

Coming into this...did I think this should be in the top 1001 albums of all time? Debatable Did I love this album when it came out? Yes Is this album better than about 80% of this list? Almost definitely. Coming out of this...do I think this should be in the top 1001 albums of all time? Yes

The insane over-representation of Gen X British music strikes again!

Fun record. I appreciate

Felt very same-y, there's some decent tracks but mostly ehhhh.

One good song, and boring otherwise

ok

Good reggae sound. Good chill beach music.

I'd never heard of Finley Quaye before today, and this was an interesting listen, but I couldn't quite pin down whether I liked it or not. Sometimes it was lie a standard reggae sound with nothing super unique or interesting and at other times it was very groovy and not quite like anything else I'd heard before. I'm kinda torn between 2 stars and 4 stars, so I'm saying 3.

Another very middle of the road album, nothing special to write home about. Some of the tracks have a solid and interesting bass lines, but they get a little too repetitive after a while. I would consider giving it a 3 with it being so up the middle, but it's also highly forgettable, so I gotta give it a 2

It's good but not really my thing

This was one of the first albums I bought as a teenager. It's a nice blend of reggae, dub and rock, also massive nostalgic vibes. Tricky might not like him but I give this a 4/5

Nothing to write home about here. Some mediocre reggae from a scottish artist. Makes you appriciate how great Bob Marley was. 4/10 for the vibes

This is a watered down version of someone cosplaying as a genre I don't really like. Not great.

Good reggae music. Good Music. Thanks for introducing him.

I'm sure finding 1001 Albums is hard. I know I would be hard-pressed to find that many. And yes, it would be filled with music I didn't really like all that much. I would have to log the hours and do the research to find the "important" albums of those genres, artists, etc that I can do without. And when I ran out of the classics that I like , and I ran out of the "important" ones that I don't, I would probably still have a large number of albums needed to reach my quota. What would I do then? Go year by year and look at top-rated albums? Go year by year and look at top-selling albums? And after that, the number needed would winnow down I am sure, but would I have reached 1001? Again, that is a lot of albums. Eventually I would just go through my own collection and say "I really like this" and on it goes. Is that what happened here? Again, 1001 albums is a big number, and I certainly didn't do the work to make my own list. So, sometimes an album comes up and all you can do is wonder about how to reach the magic number of 1001 and then you shrug and move on.

Look, I'm not going to go in on the guy for being Scottish and making reggae. I used to enjoy Matisyahu (been a while) who is in a similar boat. But I do feel like if you're in that kind of situation you have to make your music stand out. You can't just do your own version of the blandest, most accessible angles of the music. The Matisyahu album I used to listen to had some ripping guitar moments, very heartfelt delivery, etc. This album just sounds bland and annoying. I'm with everyone else who is befuddled this made it on the list.

No

He is by far the worst part of this album, I thought the instrumentation was clever and unique and some of the hooks on this album were great. I cannot stand his voice one bit.

Very-very nice!

It’s tough IMO to make a reggae album sound different from all the other reggae albums out there. This guy gave it a good shot.

oh man this was truly awful. bad reggae instrumentals with bad reggae vocals on top. wanted to turn it off within 10 minutes and then it went on for another 40

I'm really glad I don't care about Game of Thrones or take public transport, thank you reviewers. Anyways the album's pretty good, I don't really understand why it's on the list though.

hmm. nicht einfach einzuordnen. sound gut, gesang mässig bis unkoordiniert, und die tracks hinten auf dem album fallen ab - wohl kein zufall dass die nicht als singles veröffentlicht wurden.

Reagge und trotzdem nicht meines

Was nice but don't generally listen to reggae.

I liked a few of these. Not something I would purchase but somewhat enjoyable.

Not available on Spotify

Best song: Even after it all Raggae works, especially in 1997 when it teetering from pop-grunge into boy bands.

Didn’t come in with any expectations and man, it was so good. Loved it - the right blend of chill vibes, a little Sade smooth sprinkled in. Would absolutely listen to it again on a warm sunny Saturday arvo.

Interesting. Enjoyed it. Didn’t know there was Scottish reggae. Might not go back to this again. But don’t shy away from listening to more.

Not quite getting the hate for this album. Who cares if it's a dude from Scotland doing reggae? You like what you like, and for me this is pretty catchy and a fun listen. There is also some experimental/tri-hop/indie vibes throughout the whole album too which makes its very unique. I haven't heard anything quite like it so in my book it's getting points for creativity. The downfalls I see is the whole album doesn't flow very well. Especially at the end some of the songs are quite boring and way to repetitive. Overall I thought it was a pretty good listen.

This was kind of boring.

Sköna reggae/ska referenser. Ganska mysig musik, men inte riktigt min grej. Trea

Raggae that has fun commentary but gets a little too weird at some points

It's kind of boring reggae-inspired pop. Doesn't do much for me. 4/10

Ultra Stimulation is too repetitive. Bass-driven reggae with an occasional nice guitar fill. It's Great When We're Together is better, with more of a soul vibe. Sunday Shining is great; much more rock-driven and nice guitar parts as well as upbeat. Ride On and Turn the People On isn't special and has the sound of rap/praise choir. Your Love Gets Sweeter is a good chill song. One thing this album does have is a good bit of variation. Some songs dragged on, some were a bit interesting. All in all a single great song doesn't make an album.

Hmm this wasn't really my thing. Parts of it were ok. I've literally never heard of this guy but just read his Wikipedia and feel quite sad. I recognised a couple of the songs. Sunday Shining was nice. Also idk if I'm going insane but I Need A Lover sounds like it samples parts of Waterfall/Don't Stop by the Stone Roses?? is it just me?? I can find no proof or confirmation of this anywhere so maybe it is just me. Anyway yeah, gonna give this 2 stars. It feels like a very specific part of the 90s that I never paid attention to while I was living through the 90s, but now I realise it was always there. Like I would have been in the car with my parents playing Magic FM and some of these songs would've come on but I was paying attention to something else.

Genuinely never heard of this one.

Moody bluesy. Heard of vaguely but never heard til now. Great ambiance. One of the gifts from 1001albumgenerator.

2.0/5.0: Disappointing

not bad as background music, his accent is pretty awful though

1.7/bro this is insufferable to listen to. a few "decent" songs in the entire album

This wasn't too bad to start with. Not my sort of thing but it wasn't offensive to my ears But by the end of it I was mega bored and getting fed up of it. So I've dropped a star 2 ⭐️

p good

My friend asked me, what are the worst albums you’ve had to listen to through that 1001 generator? And, I mentioned a few that came to mind, but as we discussed, I could see an argument for why they were on this list. They either sold a ridiculous amount of records (Kid Rock) or they changed the shape of music in some way. I finally came to the conclusion that I like music, I’m here to expand my knowledge of music, and I’m not as picky or particular as some others using this site. I don’t really fancy myself a critic. I’m willing to personally not like certain choices on this list. Then, the generator heard me, said hold my beer, and gave me this album the very next day. Maverick A Strike has absolutely no business being remembered or honored. What a stupid waste of my time from a violent non-Jamaican imposter. Let’s, as a society, forget this was ever made, please.

I really don’t know what to make of this album. It sounds like a disingenuous attempt at reggae, almost like the artist was making fun of the genre. I’m generally not a reggae fan but this didn’t help. This certainly didn’t need to be on this list

Scottish 90s reggae. Interesting synth elements. Did not grab me at all.

Solid album.

Interesting album, almost has Jamaican vibes throughout. While it wasn’t a bad listen , didn’t find myself being caught by any of the songs / not much repeat value.

Yep, invocing ''the rule'' on this one.

Not horrible but not something I'd revisit.

Pretty good album with a few familiar songs.

Dig it. Not as good as Exodus, but good shit.

Not for me

An interesting mix of Reggae and Soul, witha bit of Trip Hop. I particularly liked the Reggae tracks.

Reasonably good fun. I won't be back but wouldn't mind hearing again

OK. Need a .5 star really. I remembered a couple of the tracks. Liked Sunday shining and Even after all.

Not the best reggae I’ve heard

Nothing special here

sunshine music, soulful reggae - lovely voice, some sweet grooves

Rasta

Not great.

3.5/5

Album art:1 so 90s

Ah, Scottish reggae - the genre absolutely no one asked for. Sure, the singles were fun radio fodder back in the day, and it was fine for someone to throw on at a bbq (Jack Johnson wasn't around to dominate that particular area yet), but that doesn't make it essential listening. I'd have preferred more roots reggae to be included over this.

I was digging the reggae vibes but it fell a bit flat

Great voice, great tunes

This is most definitively NOT a 1001 and a filler for sure. Normal background music.

Solid record, reggae feel, cool voice, well-recorded. Nothing really stood out - it seemed fine.

Why did I have to curse myself by listening to part of this? ha. Once I hear a fake Jamaican accent I'm out y'all.

Not my thing

Your love makes me sweeter is the only highlight for an album of poor Bob Marley impressions

makes me feel tired, especially when i check to see how much of it is left for some reason this album was co-produced by a man named kevin bacon isnt that a marvel

Noooooo. This is objectively not good. Somebody’s taking the piss here, as they would say in the UK. There was no need for me to have to listen to this.

Good Blues, Reggae

This didn't do much for me. It made me want to listen to better reggae. It's fine, but I won't come back to it.

Good

Un album aux textures sonores travaillées et recherchées. Une influence reggae bien présente, sans devenir caricaturale

There needs to be some sociological study on the late-90s / early aughts reggae / surfy musicians and what came of them. Anyway, this has it's moments but really you've heard better in other places.

As 10cc (almost) said I don’t like reggae, because reggae is shit. This isn’t even really reggae, but what it lacks in authenticity it makes up for with a Jafaican accent that, if a white artist had done it rather than one whose heritage is Ghanaian, would have been called out for audible blackface. A horrible cold turd of an album.

Interesting, kind of a pop-reggae. Decent listen, probably not a repeat listen but I didn’t dislike it. 2.5/5

Some of this: sure it’s fine. I can appreciate the progressive spin on reggae, but this sucker was simply way too long. And its inclusion in this list is puzzling. There are way better overlooked reggae artists that (so far) have not been seen here.

Interesting but not great. Fell a lil flat for me at times. 2.5

I enjoyed parts of this but as a whole it fell flat to me... a lot of it felt like fluff. No need for >50 minute runtime here! I enjoyed the reggae-influenced song but most of the other pop-sounding tracks were meh. 2.75/5

Sounds like they took the first guy off the streets.

no thanks

cute little thang not anything to write home about but enjoyable

"Sunday Shining" is such an evocative song for me and I love it. It's almost jazz-like in the way it constantly shifts and changes. The rest of the album is patchy as hell, sometimes verging into futuristic dubstep while other tracks sound like Finley was high with a tape recorder in his bedroom. Also not sure if Finley himself is "troubled" or "a complete dick."

Whoa! So unique and artful. Such a fresh reggae sound, I had a hard time believing it was made almost 30 years ago. Truly a surprising treat!

Kind of like reggae but very very boring and unmemorable. Another one that I listened to a month ago, didn't get around to reviewing at the time, and had to return to.

It starts a lot worse than it finishes. Some stylistic darting around and clichés give way to some genuinely interesting producing and soulful delivery.

WTH is this? My ears are bleeding…

I remember my dad buying/ playing this from the pound shop once, didn’t like it. I’ll admit it’s better than I thought but simultaneously I was playing a game on my phone on ‘its great when we’re together’ and an advert popped up. On the advert there was some piano background music that really complemented the song and I missed it when the advert stopped. Honestly I didn’t find it great nor bad 3/5

It’s a testament to how great Bob Marley was that even the palest of imitations is still a pretty solid album. Favorite Track: Ride On and Turn the People On

Funky chill reggae that is exactly what you would hear at a really trendy coffee shop. Did I like it? Nah, not really, but I'd use it as mood music.

Eh

80s and 90s r&b sound with reggae vocals.

For the most part, "Maverick A Strike" is fairly forgettable, but there are some good tracks that bring a relaxed, easy-going feeling to them. Generally, not a big fan of reggae and dub ("Scottish?"), it combines a modern approach with Quaye's adequately okay vocals that are mildly interesting, but never feels completely authentic or essential. An okay listen for an average talent and album.

Good vibes and very listenable, some wonky bass line type stuff that is cool. But it's also scottish reggae and isn't anything monumental. Generally would rather listen to real reggae, but this was interesting

I normally like reggae, and this wasn’t bad, but not the best I’ve heard. 6/10

I am not certain that I like this album but it is interesting in a way. 3 stars or C+.

There are times when I think the person who compiled this list only listened to 1002 albums. This is one of those times

Reinterprets only in reggae style

Sunday shining I remember from when this album came out. Best track on the album by far. The rest was nothing special.

This album is all over the place. No idea what it is trying to be.

I genuinely cannot get my head around "Edinburgh reggae" as a concept. I have no idea why this made this (or any other list). An intensely irritating voice with an accent that keeps slipping. The lyrics make no sense. Just random phrases poached from other reggae tracks strung together. I kept trying to work out whether it was a pastiche. 1/5.

Pretty cool. Quite eclectic: dub, soul, and other stuff I can't place. 3.5

Not completely my cup of tea, but certainly not bad.

Oef

Den fangede mig vist i godt humør for jeg var sikker på det var en 1’er. Uinteressant men ok easy listening, havde måske sneget sig op på 3 hvis den var nærmere 30 min end en time og det havde været sommer. Ret godt for fake reggae fra en fyr med en fake accent

801 albums du skal høre før du dør + 200 britiske albums fra dengang jeg var ung som du jo ikke, sådan, *skal* høre før du dør men det ku du jo godt gøre? Nogen af beatsene er fede nok, vokalerne gjorde intet for mig, alt for meget ligegyldigt filler.

Non-essential pop-reggae by someone no one has ever heard of

theres just nothing here

I don't know if this is blasphemous or not, but I think this is my favorite reggae album I've gotten so far (including multiple Bob Marley albums). My biggest problem with reggae is that when it's in album form, a lot of it starts to sound the same, but I don't think that's the case here. Sometimes it infuses elements of trip hop, or sometimes it's R and B, and there's even some hints of psych rock. Your Love Gets Sweeter also sounds like a folk or polka song or something. The production here is the real champ. Low 4.

All I know is my first thought was “British Eagle Eye Cherry” and I cannot explain further. Also, hey it’s that one song that I don’t know how I know!

All I have to say it this was a different album, very unique, very experimental, it worked sometimes but I don’t think it was very engaging, it wasn’t “unlistenable” per say. But it wasn’t easy to listen to, there is some cool stuff on here but it was mostly a dud to me sadly. Rating: Bad (Strong ☆☆) Favorite Tracks: Ride On And Turn The People On, Your Love Gets Sweeter, and Supreme I Preme.

Mostly boring background music for poolside chillin 2.8

Scottish reggae...something about this just works

It's one of those albums that is perfectly fine as far as it goes but feels like it's been a bit over-promoted by being on this list. I don't feel it has moved music on enough to be in that category nor is it stand out enough to survive on its own.

I don't think I'd call this essential listening, but it's fine, I guess.

Strong 3

I love this dub-step album... works really well in one go. The right balance between consistency and variation between the songs, and the less well-known ones are just as good as the hits. Nice pumping bass lines and well produced (by himself I believe) too. I read that Finley is a Scot adopting a Jamaican accent for effect - not sure about that but I'll give it the benefit of doubt. Was going to give it 3 after my first impressions, but it's a 4 after a careful listen.

No. Just no.

A couple of nice songs

Once again another UK artist that should not be on this list. A Scottish Rasta man, no thanks. Give me Marley for this style of music.

What a pitiful attempt at “Jamaican” music by a SCOTTISH band. Idiots for thinking that it would work out well

Okay reggae isn’t really my think to begin with and this didn’t change my mind. Normally reggae gets a 3 from me but this dude is buns. There’s a reason he made one album and then dropped off the face of the earth. This was not pleasant. The music was incredibly repetitive. Just the same phrase over and over and over again. So incredibly boring. Also he’s not even Jamaican so what’s up with the accent there bud?

a reasonably "meh" reggae album. why is it on the list?

2.8 Some parts good, some parts bad. The more rasta parts were the weak points, unfortunately that extended to the majority of tracks. But there were some highlights in there, I Need a Lover for example. Not my music, but glad I heard it.

Before I did this project, I never realized that I actively dislike reggae.

Enjoyed this more than I expected. Really cool rasta vibes mixed with Rock. Not every track for me but really loved the vibe.

Well I certainly wasn't expecting reggae. Sunday Shining triggers some long ago memory that I have no real recollection of. Anyway, it kind of grew on my on the second listen, with faves being Sunday Shining and the title track.

I never owned a copy of this but it was pretty unescapable at uni so I've definitely heard the whole thing a bunch of times. Pretty sure I saw him live at one or more festivals, where he was pretty unexceptional, from what I recall. Ugh, learning that he's putting that accent on rather curdles things, too. Some of the songs that were iffy now become actively irritating. 😠 Fave tracks - "Sunday Shining" and "Even After All" have a certain summertime nostalgia bump, I guess.

it's not the worst album i've ever heard but it's also not very good. here we've managed to turn a very vibrant genre with a lot of feel into the most nothing album i've ever heard. there's nothing here unlistenable, but it's not very good. this album is the progenitor of jason mraz. i must listen to this before i die?? surely there's a more authentic reggae album out there that deserves to be on this list more.

1. If this amelodic style of singing continues throughout the rest of this album, I won't be listening to much of it 2. Better, but not great 3. Alright, here comes The Question: why is this album on the list? 4. Not seeing what's special here 5. Nope 6. I like this traditional reggae style better than anything else so far. Still skipped halfway through 7. Made it all the way through this one! 8. Made it all the way through this one, but still pretty meh 9. Best track so far. Still not seeing a reason to listen again 10. Lol. Ok, now my favorite is the instrumental song 11. Skipped 12. Also skipped 13. Meh Another album on this list here without justification by the Wikipedia article or other sources explaining why it's significant or special. In fact, the artist's Wikipedia article states "Three albums were made between 2019 and 2023 but also removed from distribution and outlets because of lack of recognition, interest or support in the United kingdom in terms of live agents, labels and publishers." I think that says a lot more than I could.

Can't make me like reggae, no matter how many times you make me listen to it.

Interessant war es auf jeden Fall, seltsam auch, war an einigen Stellen ganz gut aber auf Dauer ziemlich nervig.