Cool Ruler
Artist: Gregory Isaacs

In the murky waters of reggae releases, there are few darker depths to plumb than Gregory Isaacs' canon. Over the years, the veteran artist has tossed literally hundreds of sets onto the shelves, a bewildering bundle further complicated by confusing titles and reissues under new names. Take this set for example. Cool Ruler brings together in... Read More

Liberate Yourself
Artist: Sizzla

This two-disc set makes an interesting package: disc one is a new album from Sizzla, currently one of the top deejays on the conscious dancehall scene; disc two is a compilation of similarly oriented artists from the Kariang label, all of them delivering cultural roots lyrics in a dancehall style. The Sizzla disc is rather uneven in quality. Its... Read More

Ultimate Collection
Artist: Jimmy Cliff
Community Score: 7.50

It seems somewhat odd that there has never been a really good best-of compilation devoted to Jimmy Cliff, one of reggae's seminal figures and a major force in popularizing the music in America and beyond. Hip-O's Ultimate Collection is probably the best one assembled to date, collecting Cliff's legendary hits from The Harder They Come,... Read More

The Spirit of Music
Artist: Ziggy Marley & the Melody Makers

From Taj Mahal's soulful harp playing on the opening track to the striped-down, pure sound of the entire CD, it's loud and clear that Ziggy Marley has returned to his roots. Rumored to have gone through a near-death experience, it appears that he and his siblings have done away with all the inconsequential pop music experiments and flimsy lyrics... Read More

The Best of Gregory Isaacs, Vol. 2 - HEARTBEAT
Artist: Gregory Isaacs

Like its predecessor, this (obvious) follow-up to The Best of Gregory Isaacs, Vol. 1 was not a compilation of Isaacs hits at all, but mostly new recordings with a few recent singles added to sweeten the pot. In any case, events conspired to prove the accuracy of both sets' titles. The two albums were recorded in the mid-'70s under the aegis of... Read More

The Best of Gregory Isaacs, Vol. 1 - HEARTBEAT
Artist: Gregory Isaacs

Jamaican producers seemed determined to tempt fate by titling albums in particularly misleading fashion. The most infamous, of course, was the Wailers' 1971 debut album, which like this Gregory Isaacs set was also brashly entitled Best Of. Neither quite lived up to its claims, nor were they even compilations -- both featured mostly new material... Read More

The Prime of Gregory Isaacs
Artist: Gregory Isaacs

It's been estimated that Gregory Isaacs has released close to 500 albums, including compilations and foreign releases, as for singles, few but the very brave or foolish would even venture a guess. Picking through this veritable deluge of discs is a Sisphyean task, by the time you've chosen, another batch of albums have hit the racks.
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Super Hits
Artist: Jimmy Cliff

Great title, but it took some chutzpah to slap it on this set considering that not a single one of Jimmy Cliff's hits actually appears within it. However, what you do get is an excellent selection of songs drawn from the artist's Columbia years. During his time there, between 1982-1988, Cliff released four stellar albums: Special, The Power &... Read More

The Complete Upsetter Collection
Artist: Bob Marley & the Wailers
Community Score: 10.00

The singles that Bob Marley and the Wailers cut for Lee Perry's Upsetter label in the late '60s and early '70s are among some of the most historically significant in reggae. They mark Marley's break with the ska and rock-steady styles of the mid-'60s and the beginning of his mature reggae sound. Of course, historical significance doesn't always... Read More