Familiar to the reggae faithful but a certifiably "slept on" artist otherwise, this 2014 set from VP rounds up a bunch of collaborative tracks and collaborative singles from
Alborosie, a Sicilian-born, Jamaican-bred singer/producer with a fat stack of reggae hits behind him. Even with just these "& friends" cuts as examples, his name should really be "household," especially when "Presented" by
Clifton "Specialist" Dillon, the management man who made
Shabba Ranks and
Mad Cobra worldwide reggae stars in the '90s. The set makes catching up a hit-filled experience, kicking off with the vital weed anthem "Waan the Herb" with
Black Uhuru's
Michael Rose, before
Gentleman's "Celebration" offers Euro-reggae at its finest. The two opening cuts display how pleasingly free the set plays it as "Herb" is an
Alborosie cut featuring
Rose, while the
Gentleman number is vice versa, then later, the great "Tribal War" comes from a recording where singer
Luciano was credited as a solo artist, although
Alborosie's production and background vocals warrant its inclusion here. Then there's the singer's take on "Guess Who's Coming to Dinner," which "features"
Black Uhuru via sampling, but with the beautiful "Blessings" with
Etana, the cute and punky "Informa" with Lady Ann, and the gangsta anthem "Murderer" with
Busy Signal, disc two ends up just as packed with highlights as disc one, because here, the grooves are as loose as the rules. What's important to know is that some truly vital solo hits like "Kingston Town" aren't included, but the hip-hop industry could learn something from reggae's love of the collaborative comp, as the full
Alborosie picture becomes clearer thanks to this fantastic set. ~ David Jeffries