The Best of Sizzla: The Story Unfolds

Performer: Sizzla
Artist: Luciano; Jah Cure
Distributor: Fontana Distribution

Notes: Personnel incudes: Sizzla, Jah Cure, Luciano (vocals). Producers include: Phillip "Fattis" Burrell, Dean Fraser, Cedrica "Soljie" Hamilton, Fire House Crew, Bobby "Digital" Dixon. Compilation producers: Joel Chin, Barry Wilson. Includes liner notes by Rob Kenner. All tracks have been digitally remastered. Editors: Paul Shields; Joel Chin. Photographers: William Richards; Anderson Ballentyne; Koji Yawata. Sizzla's success is no mystery. He is a lightning-tongued DJ who can ride a rhythm and spout creative rhymes with the best of the dancehall chatters, and while he's no crooner, he is a better-than-average singer who presents his Bobo Dread beliefs with an appealing combination of rootswise devotion and gruff, aggressive certainty. And ever since attaching himself to Fattis Burrell's acclaimed Xterminator crew, he has done so to the accompaniment of the best dancehall and neo-roots rhythms available. This very useful two-disc best-of gives a good overview of Sizzla's work since the mid-'90s. Interestingly, the program de-emphasizes somewhat the gleeful depictions of fiery Babylonian destruction and the fierce homophobia that are typical of so many Bobo Dread albums (including Sizzla's) in favor of more generally palatable songs addressing broader issues of faith ("No Other Like Jah," "Show Us the Way") and upright behavior ("Good Ways," "Love Is Always There"). Still, the preachiness would be harder to take if the rhythms weren't so consistently great and if he weren't such a talented singer. The combination tracks are a mixed bag; there are only two, and one ("Jah Blessing," featuring Luciano) is wonderful, while the other ("King in the Jungle," with a whiny Jah Cure) is bearable. Highly recommended overall. ~ Rick Anderson

Jamaican singer Sizzla is one of the most prolific and sought-after performers in dancehall history. Sizzla entered the scene at the cusp of the 1990s conscious movement--a trend in dancehall and reggae that moved away from ghetto thug posturing and put the tenets of Rastafarian living and the politics of liberation front and center--and quickly became one of its most successful exponents. Although criticism has been leveled at Sizzla for his outspoken anti-gay statements, he remains one of the most popular figures in reggae, and has released nearly 30 albums between 1995 and 2006 alone.

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