For the Warlord!. . .
Achis | Kingston, JA/Philipsburg, SxM | 11/07/2006
(5 out of 5 stars)
"There have perhaps been more talented and more versatile dj's than Bounty Killer. There have been tons of lesser talents who have garnered more attention, both at home and abroad. There have been artist's who have even made their name off of Bounty Killer's career, and although he is the crowned Warlord, he has not won EVERY single battle, although he has won every war.
However, when it comes to literally OWNING the ear of the ghettos of Jamaica, no other artist has ruled those areas, particularly in Kingston with an iron fist as Bounty Killer has. Every single artist you will ever hear of from these areas will claim, above all others as his (and sometimes her) greatest source of inspiration. Artists such as Vybz Kartel, Aidonia, Busy Signal and even Warrior King will list the Killer as the best and claim to know all of his lyrics (even though most of them aren't from Kingston). Bounty has also done his part to seeing that the talent get risen to such a level to be mentioned in the same sentence as himself, as he has in recent years been the courier to bringing up such now established talents as Elephant Man, Vybz Kartel, Wayne Marshall, Baby Cham and a slew of others.
Therefore, its only fitting, after having released double greatest hits album for Beenie Man, Sizzla and Beres Hammond, and a well powerful single for Lady Saw as well, that the Warlord would get his turn as well.
This is the begin all, end all albums for Killer. This album is so well put together that just listening to it had me reliving my teenage years and hearing songs that I used to recite at lunch time daily. Songs like the long forgotten but smash No Interview, New Gun, Gun Thirsty, the big man combination 21 with Pinchers!
But that's just the beginning. More recent hits such as Sufferah with Wayne Marshall from the Diwali riddim and the dark and slack Fitness with Angel Doolas also made the cut, so if you just started listening to Rodney Price in the last few years you're covered as well, but I suspect that the fan who will get the most satisfaction out of this one is the fan who has been following his entire life. Its just awfully interesting to see how Killa's style changed with the times but never sold out to what was popular, just a natural and gradual change. Evolving now to the point of him becomming the proto-type modern aged aggressive styled dancehall dj.
My favorite Bounty Killer song of all time is track #7, disc one LODGE. Its my favorite song between the 2 discs, just that simple simple beating of the lyrics and arrangement just keeps the head nodding. Also love the songs proceeding it: of course Spy fi Die, of course Coppershot, of course Statement, of course Dead This Time! They also pack the quality at the end of the first disc with hit after hit, My Xperience, the fine fine Suspence which I hardly remembered, Fedup Sufferah and the disc ends with the notorious Look. One of the hardest pure dancehall culture songs you'll ever hear anywhere.
Disc 2 is packed just as tight, although perhaps in a 'lighter' mood. All the 'gal tunes' seem to congregate on disc 2. Although, the oddball such as the sickly wicked Warlord makes an apperance on disc 2. The best of the gal tunes is probably the big hit combination with singer Barrington Levy, Living Dangerously, still one of my favorite songs with the rather most unlikely of combinations running through. He also drops in the odd but classic ode to his mother on Miss Ivy Last Son which became a hit on all reggae fronts. Salvation, Seek God, Roots Reality & Culture all culturally follow such big tunes as Fitness and Arrow in closing out the spectacular disc 2 before a rare Addies special/mix.
ALSO, big biggups to VP. The album is very very nicely packaged and presented and they have been on a roll lately with not only regular releases but greatest hits albums and re-releases from such artists is I-Kong, Dennis Brown (biggup Locks Lion on the review) and Garnett Silk. And although Killa may have not proven to be the best business man, but he has scored maybe the finest deal of his career as next year will see the release of not only his first album since 2002 but an album featuring his 'Alliance' crew which features some of the best talent Jamaica has to offer (Kartel, Ele, Busy Signal, Idonia, Wayne Marshall, Mavado etc.) as well.
Overall, I can't recommend this one enough for a wide variety of Bounty Killer fans. This is a project for all of his fans. For the new fan, this will show you the history of the artist which you're just getting to know and show you exactly where he came from and how he got to be where he is in terms of his standing in dancehall. And of course, old fans will literally drool over Nah No Mercy's lineup, trust that your favorite song is here! From the classic style that Bounty revolutionized of dj battles and war and all the wins and scars he's collected over the years to the oft-forgotten versatility of the artist. Definitely 5 stars, definitely one of the best albums of the year, and definitely looking forward to a huge '07 from the Killa."
Track Listings (20) - Disc #1