An odd little round-up this. At first glance it seems like yet another compilation devoted exclusively to
Gregory Isaacs' work with producer
Alvin Ranglin. The singer recorded a slew of songs for the former
Maytones singer at the dawn of his career, including a clutch of hits and three albums. Among them were gorgeous romantic numbers like the smash hit "My Number One," lovelorn songs like "Tumbling Tears," another massive hit, "Lonely Days," "Breaking Up," and more nuanced numbers that showed the singer's emotional depths, like "If You're Feeling Hot, I Will Cool You" and "Can I Change My Mind." Cultural classics also abounded -- "Philistines," "The Border," and "No Speech, No Language" included. Virtually everything
Isaacs cut for
Ranglin was of the very highest caliber, as the first ten tracks on this set beautifully illustrate. But
Isaacs never worked exclusively for
Ranglin, and during these early years he also recorded with a plethora of other producers, while the singer also unleashed a further stream of self-produced hits. Two songs don't even scratch the surface of his other canons, but apparently the
Pete Weston-produced cover of "Loving Pauper" and
Gussie Clarke's "My Time" (aka "To Be a Man") are meant to at least highlight all his other work. Hardly! So not really an all-around best-of collection, nor even a best-of devoted to
Ranglin productions. It's an oddity, but filled with glorious music regardless.