Evolution's CD cover

Artiste: Various

Album: Evolution: Jamaica Popular Song 2007

Genre: Mixed

Rating: 3.5 out of 5 stars

There has been an evolution since the popular song competition began many years ago. No more is there a festival/carnivalesque feel to the music, but an evolution to a mixture of genres and feel.

The soca Latin type Got A Rock by Ray Darwin, kicks off the compilation with a bang, with a strong club feel. Then its back to reggae with Been There with the high pitched voices of Christopher Meredith and Kemoy 'K Swiss' Mair. Then there's a big switch to lover's reggae rock with Be My Lover with the Boyz-II-Men-like voice of Kenneth Lorney.

The Jamaica popular song 2007 entrants are notably missing strong hints of dancehall as most songs are reggae-oriented. The only dancehall songs are towards the end of the compilation with Woman A Di Beauty, where the cross and angry Bounty Killer puts his voice to the lyrics of Neville Winter and Hey Jamaica. However it would have been nice to see what flair the young and talented would have brought to dancehall.

Lyrically, there is a mix of topics from the strength of a woman seen in Jamaican Woman and women bringing joy to the country and its men in Woman A Di Beauty, to the political and social strife seen in Stand Strong. Overall the compilation shows that there is without a doubt talent in the many undiscovered entertainers in Jamaica as the majority of songs sound far from amateur work.

Track Listing:

1) Got A Rock

2) Been There

3) Jamaican Woman

4) Be My Lover

5) Taxi Man

6) Learn To Survive

7) Needing You More

8) Stand Strong

9) Woman A Di Beauty

10) Hey Jamaica