From Kingston to King: Greatest Hits So Far (CD/DVD Combo)
Artist(s):
Beenie Man
Label: Virgin Records Us
Publisher(s):
Virgin Records Us
Studio: Virgin Records Us
Manufacturer: Virgin Records Us
Binding: Audio CD
MPN: 63273
Format(s): Enhanced, Explicit Lyrics
List Price: $19.98
Our Price: $11.97
Availability: Usually ships in 1 to 3 weeks
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Welcome to Jamrock
Best of Beenie Man: Collector's Edition
Track Listing
1.
Who Am I
2.
Girls Dem Sugar
3.
Romie
4.
Ole Dawg
5.
Slam
6.
Foundation
7.
Nuff Gal
8.
Bookshelf
9.
Girls Dem Sugar - featuring Mya
10.
Love Me Now - featuring Wyclef
11.
Miss L.A.P.
12.
Bossman - featuring Lady Saw & Sean Paul
13.
Dude - featuring Ms. Thing
14.
King of the Dancehall
15.
Row Like A Boat
16.
The Specialists - featuring Vybz Kartel
Editorial Reviews
Album Description
The CD is a collection of Beenie Man's greatest dancehall tracks. With the DVD "Kingston to King of the Dancehall" Beenie Man shares his art and life for the first time on DVD. Includes a 31-minute featurette directed by S.A. Baron, 7 music videos and a gallery of photos by Jonathan Mannion.
Customer Reviews
BIG Package!!! Well done!!
Firstly, Beenie has been recording since 9 years of age. Its now 20 years of music. He was crowned DJ of the year in Jamaica numerous times including a five-year streak in the 1990s. He has won nearly every major award in reggae or Caribbean music, from MOBO to Tamika, to Grammy. Its impossible to capture such a reign on ONE CD. So I must give them credit for undertaking such a difficult task. This is an excellent package filled with hardcore hits and good video footage.
The CD places the chosen hits in chronological order, which is useful for charting the success of Jamaica`s most seasoned danchall ambassador. "Who Am I", featured first, was his international breakthrough, earning him reviews in Newsweek magazine--a first at that time for a danchall entertainer. The Punaany ridim is featured here in 2 variations in Romie and Girls Dem Sugar which put Beenie firmly in the international limelight. Those singles galvanised his urban popularity in the mid to late 90s, being featured in a variety of remix styles. "Slam" introduced a different meaning to an old word and now in dancehall circles the word has only one mischeivous meaning. Other favorites here include " Row Like A Boat" which signalled Beenies return to local chart topping after international and crossover success on Art and Life. This DJ is known for his versatility on stage and in the studio and "Nuff Gal" proves why. "King of the Dancehall" a more recent hit, displays Beenies talent for sexually outrageous lines. Dave Kelly, the ace dancehall producer, teamed up with Beenie in 2004 to produce the massive hit "Dude" also featured here. After a lukewarm start to the millenium, this hit put Beenie back at the top of his game.
This CD reverberates with energy and attitude, and is a good tribute to a veteran artiste who after 2 decades is still thrilling audiences worldwide. Seen strictly from an artistic or entertainment viewpoint, this CD will certainly not disappoint.
Disclaimer:
Dancehall is not for everyone. Dancehall fans know that if you listen for a while you will hear calls to burn the Vatican, assassinate world leaders and shoot those who cooperate with the police. Sounds a lot like its cousin rap music, doesn`t it? So homosexuals should not feel they are getting any special hate. And neither Beenie, NOR DANCEHALL, is singularly guilty of these now so-called lyrical crimes.
By the way, moderators, isn`t it a contravention of the rules here that certain reviews do not even address the content of the CD they are supposed to be reviewing?
Taken from amazon.com...
"What to include:
* Your review should focus on the music on this CD."
Solid Collection
This CD/DVD is a great buy for the new and the dedicated Beenie Man fan. For new fans, this is a great introduction to the hits that have truly made Beenie Man "King Of The Dancehall."
The Audio CD opens with Beenie's earliest & one of his biggest international hits "Who Am I." Who can forget the first time they heard "Zim Zimmer, who got the keys to my beamer?" "Girls Dem Sugar" & "Romie" are 2 more classics that will get any dancehall to this day popping. "Ole Dawg" & "Slam" boast production from superstar dancehall producer Dave Kelly. Think what Dre as a producer is to hip-hop, thats Dave Kelly to dancehall. Of course the necessary Virgin hits like "Girls Dem Sugar" remix feat. Mya, "Love Me Now" feat. Wyclef, "Dude" feat. Ms. Thing & "King Of The Dancehall" are all present. Not to mention my favorite "Bossman" feat. Sean Paul & Lady Saw. Its good to see that "Row Like A Boat" (previously unreleased in the U.S.) which is Beenie praising Bogle & "The Specialists" feat. Vybz Kartel are included, as many would consider these big hits for Beenie. There are definitely hot tracks on the audio CD that any Beenie Man fan would love to have on 1 disc. Its not so much a greatest hits, but a collection, very well titled for this CD.
The DVD is the gem however, the added treat. Incredible live footage displays Beenie's raw talent, touching footage of Beenie at his best friend's funeral, and horrifying footage of Beenie's Hummer accident in Jamaica. Its all there in a half hour featurette which is very well put together. Not to mention all 7 of his music videos released on Virgin.
This is definitely a must for all Beenie Man fans. In looking at the comments at the review below, it is obvious this person does not know a thing about Beenie Man. There is not one homophobic lyric on this release, nor any of the songs on the 3 Virgin released Beenie Man albums. The singles mentioned below were released soley in Jamaica, and in the U.S. are hard if not impossible to come by. Therefore non of these songs are promoted and easily accessed to people. Not to excuse Beenie Man for actually recording them, but the very comment the reviewer below made comparing Eminem to Beenie is ridiculous. Why is Eminem excused?? This reviewer below says at least Eminem's lyrics weren't as serious & homicidal as Beenie Man's and it is expected of Eminem to say these things because he got a reputation of saying them? So that excuses Eminem? Because he is expected by people to say these things? So that makes Eminem exempt? Please the only reason this writer says this below is because Eminem is white. Its okay for Eminem because he is white, it is not okay for Beenie because of his skin color. Eminem is not to be taken seriously when he says he will murder & rape his wife because he is white, while Beenie Man is to be taken serious that he will kill gays because he is black. That was just an incredible remark. Its okay to excuse a white guy rapping about killing & raping his wife & spitting homophobic lyrics, because we expect this from Em because he has a "crazy" reputation, but Beenie Man, the Jamaican is a cold blooded killer and means what he says.
I just don't buy it. The fact none of the songs on this CD & all of the content on the DVD do not have anything remotely homophobic on them, obviously shows this reviewer did not even listen to the audio CD nor watch the DVD. Therefore that review should be voided and not taken seriously.
The most homophobic artist alive
People seem to look past Beenie Man's extremely homophobic lyrics. In the song "Damn", Beenie Man states "Well I'm think of a new Jamaica, me come to executve all of the gays". How can he get away with saying something like this. Eminem got so much attention for his homophobic lyrics on his sophomore album, but at least his lyrics weren't as serious and homocidal as this. Eminem just made jokes. Eminem kind of got the reputation of saying crazy things. Threatening to murder his wife, talking about raping his mother, people learned that Eminem was known for saying outrageous things that obviously shouldn't be taken seriously. Eminem is like a comedian, Beenie Man is not. Plus, who did we see perform with Elton John??? Who gave Elton John a big a** hug after their performance??? Beenie Mans seems much more convincing when his homophobic and homo-homicidal lyrics are heard. Beenie Man has recorded numerous songs about his homophobic views, which are much more offensive than anything Eminem has ever said. Another song that supports this, is Beenie Man's "Bad Man, Chi Chi Man", which suggests that you should be proud if you are hederosexual ("If you nun chi chi man wave your right hand and [NO!], if you nun lesbian, wave your right hand and [NO!]"). The following lyric, is percieved to me as him stating that a gay man is actually worse than a murderer, and murderers go to jail and become gay men ("Some boy will go a jail fi murda tun badman chi chi man"). The word "tun", if precieved differently, can give an entire new meaning. Does he mean "ton" or "turn". If he means "ton", he could saying that a man should have the right to kill a "ton" of people who happen to be gay, and not go to jail. In of the verses he gives in the homosexual sterotypes (And yuh seh chi chi man have one special code / Now we see yuh inna video and a naked man pose / Yuh all a gi him money fi tek off him clothes). What the hell is this all about? All gay men aren't porno stars and strippers, what the hell. Out of all the gay people I know, I don't know ANY that are strippers or porno stars. All of these lyrics are much more offensive then Eminem jokingly saying "I was only checking the mail...get it..checking the male". Beenie Man is obviously a closed-minded homophobe, just like our president. I suggest to anyone who is NOT homophobic, AVOID Beenie Man's music. I still can't figure out how he was able to collaborate with Janet Jackson, whom has completely opposite views, as you can here in here song "Free Xone" in which she supports gay people and encourages people to be who they are and not follow any rules, as well as encouraging people to be excepting and open-minded of others. Janet must have been anaware of Beenie Man's homophobic, closed-minded, and intolerant views when she collaborated with him, on the song "Feel It Boy". Beenie Man has also collabrated with people like Wyclef Jean, Lil' Kim, Mya, Jon B., and others. All who I'm pretty sure aren't homophobic, but have no proof, I just hope that they aren't, and don't get the vibe that are. Yeah, so Lil' Kim says "faggot" and stuff, but she doesn't hate gay people. I read an article about how the gay community is so found of Lil' Kim, and she was interviewed about and didn't seem to have any type of problem with gay people. I know for a fact that neither Jon B. or Mya is homophobic. But anyway, that's kind of irrelevant, I just find it interesting that he's collaborated with all these people, when he's saying this crazy things that none of these artists agree with. AVOID BEENIE MAN!!!
Beenie always a king
Anyone that is a true dancehall fan will love this CD, Beenie has been singing since the tender age of 10. He is the king indeed!! Unfortunately people think that only North American recognition boost your music career. Well those of you out there knows that Beenie Man is no one album wonder. He's been around way before Sean Paul and alot of others. Do your home work before you try to knock the "Grammy Kid". No man can keep him down, including the Gay activist.
Is he really the king?
Beenie Man is as popular as reggae/dancehall artists come these days, up there with the likes of Sean Paul and Elephant Man. So it only makes sense to try and cash in on this popularity, releasing a greatest hits album after only 3 major-label albums and a few hit singles (in the United States). But as the liner notes to "Kingston to King of the Dancehall" states, it's "not so much a greatest hit collection...as it is a selection of favorite tunes". Accompanying the 16-track CD is a DVD with 7 music videos and a 31-minute featurette on the "King of the Dancehall". Does he live up to the name?
Well, yes and no. It's all in how you listen to your music. The album is packed with bouncing 'riddims' that would cause any dance-floor to fill with plenty of grinding. The album starts off with Beenie Man's "Who am I", the song that launched him to superstardom (almost everyone can recall the line "Sim Simma, Who got the keys to my beemer"). The CD also includes the hit "Girls Dem Sugar" and its remix (by the Neptunes) featuring Mya, the popular song that caused Beenie Man's "Art and Life" to win a Grammy. Also included on the CD are hits "Romie", "Bossman" and lesser known tracks like "Ole Dawg" and "Slam".
The CD is not at all at a shortage for tracks that'll get the booties shakin', but it's not for everyone. When listening to tracks in their entirety, the beats can get pretty repetitive, the CD is much better in small doses. Some hardcore fans may not be satisfied with the exclusions of tracks like "Murderer" and "Healing", but it's hard to please everyone on a compilation album. Also, Beenie Man has received a lot of heat from gay activist groups about his allegedly homophobic lyrics. Lyrics in general are a weakness when it comes to Beenie Man's music. Insightful lines like, "Yuh body shape so good/Let mi introduce yuh to a piece a wood", will cause people who listen to music for a deeper meaning to shake their head in frustration.
Beenie Man is what he is, in response to the pressure against his lyrics, he replied, "A gay man is [still] a man," and "It is very wrong to incite violence against anybody". This music is not meant to be analyzed, instead it should simply be enjoyed. The bonus DVD is enjoyable and a great added feature for fans. But this album seems to be made for his latest audience, seeing that there was a "Best of Beenie Man" album released 5 years ago with far fewer North American hits. Overall, the lyrics won't make your jaw drop, it may be missing some of his essential roots, but the beats on the album are sure to make your body move.
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