Gangsta Blues

by Tanya Stephens

Overview

Onetime dancehall diva Tanya Stephens is back after an extended exile in Sweden, where she spent three years away from her beloved roughneck riddims making alternative rock for Warner Bros.' Swedish subsidiary label. She picks up pretty much where she left off, with expert but not exactly revelatory dancehall reggae based on rhythms provided by a handful of A- and B-list producers. Stephens' most significant asset is her genuinely rich and cultivated singing voice, a dark and supple alto that slips effortlessly from melody to chat and back again. Her lyrics are mostly a predictable mix of defensive braggadocio and by-the-numbers slackness; exceptions include the emotionally complex "Little White Lie" and the brilliant "What's Your Story." (She also makes an interesting choice of covers with a pretty fair version of Helen Reddy's "I Am Woman.") The more vintage-style rhythms seem to bring out her best performances -- the album's highlight is "It's a Pity," which is built on a rich and dubwise Fatis Burrell production. Like most rap and dancehall albums, this one is too long by half -- of the album's 17 tracks, maybe nine are worth repeated listenings, and most of the rest feel like filler (not to mention the tiresome spoken word interludes). Not bad overall. ~ Rick Anderson

Product Details

Release Date:	03/30/2004
Label:	Vp Records
UPC:	0054645169127

Tracks

1. Intro
2. Way Back
3. Boom Wuk
4. Damn
5. Good Ride
6. Little White Lie
7. It's a Pity
8. Tek Him Back
9. I Am Woman
10. This Is Love
11. Gangsta Gal
12. What's Your Story
13. Can't Breathe
14. Sound of My Tears
15. The Other Cheek
16. What a Day
17. We a Lead

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Tanya Stephens   Primary Artist
Spragga Benz   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Wyclef Jean   Primary Artist,Featured Artist

Technical Credits

Pierre Baigorry   Composer
Anthony Senior   Composer,Producer
Emil Gotthard   Composer
Boris Silvera   Composer,Producer
Leander Topp   Composer,Lyricist
Cargill Lawrence   Composer
Ray Burton   Composer
Melbourne 'George' Miller   Composer
Neil "Diamond" Edwards   A&R
Harry Woods   Composer
Helen Reddy   Composer
Paul Shields   Editing,Mastering
Mitchum Chin   Composer
Ricky Myrie   Composer
Kerry DeBruce   Design,Art Direction
Clement "Coxsone" Dodd   Composer,Producer
Harris Seaton   Composer
Donald Dennis   Composer
Louis "Flabba" Malcolm   Producer
Philip "Fatis" Burrell   Composer,Producer
Mister Doo   Producer
Pionear   Producer
William Richards   Photography
Jerome Bugnon   Composer
D. Dennis   Composer
Vivienne Stephenson   Lyricist,Composer
Andrew Henton   Composer,Producer