Title: Wanted dread and alive
Artiste: Peter Tosh
Year: 1981
Chronological position: Third album
Previous experience of this artiste?: Zero
Why is this considered a classic? ?
My thoughts
One minute (or thereabouts in) ---- Good, great, bad, meh, still waiting or other? Meh
One track in --- Meh
Halfway through --- Meh
Finished --- Meh
Comments: I’ve never been one to give reggae much of a chance, feeling that a lot of it sounds the same, but it’s always good to open your mind a little and my experience with Bob Marley was not the ordeal I had expected, so let’s see how this goes. Well it’s a slow, dare I say boring, opening with the first track, belying its title “Coming in hot”, though the next track kicks it up with a bit more soul. Still not too interested though. “Reggaemylitis” is mildly funny but again it doesn’t engage me. There’s just very little energy in this so far I feel.
Yeah, while I don’t want to dismiss all reggae as the same, the complaint seems justified with this album. I’d be hard-pressed to single out one song from another. Maybe that’s not fair: maybe it’s just not engaging me enough --- or at all --- for me to care. All I can say at this point is that I’m sort of listening on auto-pilot and waiting for it to be over, which is never something I want to be in a position to have to do. But there it is. I couldn’t be less interested in this album if it was a Cryptopsy double live effort.
Ok, eventually something makes me sit up a little. “Rastafari is” has a really nice guitar solo and it’s a decent song, but we’re getting close to the end of the album by now. The last track is really nice, but again it’s a little too late at this point. Still, at least it ends the album well. Actually no, let’s be honest here: it drags on way too long and that flute is damn annoying.
Favourite track(s): Rastafari is, Fools die
Least favourite track(s): Nothing bad as such, just all very dreary and boring to me.
Final impression --- Hasn’t done much to change my mind about reggae, though I’m aware I know virtually nothing about it. May be a while before I give it another chance though.
Do I feel, at the end, A) I wish I had listened to this sooner
B) I'm sorry I bothered
C) I might end up liking this
D) Have to wait and see
E) Bit underwhelmed; was ok but a classic?
F) Definitely enjoyed it, but again would I consider it a classic?
G) Enjoyed this album just purely on its own merits
H) Glad I listened to it
A big B here and a
