The Norman Jay album I picked in my Top 25 albums originally was "Good Times". It was the first of a series of compilations in which the most recent came out in 2011. What I liked about it was the variety of genres it spanned from past to present which made me want to go and see Norman Jay play, which I did.
This was his first compilation release since the "Good Times" series and I've got a feeling I went to see him play around the release of this album, though have no recollection of it being released.
What gave me confidence that I'd enjoy this album is a couple of things. Firstly, if Norman Jay was going to go down the mass appeal route he would have done many years ago given how long he's been around. Secondly was the knowledge that this wouldn't exactly be a modern album as such, it would be a selection of tunes from years gone by when music generally was much better.
It does what it says on the tin really, it's a mixture of ska/reggae and funk/disco music. This is where it differs from "Good Times" which incorporates a greater breadth of genres but that's not to say this album lacks variety.
It begins with the St German version of "The Pink Panther Theme", a bit of familiarity to settle you in even if you're not familiar with that version. Similarly we have "Living For the City" early on but it's the Michael McDonald version rather than the Stevie Wonder one.
Household names such as The Chi-Lites, The Real Thing and Rick James appear on the album but not any of their better known ones.
To me this is what appeals about these compilations. There's nothing really too obvious on there unlike the majority of compilations out there. I also like the way it showcases the fact there was some decent disco out there and it wasn't all about the cheesy rubbish it's best remembered for.
A positive start then, would be great if I can say the same for the other albums I'm going to listen to.
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