Unity (Shinehead album)

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Unity
Studio album by
Shinehead
Released1988
GenreRap, reggae
LabelElektra[1]
ProducerJam Master Jay, Davy D, Claude Evans
Shinehead chronology
Rough and Rugged
(1986) 		Unity
(1988) 		The Real Rock
(1990)

Unity is an album by the British Jamaican musician Shinehead, released in 1988.[2][3]

The album peaked at No. 185 on the Billboard 200.[4] "Gimme No Crack" was a minor radio hit.[5]

Production[edit]

"Come Together", "Truth", and "Chain Gang Rap" were produced by Jam Master Jay; the rest of the album was produced by Davy D and Claude Evans.[6][7] Roots Radics contributed to the album.[8] "Who the Cap Fits" is a remake of a song from Shinehead's debut album.[2] "Chain Gang Rap" samples Duke Ellington's "Take the A Train" and incorporates elements of Sam Cooke's "Chain Gang".[9][10] The title track samples "Come Together".[11]

Critical reception[edit]

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[12]
The Encyclopedia of Popular Music[13]
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide[7]
The Rolling Stone Album Guide[8]
Tulsa World[10]

Trouser Press wrote that Shinehead "continues to mix yankee hip-hop and yardee MC."[6] The New York Times noted that "Shinehead will drift into a falsetto voice to sing, parody somebody for a second, change the beat–nothing stays the same for long."[2] The Gazette determined that Shinehead "proves himself one of the most inventive, intelligent rappers on the scene."[14] The Philadelphia Inquirer concluded that Unity "contains rap, dub-poet toasting, and some of the leanest, most concise vocalizing anywhere in black pop."[15]

The Washington Post stated: "A striking major-label debut, Unity is as rhythmically limber as it is well-meaning."[9] The Los Angeles Times determined that "'Hello Y'All' combined a rap-style vocal with hard reggae rhythms ... 'Know How Fe Chat' reversed the equation by setting a patois-laden Jamaican vocal against a funk arrangement."[16] The Toronto Star deemed the album "a comically-inspired fusion of rap and reggae."[17]

AllMusic called the album "too lighthearted and positive to catch the ears of hip-hop heads who were beginning to lean on harsher sounds that were developing."[12] The Chicago Tribune listed Unity as the sixth best album of 1988; the Star Tribune listed it as the fourteenth.[18][19]

Track listing[edit]

No.TitleLength
1."Unity" 
2."Chain Gang Rap" 
3."The Truth" 
4."Hello Y'All" 
5."Do It with Ease" 
6."Gimme No Crack" 
7."Ragamuffin" 
8."Know How Fe Chat" 
9."Who the Cap Fits" 
10."Golden Touch" 

References[edit]

  1. ^ Shuker, Roy (March 15, 2012). Popular Music Culture: The Key Concepts. Routledge.
  2. ^ a b c Watrous, Peter (October 9, 1988). "Recordings: Rap Plus Reggae – A Compelling Synthesis". The New York Times.
  3. ^ Marcus, Greil (October 20, 2015). Real Life Rock: The Complete Top Ten Columns, 1986-2014. Yale University Press.
  4. ^ "Shinehead". Billboard.
  5. ^ Darling, Cary (April 28, 1989). "Critic's Choice – Pop". Orange County Register. p. P37.
  6. ^ a b "Shinehead". Trouser Press. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  7. ^ a b MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide. Visible Ink Press. 1998. p. 512.
  8. ^ a b The Rolling Stone Album Guide. Random House. 1992. p. 631.
  9. ^ a b "Records". The Washington Post. Retrieved 4 February 2022.
  10. ^ a b Widner, Ellis (January 27, 1989). "Record reviews". Tulsa World. p. 6B.
  11. ^ Marlowe, Duff (2 Apr 1989). "The Essential Guide to Contemporary Rap". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 81.
  12. ^ a b "Unity". AllMusic.
  13. ^ Larkin, Colin (2006). The Encyclopedia of Popular Music. Vol. 7. MUZE. pp. 419–420.
  14. ^ Lepage, Mark (5 Jan 1989). "Shinehead - Unity". The Gazette. p. F8.
  15. ^ Moon, Tom (13 Nov 1988). "Shinehead Unity". The Philadelphia Inquirer. p. I8.
  16. ^ Snowden, Don (18 Mar 1989). "Reggae/Rapper Shinehead Reaches for Wide Audience". Calendar. Los Angeles Times. p. 10.
  17. ^ Potter, Mitch (30 Mar 1989). "Shinehead mixes rap, reggae 'n' fun". Toronto Star. p. C2.
  18. ^ Heim, Chris (6 Jan 1989). "A year without trend left room for adventure". Friday. Chicago Tribune. p. 60.
  19. ^ Bream, Jon (15 Jan 1989). "1988 Pop Music Survey: Echoes of '60s, '70s are in '88's resounding hits". Star Tribune. p. 1F.
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