Shook, Shimmy & Shake: The Anthology

Artist	Owen Gray
Format	CD
Genre	Reggae
Label Name	Sanctuary/Trojan
Producer	Alton Ellis, Laurel Aitken, Chris Blackwell, Dave Bloxham, Denny Cordell, Owen Gray, David Heath Hadfield, Leslie Kong, Bunny Lee, Guy Stevens, Clancy Collins, Robert "Dandy" Thompson, Simeon L. Smith, Eddie Airey, Charlie Moo, Clement Bushay, Junior Lincoln
Release Date	2004 08 10
Song List	1: Please Don't Let Me Go (2:49) 2: Jenny Lee (2:24) 3: I Feel Good (2:39) 4: Cutest Little Woman (2:18) 5: Darling Patricia (2:54) 6: Midnight Track (2:27) 7: She's Gone to Napoli (2:34) 8: Girl I Want You (2:52) 9: Gonna Work Out Fine (2:37) 10: Shook Shimmy and Shake (2:55) 11: You Don't Know Like I Know (2:21) 12: Help Me (2:56) 13: Incense (2:22) 14: I'm So Lonely (2:45) 15: Always (2:47) 16: Sitting in the Park (5:23) 17: Answer Me, My Love (2:53) 18: I Can't Stop Loving You (4:44) 19: Reggae Dance (2:44) 20: Seven Lonely Days (3:10) 21: (Too) Experienced (3:28) 22: I Really Love You Baby (2:18) 23: It's You I Love (2:22) 24: No More (2:50) 25: Please Don't Take Your Love Away (2:33) 26: Tumbling Dice (3:08) 27: You Poured Sugar On Me (3:11) 28: Guava Jelly (3:00) 29: Bongo Natty (3:44) 30: Let Jah Arise (2:23) 31: Free Up Jah Jah Children (2:39) 32: (Stop) Fussing and Fighting (2:32) 33: Give a Helping Hand (3:35) 34: I Think of You (3:46) 35: Ribdedim Bam (2:56) 36: (What A) Blazing Fire (2:31) 37: Lonely People (2:11) 38: I Say Super Jaws (3:44) 39: (Hear) The Children a Cry (3:01) 40: (I Love You For) Sentimental Reasons (3:08) 41: I Man Nuh Run (2:38) 42: Natty Children (aka Rasta Children) (2:43) 43: Candida (3:04) 44: (Gimme Gimme) Some Helping Up (3:41) 45: Ain't Got No Money (2:59) 46: Fire in a Trenchtown (2:49) 47: Turning Point (3:28) 48: When I Need You (3:58) 49: Give the Children Food (2:57) 50: The Greatest Love of All (3:23)
Style.Categories	Smooth Reggae, Bluebeat, Roots Reggae, Rocksteady, Ska, R&B, Soul

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A prolific reggae vocalist who began recording singles in the late '50s and continued doing so for decades, Owen Gray finally got a thorough anthologization in 2004 when Trojan/Sanctuary released the long-overdue Shook, Shimmy & Shake. The double-disc, 50-song anthology is a wide-ranging reflection of the singer's best output. Gray began as a Bluebeat singer and later drifted toward traditional reggae à la Jimmy Cliff, passing through ska, rocksteady, and roots reggae phases along the way. This evolution slowly takes shape across the 20-year span documented here, with some insightful and invaluable liner notes by Michael de Koningh to shed light on that multifaceted evolution. While most every song here is of high quality, there are a few particularly novel inclusions, perhaps the most curious one being Gray's Chris Blackwell-produced cover of the Rolling Stones' "Tumbling Dice" (imagine that -- Exile on Main St. à la rocksteady!). Granted, this isn't the entire encapsulation of the high points of Gray's long, fruitful career. He did continue recording into the '80s and '90s (this anthology spans 1959-1978), most notably recording a cover of Marvin Gaye's "Sexual Healing" for Pama in 1982, but it's questionable whether those especially latter-day recordings are high points per se. And yes, there some real gems missing here, given the bottomless well of songs Gray recorded over the decades for various labels. In any event, however, Shook, Shimmy & Shake is a treasure trove, not only of Gray's mostly out of print recording career but also of excellent Bluebeat, rocksteady, and roots reggae music. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide