Search - Various Artists :: Sounds of the Carribean

Pleasant surprise

Robert M | Clawson, Michigan | 12/07/2007

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I'm sure we all order things sometimes from Amazon just because they're cheap and it's possible that they might not be a complete turkey. That's what I did with this CD (altho I had heard one track from it on "On The Rocks", the excellent on-line only Lounge music station provided by one of the satellite radio services). You can imagine my pleasure, therefore, to discover that not only is the disc definitely not a turkey but that every track is delightful. Most of it is Caribbean Lounge stylings, naturally with steel drums frequently added into the mix, played in a manner that is both stylish, laid-back and gently energized. While it's a little off the beaten path of my listening, it blends well into my Lounge/Exotica collection.



No information is given about any of the performers, and I suspect they are all amateur musicians, but they are obviously talents on their instruments and, more importantly, they all sound like they're having great fun making this music and their pleasure comes across to the listener. A while ago, I reviewed a CD by a professional band who I thought sounded enough like amateurs (in the negative sense of the word) that it was downright queasy listening. There are no such problems here. These amateurs sound like professionals and never get in the way of the music. About every fourth track is a vocal and to me it sounds like each vocal track has a different singer on it. Truly a sampling of the Caribbean. Once again, I suspect the singers are all talented amateurs but none of them is less than a pleasure to hear.



Without being demonstration quality, the sonics are modern day and good enough and never sound inadequate. I'm well pleased to add this surprisingly enjoyable disc to my shelves and if your listening tastes are similar to mine (or just want some stylish sounds for a pool or Tiki party), I think you might enjoy it too."