Junior Kelly – Care About Me

On Care About Me, Junior Kelly sticks to familiar territory. Conscious messages, spiritual reflections, social concerns, and a fair share of lovers material. His unmistakable voice still carries plenty of fire, and the live-played riddims give the songs a natural roots feel. Jah Eyes, Aimann Raad, Blessed, and Ras Kuda are brought in for four collaborations. But while Kelly’s commitment and vocal delivery are never in doubt, the quality of the songs isn’t quite as consistent.

The opening Beginning Of Wisdom sets the tone with a strong message, but it’s the following Take From The Poor, featuring Jah Eyes, that really grabs your attention. A heavyweight conscious tune and one that deserves repeated spins. The mood changes with Hurt So Bad, a lovers’ lament that simply doesn’t connect. Several listens don’t change that. Fortunately, Powerful, featuring Aimann Raad, puts things right with its spiritual message and convincing delivery.

The next lovers tune, Make You Happy, works much better and shows that Kelly can still handle romantic material when the song is right. Then comes Children Are The Future, featuring Jamaican-Canadian reggae artist and two-time Juno Award winner Blessed. This one’s a scorcher. Strong vocals, a message worth hearing, and enough fire to make it one of the album’s essential cuts. Together with Take From The Poor, it’s the pick of the bunch.

Ras Kuda joins in on Relax, a solid effort riding a riddim that might have you wondering where you’ve heard it before. Less convincing is the title track, Care About Me. It’s the third lovers’ offering, and like Hurt So Bad, it never really takes off. Luckily, Kelly saves two worthwhile tunes for the end. Mi Chalice and That Empress both deliver, making up for the weaker moment that precedes them.

In the end, Care About Me is a mixed bag, though the stronger cuts certainly make it worth checking out. The lovers tunes don’t always convince, but when Junior Kelly turns his attention to social issues and conscious roots reggae, he sounds right at home. Beginning Of Wisdom, Take From The Poor and Children Are The Future alone are good reasons to give this album a spin.