Best of Shaggy - The Boombastic Collection

Best of Shaggy
The Boombastic Collection

Review by Mawunyo Gbogbo

Shaggy’s decision to call his 2008 ‘Best of’ album ‘The Boombastic collection’ (a reference to his 1995 hit song and subsequent album) draws attention to the fact that he’s been noticeably absent from the charts of late. I get the feeling that his musical heyday has come and gone. Having said this, he has proven his detractors wrong in the past and is more than capable of doing so again.

‘What’s love,’ featuring Akon is one of Shaggy’s most recent singles. Unfortunately, this song didn’t rate a bleep on the radar and subsequently isn’t on this ‘Best of’ collection. That’s a shame. It’s a hot song.

Nevertheless, Shaggy fans will love this album. It showcases the Reggae star’s biggest hits including the lead track, ‘Boombastic,’ which sets the scene for a journey back in time. I was reminded of just how many party tracks Shaggy has produced while trawling through the contents of this album.

When Shaggy sings ‘You can never give up,’ on the track ‘Hope,’ you can believe in it. This is the man who was dropped from Virgin Records after disappointing sales, only to land a new record deal and release one of the biggest-selling reggae albums of all time. Shaggy’s comeback spawned the hits ‘Angel,’ and ‘It wasn’t me,’ also on this album.

The ubiquitous Nicole Scherzinger from the Pussycat Dolls shows up on the song ‘Don’t ask her that,’ a lesson in what not to ask a woman. Also featured is the one hit wonder Olivia, who pretty much disappeared after dropping her standout debut single ‘Bizounce,’ only to follow it up with a disappointing album. She reappears here on ‘Wild 2nite.’

The album features the upbeat hit ‘In the Summertime.’ And this wouldn’t be an album of Shaggy’s greatest hits if it didn’t include his earliest smash ‘Oh Carolina,’ an international hit that didn’t do quite as well in the United States. Also on the album, ‘Feel the rush,’ and ‘Strength of a woman.’

It would be great to see Shaggy prove me wrong with another comeback. After all, his story is an uplifting one and his resilience is admirable. Just as Virgin records underestimated him when they believed his moment had passed a decade ago, here’s hoping the ‘best of Shaggy’ is actually yet to come.