Ruffi-Ann - Save The Juvenile (Sugar Pan/Charmax/VPal)

The fact you still might not have heard from her, might be because she used to perform under a different name and in a different style. In the 1990s she was well on her way to become the new queen of dancehall as Lady Shabba. Motherhood would steer her in a different direction though; not that Ruffi-Ann, like many of her female colleagues, put her music career on hold to devote herself full-time to her children, instead it rather inspired a spiritual rebirth. In 1999 she announced the demise of Lady Shabba and reinvented herself as Ruffi-Ann. Now, another fifteen years later, she finally presents this album, for which she joined forces with saxophonist/producer Dean Fraser and Max Romeo. Stylistically Ruffi-Ann holds the middle between Sister Carol and Queen Ifrica and her vocal style, combined with a whole range of classic riddims (Fade Away, Ya Ho, Take A Ride, Heptones Gonna Fight, Bobby Bobylon...), gives this album a delicious old school vibe. When collaborating with Dean Fraser, Tarrus Riley and Duane Stephenson are never far away and with the two singers Ruffi-Ann recorded 'Good Friends'. As an exclusive for the European release, 'Baddest', a combination with Bunny Wailer, was added to the original track list. Excellent "debut" effort!