52 Songs #11 - Shaggy, Oh Carolina

This week: Shaggy, Oh Carolina, released in 1993.

I think I heard Oh Carolina on the radio while I was still in grad school at UC Berkeley and I was instantly hooked by the dance-hall echoey mix and the shambling beat. I hadn't listened to new music since I left the record store in 1989 so I had no idea who the hell Shaggy was (and still didn't for a long time - Mr. Boombastic came out in 1995 and I don't think I heard it till it was in some commercial about 5 years ago - jesus I'm old). But I had listened to a lot of reggae and ska and Jamaican dance hall and I knew a good thing when I heard it. As with many classic songs, like Louie Louie, the lyrics are mysterious, tongue-twisting, and superbly executed. Special info: in the wiki entry on Shaggy, they describe his bullfrog voice as "sub-baritone", but he doesn't actually talk like that when he's not singing.

Anyway, I managed to track down a copy of it on cassette of British singles and listened to it a LOT in my car. And forced my friends to listen to it too. And now it's your turn.

PS. Found a nice interview where he says that homophobia is stupid. Yay!



Come back next Monday for another of the 52 songs!