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CD'S REFLECT THE JON LUCIEN OF NOW AND THEN

St. Thomas native son Jon Lucien had two albums released in 1999, and several of the same songs appear on both. And therein lies the story of a lifetime.
We don’t know if it was a coincidence or not, but the CD's were released in the same month and, at first glance, looked very similar. In truth, they are very different.
"Sweet Control: The Best of Jon Lucien" was released on the Razor and Tie label. The cuts consist of material from Jon’s albums recorded for RCA in the early '70s and two songs, "Sweet Control" and "Mother Nature’s Son," from his work for Mercury in the early '90s. If "Dindi," "Hello Like Before," "Lady Love," "Rashida" and "Listen Love" were the soundtrack of your love life, these recordings will flash you back — not a bad idea for most of us.
The second CD is called "By Request," on the Shanachie label. It features new versions of a number of Jon's best-known songs. As the review in JazzTimes said, "These beautiful arrangements of classic and original Lucien lyrics are powerful, joyously romantic and captivating." But there is more to the story.
The life span and experiences represented between these two albums have not been easy ones for Jon. The tragic deaths of his daughter and son and other family members and other issues have served to give his voice and lyrics more resonance.
These two albums offer a unique opportunity to listen to some of same songs as recorded at the height of the artist's youthful power and then again as interpreted through the introspection of middle age. In the early recordings, his voice is vibrant and sexy. In the recent ones, it's like aged scotch: warm, smoky and mellow.
For a full range of Caribbean music, check out www.parrotfishmusic.com.
Mr. Fish

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