This excellent collection finds the celebrated reggae vocalist Alton Ellis trading time in the spotlight with his sister, Hortense Ellis, one of reggae's more overlooked female singers. Beginning with his first recordings, Alton Ellis was one of the key links between American soul music of the 1960s and Jamaica's contemporaneous rock-steady movement. He and his sister are the Jamaican counterparts to Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell in Detroit or Otis Redding and Carla Thomas in Memphis. The list of soul classics here given the Studio One version treatment ("Can I Change My Mind," "Breakfast in Bed," "People Make the World Go Round") makes the link to the U.S. all the more apparent, but it's Hortense and Alton's lilting, soulful vocals (which unfortunately are brought together on only one track) that truly the illustrate the bond between reggae and American R&B. Rounder's 2006 reissue of the collection, originally titled ALTON & HORTENSE ELLIS, includes four extra tracks, most notably the title track, which features Hortense and Alton together.

The elegant Alton Ellis began his singing career, like so many other Jamaican artists, at Clement Dodd's legendary Studio One. First recording for Dodd in 1959, Ellis became a frontline star on the island during the rocksteady era, specializing in romantic ballads, often covers of American hits which he skillfully translated into new Jamaican standards, all laid out over those sturdy Studio One rhythms. This set features several of Ellis' Studio One hits, including the title track, "I'm Still in Love with You," and the impressive "Can't Get Used to Losing You." Also included here are eight sides by Hortense Ellis, Ellis' sister, as well as a duet, "Breaking Up Is Hard to Do," featuring both siblings. The Hortense tracks are a particular delight since she recorded sparingly, and while eight more tracks of Alton may have made this a more marketable collection, the sides by his sister don't seriously change the tone and feel of the rest of the anthology. Collectors of rocksteady and early roots reggae records will be pleased that the Hortense Ellis sides are now easily available on CD. ~ Steve Leggett