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Isaacs is perhaps the smoothest talker to ever have laid down a sultry reggae vibe. Who else is so successful with seduction that he has to ask his lady to back off a little, as Isaacs does on “Cool down the Pace”? Often compared to American soul singers because of his romantic inclination and delivery, Isaacs has even earned a libidinous nickname, the “Cool Ruler.” Over the course of his career (25 years +) Isaacs has sung all the stereotypical reggae songs (yeah, he’s sat in Trenchtown on a drug bust) but love is his favorite subject, and he sings about it for the most part without the Jamaican slang-infused patois. So there’s no doubt what he’s talking about when he moans to his “night nurse” that his “pain is getting worse” (“Night Nurse”). “Private Secretary” also finds Isaacs in a particularly randy mood, doing the song in the “dub” style so that the extra emphasis on percussion simulates the, uh, memo taking. “Universal Tribulation” is a cut from the 1979 album Soon Forward, and one of only a couple of songs where Isaacs drops the come-ons in favor of a political message. The Roots Radics (the Booker T. and the MGs of Jamaica, featuring such legendary players as Errol “Flabba” Holt and the late Eric “Bingi Bunny” Lamont) back Isaacs on all these self-penned tunes, so of course they’re great for dancing. But with a little imaginative use, you may gain an ever-present grin like Isaacs’ and you won’t even need any ganga.

—Kevin Wierzbicki