NO HOLDING BACK
BY: WAYNE WONDER
Genre or type: Reggae

NO HOLDING BACK was nominated for the 2004 Grammy Award for Best Reggae Album. Encompassing hip-hop, dancehall, and straight-ahead R&B, Wayne Wonder's fifth album may be both his most eclectic record and his biggest-selling. With a delicate, high tenor slightly reminiscent of Horace Andy, the Jamaican native brings his considerable experience to bear on a variety of U.S. and Jamaican R&B styles. Delicate synth motifs feature heavily throughout NO HOLDING BACK, and the Caribbean rhythms have an uncharacteristic lightness of touch that'll keep you coming back for more. While Wonder might not be a showboating singer, he's savvy enough to plant catchy little booby traps such as the slyly sexy "No Letting Go" and the satin-lined "Friend Like Me" at strategic points in this collection. And the perky dancehall vibe of "Nobody But Me" proves he's not just a smooth-talking love man--he can walk the walk, too.