Comin' in Tough, from reggae legend Freddie McGregor, doesn't break any new ground for the much-loved singer, but does clearly demonstrate why he's been such a consistent seller for almost four decades.
The album's two lead tracks are also its two hit singles so far: the first, "Lock It Down," is an irresistibly catchy call to consciousness and "positivity"; the second is an equally hooky rewrite of Coxsone Dodd's classic "Bangarang" rhythm.
The rest of the album is uneven, but generally quite good: for every disappointment (a completely unnecessary rewrite of the Wailers' rocksteady classic "Love and Affection," a meandering and lackluster original titled "Set the Program") there are at least two or three gems (like the brilliant "Pick Yourself Up," featuring Morgan Heritage).
The album is produced by Bobby "Digital" Dixon, who provides a nice sonic mixture of modern smoothness and rootsy texture, thanks in part to the presence of such stellar sidemen as drummer William "Squidley" Cole, guitarist Dalton Browne, and bassist Donald "Danny Bassie" Dennis.
This may not be the most essential title in McGregor's catalog, but it's a solid entry.
| Title/Composers | Performer | Listen | Time | Size | Size | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Lock It DownWillie Lindo, Freddie McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:48 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 2 | BangarangSquidley Cole, Freddie McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 04:02 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 3 | Set the ProgramBobby Dixon, Freddie McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 04:17 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 4 | ChoicesD. Browne, Freddie McGregor, Stephen McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 04:34 | 10 MB | 0 MB |
| 5 | Red Rose | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:02 | 6 MB | 0 MB |
| 6 | Love and AffectionCarl McCleod, Raymond McCleod | Freddie McGregor | Play | 02:39 | 6 MB | 0 MB |
| 7 | Ooh ChildStan Vincent | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:33 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 8 | You Don't KnowFreddie McGregor, Stephen McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 04:05 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 9 | Little GirlFreddie McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:30 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 10 | A Better Way | Freddie McGregor | Play | 04:00 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 11 | Save a Little LoveD. Browne, Freddie McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:49 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 12 | In Your DreamsD. Browne, Bobby Dixon, Freddie McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 04:12 | 9 MB | 0 MB |
| 13 | Love on Our SideFreddie McGregor, Stephen McGregor | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:44 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 14 | United We Stand (feat. Marcia Griffiths) | Freddie McGregor, Marcia Griffiths | Play | 03:54 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 15 | Can You Feel It (feat. Anthony B) | Freddie McGregor, Anthony B | Play | 03:28 | 7 MB | 0 MB |
| 16 | Comin' In Though | Freddie McGregor | Play | 03:35 | 8 MB | 0 MB |
| 17 | Pick Yourself Up (feat. Morgan Heritage) | Freddie McGregor, Morgan Heritage | Play | 05:13 | 11 MB | 0 MB |
| 65 mins | 150 MB | |||||
| 0 mins | 0 MB | |||||
| Artist | Job | |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Anthony B | Guest Artist, Main Personnel, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 2 | Rochell Bradshaw | Vocals (Background) |
| 3 | D. Browne | Composer |
| 4 | Dalton Browne | Engineer, Guitar, Main Personnel, Mixing, Vocals (Background) |
| 5 | Noel Browne | Keyboards |
| 6 | Chris Chin | Executive Producer |
| 7 | Squidley Cole | Composer |
| 8 | Willburn "Squidley" Cole | Drums, Main Personnel |
| 9 | Paul Crossdale | Keyboards |
| 10 | Donald "Danny Bassie" Dennis | Bass |
| 11 | Bobby Digital | Audio Production |
| 12 | Bobby Dixon | Composer, Engineer, Mixing, Percussion, Producer |
| 13 | Dean Fraser | Horn |
| 14 | Karen Fuchs | Photography |
| 15 | Marcia Griffiths | Guest Artist, Main Personnel, Primary Artist, Vocals |
| 16 | Paul Henton | Keyboards, Main Personnel |
| 17 | Errol Hurd | Main Personnel, Saxophone |
| 18 | Michael Johnson | Keyboards, Main Personnel |
| 19 | Michael "Mike Dee" Johnson | Keyboards |
| 20 | Patrick Kerr | Drums, Main Personnel |
| 21 | Kashief Lindo | Drum Programming, Main Personnel, Programming, Vocals (Background) |
| 22 | Willie Lindo | Composer, Guitar, Main Personnel |
| 23 | Robert Lyn | Keyboards, Main Personnel |
| 24 | Damian Mazur | Engineer |
| 25 | Carl McCleod | Composer |
| 26 | Raymond McCleod | Composer |
| 27 | Daniel McGregor | Audio Production, Producer, Vocals (Background) |
| 28 | Freddie McGregor | Composer, Drums, Main Personnel, Primary Artist, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 29 | Stephen McGregor | Arranger, Audio Production, Bass, Composer, Engineer, Mixing, Musician, Producer |
| 30 | Carl "Dillie" McLeod | Engineer, Mixing, Producer |
| 31 | Raymond McLeod | Producer |
| 32 | Melbourne Miller | Drums |
| 33 | Morgan Heritage | Guest Artist, Main Personnel, Primary Artist, Vocals, Vocals (Background) |
| 34 | P. Morgan | Composer |
| 35 | Nambo Robinson | Horn |
| 36 | Robbie Shakespeare | Bass, Bass Instrument, Main Personnel |
| 37 | Arthur Simms | Engineer, Mixing |
| 38 | Jason Sterling | Engineer, Mixing |
| 39 | Nadine Sutherland | Vocals (Background) |
| 40 | Stan Vincent | Composer |
| 41 | Rolando Wilson | Drums, Main Personnel |
| Quality | Format | Encoding | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Standard | MP3 | 320kps 44.1kHz | MP3 is an audio coding format which uses a form of lossy data compression. The highest bitrate of this format is 320kbps (kbit/s). MP3 Digital audio takes less amount of space (up to 90% reduction in size) and the quality is not as good as the original one. |