BY KANDRÉ MCDONALD, Freelance Writer
Sheila Hylton performs at the launch of her album 'Steppin' held at the Liguanea Club, Knutsford Boulevard, New Kingston on Thursday. - WINSTON SILL
SHEILA HYLTON LAST Thursday launched her album Steppin' at the Liguanea Sports Club amid much fanfare from avid supporters of the England born reggae artiste.
The proceedings got underway more than one hour later than the advertised time. However, it was worth the wait. The venue was reasonably well decorated, and awesome lighting and the fact that majority of the patrons sported white attire a requirement, complimented this.
Guest speaker, Sydney Bartley, who was representing Minister of Tourism Aloun N'Doumbet Assamba, gave a sparkling speech in which he noted that Jamaica needs more persons like Ms. Hylton.
"We take too much for granted as Jamaicans, because we have lots of talent. We wish you all the best and thank you very much for contributing to the epic and the reinvention and preservation of Reggae music in Jamaica, especially for our children," Mr. Bartley outlined.
In a message from Professor The Honourable Rex Nettleford read by Ms. Andrene Bonner of Menagerie Entertainment Group, he described her saying: "Ms. Hylton belongs to the contemporary thrust for form and purpose through the delivery of melodic contours underpinned by the power of the beat."
This was evident in Ms. Hylton's live performance. As she performed, the patrons moved lithely, always with a sense of purpose.
Ms. Hylton started out performing Our Love, a single for which a video was shown earlier. The patrons were enjoying every bit of the song as they swayed to the melodious beat being composed by the backing band. This was followed by the title track Steppin, and at this time in the proceedings it was obvious that Sheila was enjoying herself more than anyone present, as she danced and pranced, exploiting the full area of the stage available to her.
Her final piece was My World Was Empty Without You, another song that had the full attention of the audience who seemed to be absorbing all the melody and lyrics to the song.
When queried by The Gleaner as to which song on the album was her favourite, Ms. Hylton smiled and said "That is not fair, I have more than one, I have two. I love We are in Love, a cover with the crown Prince of Reggae Dennis Brown and also Our Love."
Steppin' is Ms. Hylton's second album, which accompanies nine other singles over her long career. During the proceedings, Ms. Hylton also presented a copy of her album to the National Library of Jamaica.
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