Genre: reggae
Rating: 3 stars ***
Title:  Golden Dozen
Company: TSG
Catalog: TSG-808
Year: 1976
Country/State: Jamaica
Grade (cover/record): VG+/VG+
Comments: still in shrink wrap (opened)
Available: 1
Catalog ID: 270
Price: $300.00

Best time to play: Sunny Saturday afternoon with a couple of cocktails

Found this one at a yard sale and bought it for one reason - I recognized the TSG label as a collectable tax scam label (an offshoot of Lloyd Prices' LPG label). Honestly, namesake Cynthia Schloss was a total unknown to me when I picked it up and the generic cover art didn't give you a clue as to what to expect musically. A quick internet search turned up the following short biography:



Veteran female singer, Cynthia Schloss, is generally referred to as Jamaica’s songbird. She was thet third of six children and attended the Trench Town Elementary and Ardenne High School. Schloss got her big break at the Merritone Amateur Talent Exposure in 1971, where she won the finals singing 'First Time Ever I Saw Your Face'. She then became a regular at shows and on the hotel circuit. Later, she ventured into recordings and made a memorable impact with songs such as 'Surround Me with Love', 'As If I Didn’t Know', 'You Look like Love' and 'Love Me Forever 'which sold over 100,000 copies. Schloss died in the arms of her husband and veteran musician, Winston ‘Merritone’ Blake, on February 25, 1999 (source - National Library of Jamaica)
As it turns out, 1976's cleverly-titled "Golden Dozen" (in spite of the title, I guess nobody noticed there were only ten songs on the album), was a reissue of an earlier, highly collectable Cynthia Schloss Jamaican LP - "Ready & Willing" (Merritone catalog MM-0001). Judging by the ten songs which included a number of '60s sounding soul sides, the original Jamaican album sounded like it was a compilation pulling together previously released material. Almost certainly to avoid paying royalties, TSG slapped the package with new, anonymous cover art and flipped the running order of the songs..

 - Initially I couldn't figure of why the writing credits included Joe Meeks and then it dawned on me that 'Red Rose' was basically just a remake of Meek's 'Telstar' instrumental with throwaway lyrics and a slinky reggae beat. You wouldn't think the result would be any great shakes, but I've got to tell you Schloss brought the goods on this one. Very nice. rating: **** stars
- So the late B.B. Seaton (aka H. Seaton) wrote 'There's a Fire'. The Gaylads originally recorded it in 1969 for the small Jamaican Beverly label ('There's a Fire' b/w Last Time'' (Beverly catalog number S.R. 089)). The 45 was then released in the UK by Trojan Records (catalog number TR 7703 A/B). Seaton himself released a version in 1976 ('There's a Fire' b/w 'Bub of Seaton' Jama catalog number JA 31) which may have been the inspiration for Schloss' cover. While I've always loved The Gaylads cover, I'll tell you that Schloss turned in a playful cover, complete with fire truck sound effects. rating: *** stars.  
- I'm guessing 'Winston B' was recorded for Schloss' husband Winston Blake ... Shame it was one of the less inspired tunes. Not really reggae, not really soul, it actually sounded like something out of a Broadway show, though the song's cutesy side grew on you after awhile. I'd love to know what it was actually about. rating: *** stars
- Miscredited to Bob "Marely", 'Guava Jelly' was given an upbeat soul-tinged flavor that was surprisingly effective. Yeah, I'd still rather hear Marley's origiinal, but this one came in a close second.   rating: **** stars
- Probably my least favorite performance, 'Rhythm of the Blues' found Schloss surrounded by an anonymous and completely forgettable disco arrangement. Dull, plodding, and totally forgettable, the song also had a bizarre, flat sound as if Schloss' vocal had been added off of a long distance phone line. rating: ** stars
- Geez, if you could get through the painful 'humming' introduction, 'Love Forever' turned into an enjoyable if rather conventional soul ballad that was marred by slightly flat production work. This one must have been recorded fairly early in her career, or as part of her hotel circuit repertoire, as there was no hint of reggae in the tune.   rating: **** stars
- The breezy 'Nightfall' was another soul influence track. Very laidback and enjoyable, but a tad on the MOR side.    rating: *** stars
- 'I Won't Cry' was interesting for having a serious Motown feel. There's simply no way you would have ever pegged her as being Jamaican and if it wasn't for the cheesy synthesizer washes, this could easily have been mistaken for a '60s track.  rating: **** stars
- The sole original (co-written with husband Blake), 'Hurry To Me' was a throwaway dance track. With a lightweight reggae-tinged melody and some extremely '70s synthesizers, this one was pretty forgettable. rating: *** stars
- Closing out the LP, 'Words Are Impossible' was the song that came the closest to successfully blending American soul and reggae influences. Again, you had to sit through some dreadful humming before the tune actually kicked into gear, but in this case it was worth the wait. A sweet, breezy ballad, this one had everything necessary for commercial success. In fact Merritone released it as a Jamaican single.  rating: **** stars

Too erratic to be called a great LP, but makes it easy to see why she was popular throughout Jamaica.

"Golden Dozen" track listing:
(side 1)
1.) Red Rose (B.B. Seaton - Joe Meeks) - 2:30
2.) There's a Fire (B.B. Seaton) - 2:28
3.) Winston B (C. Boze) - 3:32
4.) Guava Jelly (Bob Marely aka Bob Marley) - 2:35
5.) Rhythm of the Blues (L. Patrick) - 2:35

(side 2)
1.) Love Forever (H. Butler) - 4:51
2.) Nightfall (L. Atirken) - 3:35
3.) I Won't Cry (Labostrie - Ruffino) - 2:45
4.) Hurry To Me (Winston Blake - Cynthia Schloss) - 3:02
5.) Words Are Impossible (Jansen - Hart) - 4:02

Only 51, Schloss died of heart complications, in 1999.