One Bright Day' is another good reggae album from the group that last year released Conscious Party, which understates the case considerably. As the children of the late Bob Marley, David "Ziggy" Marley and the Melody Makers practically carry the mantle of reggae all by themselves. There's been a tremendous void in reggae since the death of the elder Marley, both musical and spiritual. Other...

Unlike some rock-star progeny, Ziggy Marley directly confronts his birthright: "I am my father's son," he sings in "Brothers and Sisters," from his latest album, Joy and Blues. He sounds comfortable with that fact, but with a voice eerily like Bob Marley's and backed by a Wailers riff, his confidence has an edge. If you didn't get the message, the next song is a loving cover of an obscure Wailers...

There's one hell of a shadow hanging over Ziggy Marley, and it's a testament to the beauty and strength of Conscious Party that instead of being an object of morbid fascination, this album is one of the brightest, most life-affirming records in recent memory. Ziggy's grittily pretty voice is only the most obvious part of his musical inheritance from his father. The album's title is fitting because...