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{{Infobox album
| name       = Murder Love
| type       = [[Album]]
| artist     = [[Snow (musician)|Snow]]
| cover      = Murder_Love.jpg
| alt        =
| released   = {{start date|1995|02|21}}
| recorded   =
| venue      =
| studio     = The Mixing Lab <small>([[Kingston, Jamaica|Kingston]])</small><br> Bayside Sound <small>([[Queens]])</small><br> [[Cherry Beach Sound]] <small>([[Toronto]])</small><br> Soundtrek Studios <small>([[New York City|New York]])</small>
| genre      = {{hlist|[[Pop Music|Pop]]|[[reggae fusion]]}}
| length     = {{duration|m=53|s=46}}
| label      = [[East West Records]]
| producer   = {{hlist|[[MC Shan]]|[[Junior Reid]]|Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor|Michael Warner|John Ficarrotta}}
| prev_title = [[12 Inches of Snow]]
| prev_year  = 1993
| next_title = [[Justuss]]
| next_year  = 1997
| misc       = {{Singles
| name        = Murder Love
| type        = studio
| single1     = [[Si Wi Dem Nuh Know We]]
| single1date = December 6, 1994
| single2     = [[Anything for You (Snow song)|Anything for You]]
| single2date = 1995
| single3     = [[Sexy Girl (Snow song)|Sexy Girl]]
| single3date = July 5, 1995
}}
}}
'''''Murder Love''''' is [[Canadians|Canadian]] [[reggae]] musician [[Snow (musician)|Snow]]’s second album. While his preceding album (''[[12 Inches of Snow]]'') featured a wide array of musical genres fusing [[hip-hop]], [[Pop music|pop]], and reggae, ''Murder Love'' was recorded in [[Jamaica]] and primarily featured [[Dancehall reggae|dancehall]] tracks.  A number of songs featured dancehall legends [[Ninjaman]], [[Half Pint]], White Mice, and [[Nadine Sutherland]], and [[Junior Reid]] produced and appeared on the track "[[Si Wi Dem Nuh Know We]]". While not producing a hit in the United States, the track "[[Sexy Girl (Snow song)|Sexy Girl]]" reached number one in Japan (becoming the 6th biggest hit of 1995) and the [[Anything for You (Snow song)|"Anything for You"]] remix became the top-selling single of 1995 in Jamaica.<ref name="See Patricia Meschino 1995">See Patricia Meschino, ''Reggae Roots'' Vol. 13:3 (1995).</ref><ref name="allmusic.com">For U.S. charting see: {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=snow-p26072/charts-awards|pure_url=yes}}</ref><ref>Jamaican sales and charting data for "Anything For You" can be found in Kevin O'Brien Chang and Wayne Chen, ''Reggae Routes: The Story of Jamaican music'' (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1998) 211.</ref><ref>For charting in Japan, see: http://www.j-wave.co.jp/original/tokiohot100/cgi-bin/top100.cgi</ref> Ultimately, ''Murder Love'' reached number one the U.S. Reggae charts and "Si We Dem Nuh Know We" was nominated for a [[Juno Awards of 1996|Juno]] for best reggae recording. Due to his criminal record, Snow was unable to enter the United States and promote the album.<ref name="See Patricia Meschino 1995"/><ref name="allmusic.com"/>
== Production ==
In 1993, Snow began touring Jamaica, performing at such venues as the [[University of the West Indies]], Topline, and the Jaguar Lounge in Halfway Tree. While performing at Sun Splash ’93, he befriended Ninjaman and the two began collaborating. As Snow put it, "we just clicked, so now we always hang out. Everyday when I'm in [[Jamaica]] I hang with him. When he's doing a track, he'll always invite me to come on it with him." In addition to working with Ninjaman, Snow began recording with one of the artists that influenced his interest in reggae, Junior Reid, who went on to produce the track that also featured Snow and Ninjaman, "Si We Dem Nuh Know We."<ref name="See Patricia Meschino 1995"/> Junior Reid also performed as guest vocalist on "Yesterday." Ninjaman also appeared as a guest vocalist on "Bad Men." Nadine Sutherland performed on the first single, "Anything For You", and Half-Pint performs on "Rivertown" and joins White Mice on "Time." The album featured several producers, including Junior Reid ("Si We Dem Nuh Know We"), Onree Gill ("Bad Men," "Rivertown," "Babylon," "Time," "Dream," "If You Like the Sound," and "Let’s Get it on"), [[MC Shan]] ("Yesterday" and "Sexy Girl") and Herby Azor ([[Anything for You (Snow song)|"Anything for You"]] and "Things to Say").<ref>For credits,see: {{AllMusic|class=artist|id=snow-p26072/charts-awards|pure_url=yes}}</ref>
Ultimately, Snow spent eight months in Jamaica recording the album, and his recording crew, including [[M.C. Shan]], [[Hurby Azor]], and Michael Warner, flew to Jamaica to contribute to the album. Snow professed: "The experience of being in Jamaica definitely shaped the album. When I'm working, I don't listen to other music, for fear of stealing something unconsciously. But down there, you can't get away from music, it's all around you." He also observed, "The forward thing in dancehall reggae now is being positive, not singing all the time about gun talk and women. More than the beats, that had an influence in how the songs came out. Because I was going in that direction, it came together naturally."<ref>Lenny Stoute, "Snow melting away from gangsta talk on new disc Rapper says he's seen the folly of his ways," ''Toronto Star'', 16 February 1995, B#</ref>
The name ''Murder Love'' materialized after Snow visited [[Ireland]] during his European tour in 1994. As he explained in 1995, "It's about the IRA ([[Irish Republican Army]]).  They're killing people they should be loving. I'm saying to Catholics and Protestants, they should be loving because they're one people. I always write words that are hard to understand. You've got to listen. It could mean something different to you, and if it means something different to you that's good. But that's what it means to me." Thus, ''The Mail and Globe'' described the track as the "sinisterly named title track, which has a deceptively lovely chorus."<ref>Elizabeth Renzetti, "White on Black: The Rap on Rap," The Globe and Mail, 11 March 1995, 1.</ref>
== Reception ==
{{Album reviews
|rev1 = [[AllMusic]]
|rev1Score = {{Rating|2|5}}<ref name="AM">{{cite web|url={{AllMusic|class=album|id=murder-love-r210015|pure_url=yes}}|title=Murder Love - Snow|last=Anderson|first=Rick|publisher=[[AllMusic]]|accessdate=June 23, 2011}}</ref>
|rev2 = ''[[Entertainment Weekly]]''
|rev2Score = B−<ref name="EW">{{cite magazine|url=http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,296217,00.html|archive-url=https://archive.today/20130122122623/http://www.ew.com/ew/article/0,,296217,00.html|url-status=dead|archive-date=January 22, 2013|title=Murder Love|last=Bernard|first=James|magazine=[[Entertainment Weekly]]|publisher=[[Time Inc]]|date=February 24, 1995|accessdate=June 23, 2011}}</ref>
}}
Upon release, ''Murder Love'' met with mixed reviews. Patricia Meschino of ''Reggae Report'' praised "Dream" as one of the albums "most satisfying cuts."  She observed, "Here Snow reminisces about his days in [[Toronto]]'s Allenbury housing project, where he first became acquainted with Reggae through the friendships formed with the many [[Jamaicans]] who had moved into his area" and "goes on to describe imagined evenings spent at [[Kingston, Jamaica|Kingston]]'s Godfather's nightclub and sessions with the Stone Love sound system."<ref name="See Patricia Meschino 1995"/> Heidi Seigmund of the ''[[Los Angeles Times]]'' wrote, "comparisons to rapper [[Vanilla Ice]] were inevitable in '93" but, "aside from being white artists working in black-music genres, the similarities end there." She went on to observe that "unlike Ice, Snow really is a skilled performer and an exceptional dancehall talent. That's evident on songs like "Anything for You," a buoyant duet with Nadine Sutherland, "Things to Say"—a [[Bob Marley]] tribute sampling [[Bill Withers]]' "[[Use Me (Bill Withers song)|Use Me]]"—and "Rivertown," a look at a Jamaican ghetto through the eyes of its young residents."<ref>Heidi Sigmund, "Snow Shows Off Dance Talent on ‘Love,’" Review of ''Murder Love'', ''Los Angeles Times'', 15 April 1995, 8.</ref>
Chuck Eddy of ''[[Spin (magazine)|Spin]]'' found ''Murder Love'' somewhat indecipherable and a departure from ''12 Inches of Snow'', writing "slow make out mush replaces the debut’s Algerian-rai/dancehall mix with some lighthearted Marvin Gaye liquid funk," and "like most reggae toasters, Snow seems to have learned to rap by studying [[Dick Van Dyke]]’s ‘hum-diddle-diddle-did-die-hum-diddl-eye’ chimney sweep scat in [[Mary Poppins (film)|Mary Poppins]]. So I can’t guarantee I got the plots of these poems completely right."<ref>Chuck Eddy, Review of ''Murder Love'', ''Spin'', April 1995,  201</ref>
== Track listing ==
{{Tracklist
|extra_column = Producer(s)
|title1 = [[Si Wi Dem Nuh Know We]]
|note1 = featuring [[Junior Reid]] and [[Ninjaman]]
|writer1 = {{hlist|[[Snow (musician)|Darrin O'Brien]]|[[Ninjaman|Desmond Ballentine]]|Junior Reid}}
|extra1 = Junior Reid
|length1 = 3:30
|title2 = Bad Men
|note2 = featuring Ninjaman
|writer2 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Ballentine|Michael Warner|Onreé Gill}}
|extra2 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length2 = 4:25
|title3 = Rivertown
|note3 = featuring [[Half Pint]]
|writer3 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Ray Basora|Sean Wallace|Warner|Gill}}
|extra3 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length3 = 4:18
|title4 = Murder Love
|writer4 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Basora|Shawn Moltke|John Ficarrotta}}
|extra4 = {{hlist|[[MC Shan]]|Ficarrotta}}
|length4 = 4:46
|title5 = Babylon
|writer5 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Basora}}
|extra5 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length5 = 4:08
|title6 = [[Anything for You (Snow song)|Anything for You]]
|note6 = featuring [[Nadine Sutherland]]
|writer6 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Hurby "Luv Bug" Azor}}
|extra6 = Azor
|length6 = 3:45
|title7 = Yesterday
|note7 = featuring Junior Reid
|writer7 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Moltke|Ficarrotta|Reid|Basora}}
|extra7 = {{hlist|MC Shan|Ficarrotta}}
|length7 = 4:14
|title8 = Time
|note8 = featuring White Mice and Half Pint
|writer8 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Wallace|Allan Crichton}}
|extra8 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length8 = 3:59
|title9 = Dream
|writer9 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Warner|Gill}}
|extra9 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length9 = 4:34
|title10 = If You Like the Sound
|writer10 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Warner|Gill}}
|extra10 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length10 = 3:57
|title11 = [[Sexy Girl (Snow song)|Sexy Girl]]
|writer11 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Moltke|Ficarrotta|Basora}}
|extra11 = {{hlist|MC Shan|Ficarrota}}
|length11 = 4:38
|title12 = Let's Get It On
|writer12 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Basora|Warner|Gill}}
|extra12 = {{hlist|Gill|Warner}}
|length12 = 4:10
|title13 = Things to Say
|writer13 = {{hlist|O'Brien|Azor|[[Bill Withers]]}}
|extra13 = Azor
|length13 = 3:13
}}
'''Sample credits'''
*"Bad Men" samples "[[Jungle Boogie]]" performed by [[Kool & the Gang]], and written by [[Ronald Bell (musician)|Ronald Bell]], [[Claydes Charles Smith|Claydes Smith]], Robert Mickens, Donald Boyce, Richard Westfield, Dennis Thomas, [[Robert "Kool" Bell|Robert Bell]] and George Brown.
*"Anything for You" samples "[[Everybody Plays the Fool]]" performed by [[The Main Ingredient (band)|The Main Ingredient]], and written by [[Rudy Clark|Rudolph Clark]], [[J.R. Bailey|Ralph Bailey]] and Kenneth Williams.
*"Things to Say", samples "[[Use Me (Bill Withers song)|Use Me]]" written and performed by [[Bill Withers]].
==Personnel==
Adapted credits from the liner notes of ''Murder Love''.<ref>{{cite AV media notes|title=Murder Love|others=Snow|year=1995|publisher=East West|type=liner notes|id=A2 61737}}</ref>
*Aria, Ray Basora, Maryann Enea, Joanne Giacinto, Linda Giacinto, Darrin O'Brien, Junior Reid, Too Tall, Licia Trotta, Kimiko Whittaker <small>(add.)</small>: backing vocals
*Marty Batista: keyboards <small>(track 7)</small>
*John Ficarrotta: drum programming <small>(track 11)</small>, rhythm guitar <small>(tracks 7, 11)</small>
*Etienne Lytle: keyboards, piano
*Shawn Moltke: drum programming <small>(tracks 4, 7, 11)</small>
*Eric Abrahams, Junior Edwards, John Ficarrotta, Michael Tuosto: engineering
*Hurby Azor, Andre Debourg, Onreé Gill, Frank Heller, Eric Lynch, Al "Taz" Machera, [[Tony Maserati]], Michael Warner: mixing
*John Wydrycs: mixing engineer <small>(tracks 4, 7, 11)</small>
*Herb Powers: mastering <small>([[The Hit Factory]])</small>
*[[David LaChapelle|Dave La Chapelle]]: photography
*Jean Cronin: art direction and design
== Certifications and sales ==
{{certification Table Top}}
{{certification Table Entry|title=Murder Love|artist=Snow|type=album|region=Japan|award=Platinum|relyear=1995|certyear=1995|certmonth=6|access-date=July 21, 2022}}
{{certification Table Bottom|nosales=true}}
==References==
{{Reflist|30em}}
{{Snow (musician)}}
{{Authority control}}
[[Category:Snow (musician) albums]]
[[Category:1995 albums]]
[[Category:East West Records albums]]