Vocally Pimpin' EP
Artist: Above the Law

Improved production and studio techniques, and sharper quips. ~ Ron Wynn, All Music Guide Read More

Based on a True Story
Artist: Mack 10
Community Score: 5.67

When Mack 10 returned in 1997 with his second album, Based on a True Story, the West Coast gangsta movement had began to simmer in the aftermath of Death Row's dissolution, 2Pac's death, Too Short's retirement, Dr. Dre's confusion, and Ice Cube's move to Hollywood. Mack gladly fills the void with a spirited album that's proudly Cali and proudly... Read More

The Chronic
Artist: Dr. Dre
Community Score: 8.12

With its stylish, sonically detailed production, Dr. Dre's 1992 solo debut The Chronic transformed the entire sound of West Coast rap. Here Dre established his patented G-funk sound: fat, blunted Parliament-Funkadelic beats, soulful backing vocals, and live instruments in the rolling basslines and whiny synths. What's impressive is that Dre... Read More

Way 2 Fonky
Artist: DJ Quik
Community Score: 7.00

DJ Quik proved his mettle with "Jus Lyke Compton," a definitive bit of regional touting that proclaimed West Coast rap the style-setter and all others followers. Whether or not you bought the line, you were hooked by the rap. Nothing else on the disc matched this single's intensity and wit, but it helped him earn a second straight gold LP. ~ Ron... Read More

Together Forever: Greatest Hits 1983-1991
Artist: Run-D.M.C.
Community Score: 7.00

For the most part, all of Run-D.M.C.'s most important singles and biggest hits are included on Together Forever: Greatest Hits 1983-1991. That alone makes the compilation a necessary purchase. However, that doesn't mean it's a perfectly assembled collection. Instead of presenting the singles in chronological order, the sequencing skips back and... Read More

Live From the Styleetron
Artist: Raw Fusion

When Money-B came out with his side project Raw Fusion, it was clear that the Digital Underground member wasn't trying to duplicate Underground's sound. Parts of Live from Styleetron are as quirky and eccentric as Underground, but while Underground was heavily influenced by the 1970s funk grooves of George Clinton and Parliament/Funkadelic,... Read More

Hispanic Causing Panic
Artist: Frost
Community Score: 2.50

Hispanic Causing Panic was an early landmark of Latin hip-hop, simply by virtue of the fact that Kid Frost was one of the first Latino MCs to release an album. Of course, it also doesn't hurt to have a groundbreaking lead single on the order of "La Raza," a smoky, laid-back Latin funk groove with anthemic Spanglish lyrics about being brown and... Read More

Sons of the P
Artist: Digital Underground
Community Score: 6.00

If it ain't broke, don't fix it: Sons of the P offers more of the loopy humor and P-Funk fixations that made Digital Underground's debut album, Sex Packets, an instant classic. And if Sons of the P doesn't quite hit the absurd heights of its predecessor's best tracks, it's still a strong, engaging listen and an entirely worthy follow-up. The... Read More

Quik Is the Name
Artist: DJ Quik
Community Score: 8.28

The release of DJ Quik's debut album, Quik Is the Name, in 1991 begged the question: does rap really need yet another gangsta rapper? Indeed, by that time, rap had become saturated with numerous soundalike gangsta rappers -- most of whom weren't even a fraction as interesting as such pioneers of the style as Ice-T, N.W.A, and Schoolly D.... Read More

Cypress Hill
Artist: Cypress Hill
Community Score: 8.22

It's hard enough to transform an entire musical genre -- Cypress Hill's eponymous debut album revolutionized hip-hop in several respects. Although they weren't the first Latino rappers, nor the first to mix Spanish and English, they were the first to achieve a substantial following, thanks to their highly distinctive sound. Along with Beastie... Read More

Ruthless for Life
Artist: MC Ren
Community Score: 6.46

Working with a new producer and enlisting an impressive roster of guest artists (including Snoop Doggy Dogg, Ice Cube, Eightball & MJG and RBX), MC Ren reconfigures himself as a latter-day gangsta rapper, complete with stoned beatas and loping basslines. It's sort of disconcerting to hear a former NWA rapper trying to position himself as a... Read More