Mama Said Knock You Out is the fourth studio album by American rapper LL Cool J. It was produced mostly by Marley Marl and recorded at his "House of Hits" home studio in Chestnut Ridge and at Chung King House of Metal in New York City. After the disappointing reception of LL Cool's 1989 album Walking with a Panther, Mama Said Knock You Out was released by Def Jam Recordings on September 14, 1990 to commercial and critical success.
The album is too long, and a lot of the material either didn't age well ("I sure wouldn't rape you" as a pickup line? Yikes) or is super corny (Milky Cereal, among others). There is no denying the power of the title track, though. Best track: Mama Said Knock You Out
Better actor than rapper. And he is not a good actor.
LL breaks new ground and pioneers "sexy rap". NWA talks about bitches. Beastie Boys want girs to do their laundry. LL is here to wear a Kangol hat give your girl a dozen orgasms. Fun and very consistent album. B
My first real exposure to LL Cool J's music was when I saw his performance of "Mama Said Knock You Out" on MTV Unplugged in 1990 and it blew me away. Listening to this album all the way through serves only to make me more of an admirer. Such great music, lyrics, performing, fun, depth, all of it. Loving the groove, loving the energy in his voice; just really loving this album.
Such a clear portrait of the transition from 80's hip hop to 90's hip hop. At times feels like listening to two different albums on shuffle. That sounds like a knock, but I thoroughly enjoyed it.
I remember listening to this as a teenager. It was ok then, but didn't pass the test of time. Not only are the lyrics trivial, but also very sexist.
I knocked out Bald Bull during his bull charge in Mike Tyson's punch out right after "Don't call it a comeback"
Holy damn wow. 1990?! 1990!!!!???!?! The whole album is good, with incredibly clever, powerful rhymes delivered perfectly, the mixing is great, the samples are minimal but effective--this is the perfect rap album, and I can't believe it happened in 1990. LL Cool J is the father of modern rap, and it's right here in this album. When he does the obligatory "I am the greatest at this and you suck" rap songs, a weird staple of all rap albums, I JUST NOD AND AGREE.
I enjoyed the beats. Don't know what he was saying to much. Something about ice cream, riding the bus and raping a woman. xXxplicit
All the bad traits of 90s Rap that killed Hip Hop. The tracks were ok but the lyrics were crap. Also the line "I Sure wouldn't rape you' is worrying
Having just gotten to Mr. Good Bar, I have to ask... how can anyone find this anything but incredibly cringey? Some hip-hop acts from this era have aged pretty well... Rakim, Run-DMC... but the punchiest moments on this album feel like Will Smith trying to be Ice Cube.
Ladies Love Cool James.... As for me? Not so much. His music has just never done it for me. Mama Said Knock You Out is great and there’s a few other good tracks here. But there’s probably a hundred or so rap records I would listen to before this one
Pretty cheesy tbh
Competent rap but not my style. A bit aggro masculine. Did not finish.
Pretty shite. Run of the mill, cliched, insincere tat. Mr. Cool wreaks of desperation, wanting to be in the cool gang but probably spend his high school years playing Warhammer.
Good
Top classic hip hop
Awesome hip hop album
I'M On My Way To Tounes Taw. Work Work Work
Loved this. Eastside rap was a lot more cosmopolitan than west, and I preferred its sound. Mama Said Knock You Out still sounds great, while Milky Cereal is great fun.
I never would have sought this album out, but I really enjoyed it. It had great flow throughout and good beats.
Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Hell yes.
Yeh, something else. 32 years old my arse. Still so fresh.
I love this album! Remember when he performed Mama Said Knock You Out on VH1 Unplugged? Yeah, he was part of the first rappers to do unplugged shows. Also hard to compute that “comeback” was even a part of this. Around the Way Girl makes me FEEL. Ugh. This album has sexy, fun, hard vibes throughout. Listened to it several times!!
Classic. This one comes with special memories
They don’t make hip hop like they used to…
Can't beat a bit of LL Cool J
Great LL Cool J album, almost just as good as his debut (Radio, one of the best rap albums from the 80s).
amazing
So fucking good. 5 stars.
I thought it was good wouldnt really call it rap more like MC
I am unabashedly nostalgic for this album and the era of hip hop it came from. This came out just when I was just beginning to develop my own musical consciousness apart from what my parents put on. I know every one of these songs despite never having owned a copy of the album myself. I had friends who had the cassette, and we were too young to have much money, so we'd all buy different albums and share. Plus the videos for the singles were all over Yo! MTV Raps and the video jukebox channel. LL Cool J is severely underrated. He, and this album in particular, was a fucking juggernaut when it came out. I feel like around 93/94 any rap that wasn't overtly gangster became viewed as somewhat passe, even in retrospect, which is a shame. Dude was a pioneer and he played a big part in popularizing hip hop with a mass audience. His delivery is iconic, particularly on the ferocious title track.
Just the epitome of that era of hip hop. The lyricism is clever, the production is simple yet great, and LL Cool J is obviously one of the best to ever do it. What I didn't expect was the range of song themes and tones. I expected the entire album to be somewhat similar to the titular track but there was a broad range of different themes and emotions that really added a lot of depth to the album. Truly one of the greats.
This album strongly reminds me of the late 00s, possibly the early 10s as I used to have this album in rotation for my drives to work. I'd often drop off my housemate at his work while on the way to the office while this album was playing, and his office was best accessed via a lay-by clearly signed as being "No buses". We would always shout "fuck you, no buses!" as we pulled into the layby, because clearly we weren't even in a single bus, let alone multiple buses. Anyway, this album is just fun. It makes you glad that you're listening to it.
Classic hip hop stuff, really good flow
I can hear how much this influenced. Some great tracks
Tiukkaa settiä ja yks tuttu klassikkokin mukana.
Verrassend goed album eigenlijk ondanks dat ik over t algemeen niet de grootste LL cool J fan ben. Duidelijk uit onwetendheid en dus misplaatst.
Much better than I expected. Several gems on this record.
always wanted to listen to this as an album
very solid overall, couple weird songs but definitely golden age hip hop
Definitely a time piece, but still sounds great today
Solid album. Better than I expected. Got some classic bangers. 7.5-8/10
4 - Top Album, gefällt mir sehr gut.
I had two songs favorited on album. I favorited a new one when listening to the entire thing, for the fist time. So, pretty good but not life-altering.
Fun to listen to
This is a solid groove right between the gangster hop of later rap albums and the older sounds of earlier hip hop. Murdergram is a nice change from the more laid back rhythms. Mama Said Knock You Out is one of those cultural touchstones with a huge reach. Illegal Search is 31 years old and still applies to today.
always liked him
I really liked the samples on this, overall it was a fun listen. Even when it’s corny (which is often), it’s still pretty entertaining, although Milky Cereal would be an easy skip . 8/10
Classic Hip-hop. Uncle L's flow is unmatched in today's era of rap where you can barely discern the lyrics, LL enunciates every line beautifully. A man before his time, this album doesn't sound like it was made in 1990. Best songs = Mama said knock you out & Round the Way Girl.
90s
Okie doke
Love me some 90s hip hop complete with hilariously cheesy lyrics. Wicked.
This album was more fun to listen to than I was expecting and I really liked finding a rap album that didn’t overly rely on cussing throughout each song.
This is terrific. Classic beats (praise to Marley Marl), entertaining lyrics, smooth delivery from the one and only LL. The influence of this album on hip hop was massive - you hear beats and lyrics later ‘borrowed’ by other artists but also the style and swagger. LL raps about anything, broadening rap’s horizons. Such an enjoyable, fun album. Groundbreaking. Loved it. Stand outs - Mama Said Knock You Out, Around the Way Girl, Mr. Good Bar
Funky hip-hop humour.
Classic
Big fun 90s hip hop vibe, absolutely banging backing tracks with some tasty bass lines.
LL is the man
mmm
ll cool j doesn't hold back rapping over funky beats. mama said knock you out is such a great tune, if you don't like it, there's something wrong with you. bit too long though
Thanks to albums like this one is that I’m starting to really apreciate hip hop.
Some songs I wasn't a big fan of, but overall this is solid '90s hip-hop. I will say I enjoyed this more than I thought I would. I feel like I'm saying that about a lot of albums here, but preconceived notions are TOUGH to overcome!
Knockout
Really dug it
LL is the original rap star. Good album. Lyrics are a little corny for 2021 standards, but for this time LL comes off original and sells his identity well.
LL Cool j is next level
Solid 3.5 for me
Because the opening line of the title track is "DON'T CALL IT A COMEBACK!", I had assumed this album came a considerable amount of time after LL's last. It was little more than a year - and in the 80s/90s, that was short. But when gangsta rap reared its head in the late 80s and Ladies Love Cool James's loverboy schtick was looking dated, perhaps it felt like a cultural comeback. The album proved that LL could navigate the new hip hop landscape and deliver something as hard and defiant as the title track. But at the same time, he showed that he could make the ladies love him in a way that those gangsta rappers could only wish. (Case in point - when I was 15 I was OBSESSED with "Around the Way Girl" and had a dumb crush on LL. Hey, he had it!) The Mama Said album is LL Cool J in his imperial phase, showing his skill as an MC, a lyricist and his (and his producer's) ability to deftly mix rap with pop stylings.
Fun flows and lyricism, production got a bit repetitive for me
Pretty killer rap album. Couple off tracks here and there. The title track is 10/10. Album holds up.
A hot slice of G-funk. Didn't expect to like this as much as I did but I got right into it.
Ladies Love Cool James manages to nut a commodious autonomic album full of great tracks
I thought the album was fine, never really cared for LL but the rhymes are nice. Still has a very 80s sound of hip hop. "Around The Way Girl" is my favorite song on the album. 7/10.
Åter igen. Old school hip hop är det coolaste vi har. För bra! + tänker bara på kultklassikern Kangaroo Jack när jag hör mama said knock you out. Mm helt sjukt hur bra smak jag kan ha?
Historic and influential.
LL Cool J is probably one of the more underrated rappers in hiphop. He did not seem to make a grab at the headlines as much as his contemporaries did, but that does not seemed to have made a negative impact on his resume. Disclosure: First exposure to LL Cool J was his song with Boyz II Men "Hey Lover". Late night radio on the local Top 40 station for the win. "Hey Lover" is on another album though, but it serves as the blueprints for how this review approaches "Mama Said Knock You Out". Rap music and the wealth of catchy phrases and quips that make it into the modern lexicon are on full display here even thirty years later with "Don't call it a comeback!" on the title track. LL Cool J has an amazing voice with near crystal clear clarity. While the lyrics are not complicated, the delivery by LL Cool J is rhythmic and on time. This is a fairly great representation of what may have been hiphop's most appealing era where it was a balanced mix of fun and inviting with stories happy, sad, and socially aware. A key example of where this album remains socially aware is "Illegal Search" where LL Cool J chides the stereotypes by which the black community is essentially punished for being successful, or even just appearing to be. Crossed T's, dotted I's notwithstanding, he laments angrily the sort of gauntlet that they have to navigate just to verify that. Interestingly enough, the following track "The Power of God" contains a message of hope, an exhortation of sorts acknowledging the struggles and temptations of his early life but documenting his commitment to stay above those things, to maintain focus on the "power of God". Overall, the album is a great listen on par with his 90s contemporaries where messaging and storytelling take precedence on the whole over the single. These days are truly missed.
Nek sam se ja na MSN-u zvao LL Cool L, ah. Dosta sam njegovih albuma preslušao, nisam detaljno većinu, ali se uvijek znalo nać par pjesama koje sam si stavljo na plejliste, ali to je davno bilo kad sam ga baš slušao. Mama Said Knock You Out je izvrstan klasik, spot, uvijek slika ostaje te boje spota. Nisam očekivao da će album biti malo udaljeniji od njegove klasične r&b/love story + hip hop sheme (za kojom bome nisam lud). Album definitivno može biti kraći, pjesma-dvije definitivno ne bi falile ako bi se izrezale. Sve u svemu, drago mi je da je malo skrenuo sa svoje rute glazbe pa izbacio malo jači hip hop album što se tiče samog sebe.
I love this album. Early 90s had more fun than a lot of modern rap. LL Cool J was a really fun rapper before he turned into a "meh" actor.
It pretty good album. I am not the biggest LL Cool J fan but this album does have his best overall song. I would definitely listen to some of the songs again
Fun 90s hiphop. Some good beats, some good rhymes, some total cheese, but it's all good.
Wasn’t looking forward to more rap, but this was good! Got a little bored here and there but mostly into it. I liked the smoother jams like “Around the Way Girl” and “6 Minutes of Pleasure” a lot!
Really enjoyed the first two and a few of tracks near the end but got a bit bored in between. I like his smooth sound.
Used to listen to this albums quite a bit back in the early 90’s but admittedly, it’s been at least over a decade since my last full listen of it. Great beats, dope rhymes. Still a great album all the way through. The fact that Run the Jewels took their name from a line in “Cheesy Rat Blues” tells you how influential this album was.
the name LL cool J reminded me of a C tier famous person in bad mtv shows, but this album is surprisingly good. Lyrically very nice and the beats are also creative enough.
Nice listen.
Never knew how far back in time LL had music! Old school style for sure. Pretty clean overall, beats and lyrics.
LL Cool J isn't my thing sadly.
Finally, some hip hop! After trying to get through fancy pants Rush for a few days, the steady beats of golden age early 90s rap is just what I needed. I’m learning some things about myself with this whole processs - namely, I don’t want my music to be some sonic journey, I want my music to be simple. Simple simple simple but you know, simple but interesting isn’t so easy! Enter rap! Give me that beat, that hook, and let’s not let go of it for four minutes! Old school rap just scoots me along, pushing me forward through the haze of tween sleepovers, dirty dishes, dog diarrhea, and unread email. Just like in the streets! So, now we see why this era of rap is the ultimate culmination of all greatest music - peak melodic perfection, boiled down and distilled into… um, peak melodic perfection. But let us now come to Ladies Love Cool J. If only I could sexually harass women the way he does and have them laugh and tell me I so crazy. If only I had the swagger to rap a song comparing women to breakfast cereal. For the entirety of the song. LL is not one finds himself at the emergency vet at 6am on a Saturday, LL probably has a perfectly calm and dangerous Rottweiler that never eats garbage and that the ladies equally love. I have emotionally neurotic belle, who growls at small children. But me and belle both have LL, and his masterful collection of pop rap gets us through. We don’t need to actively listen to innovative artistry that push’s the bounds of music, we need to listen to music. Good music that sounds even better around the way with the jinglin babies in a booming system while eating milky cereal and telling every female that my name is Mr. Good Bar.
I like this kind of rap, just that late 80s/early 90s thing before G-funk took over the entire genre. I've never heard this album but it really ticks the box. Would be a full score except it's just that bit too long. 4/5.
Dope
What a staple album for hip hop. Not the pioneer but one of the OGs. Great album. Easy 4. T3B 1. Around The Way Girl 2. Mama Said Knock You Out 3. Eat Em Up L Chill
Pretty fresh and funky hip-hop, quite accessible and easier on the ears than most.
Pretty solid for a 1990 album
Simply too long
I can’t call this disc a regular jam. Bonus star for the MTV Unplugged sessions stemming from this album. Damn.
He certainly had and maintains a voice
This is what old school hip hop is all about. Solid music, great rapping, and not too much of that misogynist crap.
Really good album. A little longer than I would have wanted, but the production is solid. His lyrics are legendary. Overall a good listen.
3,8/5