The Message

Not a new one for me and I always had a soft spot for a lot of old school rap/hip-hop. The song The Message is an enduring classic for a good reason. While it’s not something I necessarily gravitate to, overall the album is a solid 8/10.

A little cheesy, super fun/funky though. Probably essential

the non-rap filler is yikes. but holy shit the rap stuff. So good. ugh really should be a 4 star.

fun corny 80's rap! its dated, but still enjoyable for what it is.

Pretty fun and corny album. Reading up about Grandmaster Flash was a good time too! Overall this has aged a little better than some early hip hop (looking at you Run DMC) and The Message is an all time classic track. Not the worst listening experience I’ve had because of this list!

Innovative. Wanted to hear again.

Classic hip hop with a little funk. As I was listening I kept thinking to myself that this group probably influenced so many current groups because the sound is so familiar

It was neat hearing a lot of beats I recognized in current music.

It's like they're trying out everything to find 'their' sound. After a bunch of hopeless failures they finally hit what they're looking for. 'The Message' is the starting point, everything before it is rubbish.

4.75*

an album by one of the most influential hip hop artists

funky, early rap. Really enjoyed it but probably works better as an EP

Apart from You Are which was a dud the album is a downright classic. Fantastic tunes, groovy dance vibe and I’m not sure many can resist the chorus of The Message. Bloody loved this.

Here's another that might deserve better, especially given the date of release, but it's hopelessly dated in every way and I had a hard time getting through it. I appreciate the upbeat vibe and energy, but ultimately couldn't make it through to the end, so it falls short of a 3-star.

The title track is a classic. the rest were fun, though not revelatory. (That Stevie Wonder track was just downright weird.) The version I listened to had The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash and the Wheels of Steel on it, which is an all-time single, and I would argue is better and more important than The Message. but that wasn't on the original LP as far as I can tell. on a nostalgic note, i had a GMF compilation album when i was a kid, and i damn near wore that tape out. That material was light years ahead of its time and ruined hip-hop for me for the next several years until Public Enemy finally came along and picked up the mantle. That compilation was better than this, so I can't help but be a little disappointed in some of these tunes. Still, I love these guys. I guess I'm giving this a 3 only because I don't know what else to give it.

History lessons via rap that I can dig.

Early 80s hip hop. Debut. Sounds more like funk than hip hop. Very groovy and old school. Loads of recognisable samples. Very influential.

Really enjoyed it! Didn't expect the style of Dreamin or You Are. The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel reminded me heavily of his live performance I saw many years ago at a festival. Brilliant stuff. And of course The Message is just iconic.

So much fun. It's quite dated, and the major song from this (The Message) does mostly just make me want to listen to contemporary covers of it.

I'm kinda torn why this is on the list. If it was about Songs, The Message should 100000% have a placement. It's Hiphop in it's earlier stages in the early 80's. I enjoyed some tracks, very funky and raw still. Some other not so much, but I'm not the biggest early-mid 80's Hiphop fan.

The hip hop on this is good enough to forgive them for the attempts at soul on a couple tracks.

Not sure if they are sincere or not, but this fun album kept my attention. 3.5

3.5

It's Nasty reminded me of Flight of the Conchords. Which was probably intentional and added to the appeal of it, at least for me. Some of the lyrics are comical, seemingly unintentionally. Otherwise, it's kinda fun, retro-dance music. Also, proves that doing Soul well ain't easy. Amirite, Ladies?

Fresh listen for me for a first time

the get down.

Flows aged poorly, lyrics aged alright, production aged wonderfully.

Funky, groovy, and the lyrics are downright cute. A bit of politics, but not too much. A Stevie Wonder fan (love?) song. Very anti gangster, some Jesus love, also don’t push me, cause I‘m close to the edge…oh also some misogyny, yay! Poor men get fucked over by women, who are too feminist l.

Really good. Really very good. Old school with great energy.

One of the better hiphop albums I’ve gotten, pretty funky. I was surprised to see there was a song I knew (It’s Nasty). Decent stuff

Why do they sound like the Black version of Wham

Such a fun album and concept. I know that it’s the basis for hip hop to come, but it’s hard to see it anything other than a funk/soul album. It’s so playful and captivating, no wonder it took over the world.

Not my sounds but I enjoyed. Was hoping for more funk. Definitely heard sounds that shows they were potential influencers of Michael Jackson, Prince, and some early hip hop

Nice insight to hip hop as it was just getting off the grand. Of course, the stuff is dated but respected for what it would eventually become not even 10 short years later. It was also an interesting because it almost seemed like a mix of hip hop and R&B somewhere in the middle. I enjoyed it despite its age. 7/10

Great fun, easy listening. 4 Stars.

Truly a mixed bag. The album is bookended by decent songs, which are the bread around garbage filling. Tracks 1 and 2 are fun. 3 and 4 are instantly forgettable. Track 5 is just weird; it’s an homage to Stevie Wonder which is an okay idea, but it seems that they are actually in love with Stevie in a creepy stalky way. Track 6 is just boring, slow crap. Tracks 7 and 8 end the record strong. You will notice a pattern. When the songs are built around funky hip hop beats, they are often good. When the songs are R&B ballad style, they are awful. These guys should have stuck to what they did well. Despite some strong moments, this album is as clear a good/bad mix as you will experience on this list, so it gets a middling grade.

Meh

I was quite excited. Gearing up for some old skool (yep, I spelt it that way on purpose) hip-hop with funky overtones. There was plenty of funky overtones, by the way. The bass slapped pretty consistently throughout the album. The raps were a bit of fun. The first song talked about honouring your mother (but also the girl being super attractive too, I'm guessing not the mother?). There was a song about Stevie Wonder... And an ode to Jesus at one point. But, then it got dark. It painted a picture of a real miserable recession. And I have to say, that really hit me where I live. I was really taken in by all of it. So, was it fun? Or was it a hard listen? I'd like to think I could take it depending on how the mood suits, perhaps that's why it resonated with me at points. 4 Stars (some of the hiphop elements haven't aged as well as other albums on this list).

This is like catching the bus from the airport to your hostel on the first day of an overseas holiday. The sun is shining, the birds are chirping. A couple is going for a stroll through a park, while some female uni students sit on a blanket having a picnic. Younger children are playing baseball. But also there is a smack head passed out on a park bench, and three older boys are discussing stealing the kids’ baseball bat and lunch money.

An intersting mix of funk and hip hop. The title track is such a banger and its influence can be heard to this day. But tracks like Scorpio and your are fell a bit flat.

Not what I was expecting in the first half but went to more expected territory in the second. Clearly hugely influential and ‘the message’ is a classic but the compilation nature of the album means it lacks cohesion.

Lacks a bit of cohesion as it pilfers a lot of genres as its influences and sounds very dated but has a degree of nostalgia to the palette of sounds used, likely because of its influences through samples following its release. Has made for an interesting journey on ‘who sampled’ as you can see the significant influences it had on hip hop that followed. Was also interested in how it used samples itself which was probably still relatively novel at the time.

When I first saw "The Message" as my first album in journey through Black music, I thought it was going to sound like Kurtis Blow on disco tracks. I did not expect beautiful singing & yacht rock instrumentals. To be fair, it was only two tracks, but it is a more diverse album than I expected. I enjoyed most of the tracks from "It's Nasty" & "The Message" to "It's A Shame" & "Dreamin". Every song is at least 4 minutes long with two 7 minute tracks in a row at the end. This gives the tracks space in between verses & lets the instrumentals shine. The only major gripe I have with this album is that the rappers aren't credited well, especially for someone who doesn't know the members of the Furious Five. I would have to give this album an 81/100.

Title track is amazing and the first two songs are great but there's not much to save from what's in between. Still a pleasant listen

It's alright.

THE MESSAGE

Just not my groove. I know it’s important in the grand scheme of music, I just don’t care.

No

80s hip hop is so dated at this point that it becomes difficult to appreciate it when the real hip hop everyone points to was the next generation.

So outdated that it sounds silly at times

daleks

This album surprised me. I really thought it would be full of corny 70s/80s hip-hop. Instead, I was greeted with funky disco inspired tracks. I really enjoyed this album and will probably be buying it on vinyl the next chance I get. Best Songs: Dreamin', The Message, The Adventures... Worst Songs: NA

Hell yeah, that album was a lot of fun. Just good ole hip hop. So pure, it wasn't so self-serious. But it also had some real gem moments.

Historical!

Feels dated but still fun. A couple great tracks

“Don’t push me ‘cause I’m close to the edge.” Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five’s The Message changed everything. It’s a 44-minute time capsule of 1982. Loud, funky, and fed up. You can trace a straight line from it to everyone from Public Enemy to Daft Punk. Even Duran Duran tried to copy its cool. It’s Nasty, but She’s Fresh. It’s like a jungle sometimes… and it still makes you wonder how an album can be at once so of the time and timeless.

Def understand the importance of this album, just not for me

I think I like old school rap because you can usually sing along to it. It’s about as far from mumble rap as possible.

Hip hop classic that is a must listen for everyone that enjoys the genre, or even those that want to hear albums that have major influence over a genre. From the songs with a message to the more romantic ones, there isn’t really a bad song on the album.

i think your a bad person if you don’t like this album

One of the originals and still the best.

A funky bassline and some joyful vocals

A mixed bag, the ballads are very average indeed but the hip hop/rap tracks are excellent. Would have benefited from the inclusion of The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel.

A few masterpieces and some meh

krene dosta dobro, prahistorični jo jo niga, zatim semplanje tom tom kluba, fora, i onda ode u kurac s pjevanim sranjima... zadnja pjesma opet dobra, ali prekasno... šteta

the longevity of this album through samples and instrumentals is pretty impressive. an album that took rap from braggadocios hooks to a gritty representation of black street life that emits rap's struggles to justify the album format. meanwhile, the funky basslines, drum-machine beats, and flourishing synth melodies make the album feel timeless in a fun way.

Not bad - excepting Message didn’t grab me though

It's fine for what it is, but I wasn't in the mood for it. Really cheesy, even though the cheese can be fun. Grinds to a halt halfway through. The Message is the standout from this album, obviously. The rest was okay to listen to once, but no more.

A really good album, I liked She's Fresh and It's a Shame the most.

Goofy at times (Stevie!), incredibly serious at times…and just fun to listen to.

слишком (местами?) пародия, не увлекло

Yep

Fun but suuuper dated.

I loved this album. I loved the hip hop beats!

Title song is pure bliss, cool lore behind this group and very good first album.

This album has some amazing beats and funk. There are some great songs on this record (see the message and it's a shame) but there's also some unremarkable tracks too.

Surprisingly funky. I expected more of an early hip-hop feel like De La Soul or Kid and Play, but this was much more of an R&B/Soul album than that.

Pretty easy listen

Funky.

not my vibe

Important album but it's hard to listen to the same "My name is ____ and I'm hear to say, I like to rap in a major way" flow over and over again. "The Message" is pretty great, tho

🗯 Important. Revolutionary. Cheesy as fuck. This is one of those albums you have to respect even if you don’t entirely enjoy the ride. It changed the course of hip-hop — the title track is a stone-cold classic, still one of the most important rap songs ever cut to wax. ‘Scorpio’ is my personal highlight: a polished chrome man-machine groove, maybe the greatest early electro track and hands-down the best vocodered robot-rap of all time. But let’s be real: the rest of the record hasn’t aged well. A lot of it is a slog, the samples work but the sheen feels brittle now. And those ballads? Good lord. ‘Dreamin’’ is a cringey tribute to Stevie Wonder that plays like a comedy sketch, and ‘You Are’ sounds like it was pulled straight from a Mr. Show parody. Painful. Still, the essentials are truly essential. The title track and ‘Scorpio’ alone justify this album’s place in history. Without them, hip-hop doesn’t evolve the same way. With them, you hear the DNA of everything that came after. Verdict: Essential (for history and two perfect tracks — but not exactly a pleasure listen) For fans of: Afrika Bambaataa, Kurtis Blow, early electro-rap, robot voices with actual groove

Lowkey underwhelming.

An album that is actually less hip-hop than I expected. The Message is the standout and just that song alone has an insane amount of influence on the genre that it's impossible to think about the history of rap and not mention it. The rest has a fun/groovy vibe, but doesn't live up to the title track. This album definitely deserves to be here because the influence is just that strong.

This is everything good about early hip hop. If you went out to a street corner in New York, put down a boom box, and slapped "play" on a cassette of this, you would still have a party. Slap down some cardboard, and someone would randomly start break dancing. One song is a ballad where five grown, straight, men sing a love letter to Stevie Wonder because, "He's the greatest." 10/10. No notes.

Loved it! Completely floored by the musical talent. The rapping was fine but the singing, the beats, the sheer energy in all of the high energy tracks…wow. The range to go from Scorpio to Dreamin. This is the stuff 1001 is all about, a diamond I never would have thought of. I won’t listen to it all the time but can respect that it’s a winner.

Ooh that was Funky !

Not what I was expecting, but a fun listen

Has some weird detours, but also some absolute classics, and hugely important.

Some songs 4.5, some 1. Average or less overall.

Absolute history. There’s a lot more R&B in this album than I knew, since I was just familiar with The Message. It was a nice surprise.

Hiphop of this era doesn’t usually do much for me (I can appreciate its roots rather than enjoy listening to it). This was really fun though, some cracking rhythm lines and while the MCing is kind of corny, it was still a fun time.

It feels illegal to rate this so low, but just was not my vibe. Though it was cool to hear some familiar sounds, since it seems like a lot of artists sample this album! Just unfortunately felt very dated. Very Karlos and Chico doing the old school battle rap in Wild N Out. All respect for Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, but just not my thing.

Impressive how much this album has been sampled and remixed that the songs are all familiar without ever having heard anything beyond the message.

It's Nasty The Message The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheels of Steel

Very accomplished and eclectic, but not for me. This definitely deserves to be on the list from a musical historical perspective!

This album is all over the place. In a good way. Compared to it's contemporaries it stays fresh throughout. The Stevie Wonder song is something though.... Creepy.

The Good: I am not close to the edge… The Bad: I might still be going under… The Ugly: Still wondering about that Stevie W song… Ahhh, the joys of OG hip-hop. I remember seeing Beat Street in the theatre, and trying my best to learn some of the dances… to be young again… Obviously I knew the song The Message, but not the album. And I did my best to just listen to the original album, as 1 hour+ is a little too much for a Monday morning. Having said that, what a difference this is versus what the west-coast started shelling out via NWA et al. Going against the grain on this one and will dish out a 4* to our OG’s…

Most famous for The Message, which sticks out like a sore thumb on this album, most of it a mix of slow jamz and electro 80s breakdancing tunes. They don't really work, I found myself eagerly awaiting the main song (it's Track 7, lemme save you the trouble). The second half picks up a little, but there's an Everest-like peak to this effort

Puts the fun in funky

Great handful of songs, but more uneven or even dull for stretches. Very influential

I did not expect to enjoy this album as much as I did. Plain classic hip hop fun (minus the eponymous song, an all-time social consciousness classic), great samples, funny jokes, and an overall great vibe.

That's not my taste in music - But ok

I really liked Dreamin' and You Are. I thought I liked the title track more than this.

empieza con todo y no está ese tema n spoti

I’ve hardly listened to hip hop, so I can’t really judge how good the songs are. But I liked the bass in “She’s Fresh.” The bass really drives the rhythm, and the track is punchy.

Büro, Heidenheim, Deutschland. Etwas arg öde.

Very dated now

Wow I enjoyed this a lot more than I thought I would. It’s a shame really caught my attention lyrically, which I’ve expressed in other reviews that I don’t always notice the lyrics. The hip hop/electronic influence in the production is clear. This was fresh!!!

Dreamin’ // The Message

Not just foundational for hip-hop, but an interesting mash-up of genres as well. There's a bit of funk (with a dash of disco), soul and even religious music here too.

Early 80s hip-hop? Is there yet hope for the genre? ...But this doesn't sound like hip-hop at all. It's much better than anything I ever could've expected from the description. Fast-paced, punchy, and the cheesy electronic clap-percussion manages to still be infinitely better than a trap beat. There are definitely ties to Stevie Wonder, as highlighted by the band themselves in Dreamin': "We'd like to send this one out all the way out to Stevie Wonder (Yeah, Stevie) / After all, he's the greatest". When the lead vocalist goes in, man, he goes *in*. That particular track also has a lot of Wonder-esque chord progressions, mannerisms (e.g. one bar of melody going up an octave), lots of melodic syncopation, lush backing vocals, horns and keyboards... One of the strongest tracks here for sure. The song You Are is similarly Wonder-ful but a bit less wonderful. We open with She's Fresh, which isn't the most singable music in the world, but the delivery of the title vocal is so fun and funky. The Furious Five's energy is contagious. Some simple, sharp, biting horn lines punctuate the album, along with tasteful bass playing. And a chorus of kazoos in It's Nasty (Genius of Love). Hey, whatever works, right? Most of the verse vocals are spoken/chanted/shouted in all the tracks, which is obviously a big minus. In Scorpio, the entire vocal is delivered by a monotone techno/robo-vocal, which is also a pretty significant downfall. Though the track doesn't exactly blow me away instrumentally either. The synth sounds on Scorpio, more than any other song here, are extremely dated and shatter the "cool funk" illusion established by the previous tracks. The final track, The Message, is rock-solid – I can easily see how it was a hit. A signature post-disco song with that wah-wah synth bass and lasery synths in the higher register, coupled with clichéd "disco guitar". It's a shame that It's a Shame (and Scorpio) are on this record, because it would be pretty darn fantastic without them. 3/5 Key tracks: Dreamin', The Message

The love letter to Stevie Wonder is bizarre and the next song grinds the whole album to a halt but overall still pretty good.

This is a stark but welcome follow up to Kendrick's To Pimp a Butterfly. I almost wanna laugh at how only like 60% of this album is Hip Hop but it's early days for the seminal American genre. Oh to be in NYC 43 years ago. Well the 1001 albums to hear should definitely have at least one song dedicated to Stevie Wonder! Title track is an obvious real stand out. It's a piece of history. I'm trying to think where I've heard it before but it's left a cultural footprint that makes it hard to determine.

que delicia de album!!!!!!!!! uma mistura disco, funk, eletro e hip hop só podia dar muito bom mesmo. tentada a dar um 5, mas por enquanto vou ficar no 4,5.

Favorite songs: The Message, It's Nasty (Genius of Love), She's Fresh, Scorpio, "New York, New York" Least favorite songs: It's a Shame (Mt. Airy Groove), Dreamin' 4/5

That classic formative hip hop. This stands up better than others form the era with some very strong mixing going on.

Message!

this music is SO fun

2/3

I rated this album 7.6 out of 10. I've never been the biggest fan of old-school hip-hop, but this was a fun album. I was familiar with some of the songs, like "The Message" and "Scorpio," but the rest were all new to me. I think my main gripe with the album was the length of some of the songs. While not the longest album I've listened to or even the longest songs I've listened to, I felt as if the songs tended to drag on further than they needed to. The rest of the album was enjoyable, and while I don't see myself coming back to it all the time, I do understand the importance the album has had on music and its genre.

The message is a banger

Nope.

2/5

I love the album cover, it's like 1980s hip hop Village People. Tom Tom Club nailed it with Genius of Love. Scorpio is more like a techno track than hip hop, great beat though. Dreamin' is a little creepy. There's a difference between liking Stevie Wonder and fantasizing about him. Hip hop side, I like. R&B side, I do not. The Message is a seminal moment in hip hop, great song and a...well, you know. It also spawned another awesome song, Ice Cube and DAS EFX's Check Yo Self. I'm not sure which one I like best.

I was really surprised by how R&B-ish a lot of this is. A whole love letter to Stevie Wonder, which is a sentiment I can get behind, but it does drag on. And then you hit "The Message", which is just amazing.

An entire track where the chorus is how they are dreaming of Stevie Wonder? Not at all what I expected to hear today but I'm here for it. And so many samples in "The Adventures" all mixed in so well.

Best Song: The Message I get it, this is old school hip hop and I wouldn't get the hip hop I know and love without it. That being said, this did very little for me. This was a first time listen that I am sure would have been rated much higher if I had listened to it at the before listening to later hip hop. But, I didn't so a 3/5 it is.

So your telling me a grandmaster flashed these five? I didn’t realize that Mr. flash was the DJ to five other dudes who did all the singing/rapping but then went on to be way more famous than any of them. My favorite song was the one where they wanted to fuck the eyesight back into Stevie Wonder. 7/10

It was cool and but not smt i would listen that often

CLASSIC BANGER 5/5

funkay

I wonder who they love more, their mothers, Stevie Wonder, or Jesus? I'm giving this a 3/5, but it's bad. It extremely dated sounding and has the cringiest of lyrics (that Stevie Wonder song (shudder)). But it's also kind of entertaining with the R&B/Disco/early rap combo that didn't last very long. It's a time capsule that's worth opening every twenty years or so.

Should listen again

It’s a Shame I Didn’t Like This More.

Iconic and influential album.

Not my idea of music

Not my cup of tea, but I appreciate hearing all of the cuts that are sampled throughout hiphop still. Helps understand the timeline of the progression of hiphop. Lots of great instrumentals.

There is definitely some big dick energy, as well as music for the playas out there. If it wasn't for the middle of the album, it would get the full five stars. Favorite Track: "The Message".

-damn this is an absolutely ancient hip hop album, one of the earliest i’ve heard. you can really hear the ways in which the genre evolved from funk and soul on here -i’ve heard the title track and watched the video in a music culture class i took last year. it is phenomenal. the rest of the album, generally not as much but the influences are still cool to observe -Favorites are She’s Fresh and The Message

I had never heard of these guys before, so I wasn't sure what I was about to listen to. I definitely wasn't expecting it to be this good holy shit. I'm a sucker for funky bass lines, of which this album is rich with. It also has disco elements and a fair bit of soul influence. Put that in the pot with some hip hop, then you've got a meal man. Even the Stevie Wonder tribute was great too. Favorite tracks: She's Fresh Scorpio The Message

not for me

Scorpio and The Message are absolute classics of early hip hop but other than It’s Nasty, everything else on here is filler (considering Wheels of Steel wasn’t on the original release). Clearly the genre was still finding its place and the labels didn’t know what to do with it. The concept of the hip hop album was still being discovered and would be until the mid-80s before we would get the classics of the genre.

Some of it is SO fun, especially on a holiday Monday. But a few songs are unbearable.

Is this just one song? Anyways it's a great song!

16/1089 She’s Fresh is an extremely fun opening track and feels like a very distilled version of 80s hip hop listening to this in 2025 really feels like i’m listening to a time capsule of a specific moment in music and it still sounds cool, dated in an unapologetic way which makes for a great listen It’s a Shame is a highlight so far for me i think. i love the outro loop Dreamin’ is a really nice change of pace, with some really lovely vocals and instrumentation. there are moments in here that feel very influential and that i’ve heard paid homage to in music i love THIS is The Message?! okayyy i love this and wasn’t expecting it to be on this album. The Message II is also really great i’ve loved listening to this project and i really didn’t know that i would. it manages to be dated but also sound fresh (at least taking into account it’s era) 4 stars or 81/100 faves: The Message II, The Message and Dreamin’ least fave: You Are (and i think it mostly just suffered from coming after Dreamin’ which has a similar vibe but better)

Good funk, some real building blocks for those that come after

I liked this album a lot. If I recall correctly, GF&TFF were early pioneers to use turntables to manipulate sounds like scratching, and it's cool to hear this at an early stage on this record. But they are bringing a lot more than just being pioneers on this front. They have a lot of great grooves and the commentary is excellent throughout. The song dedicated to Stevie Wonder - Dreaming - was an interesting departure from a lot of the rest of the album. Cool song. The piano and singing on You Are was awesome, really complimented each other. The highlight here is definitely the title track. The Message is a great song, powerful in its message. Loved the way the rap changed rhythms throughout. I know this has been sampled a bunch of times, but beyond this it's been very influential in setting a new direction for rap. A truly important song in the annals of music. And for that reason, this album is a must hear for anyone. Really great.

This is great when it's rapping, especially The Message, which is rightly a classic but the other stuff doesn't interest me much.

Old school rap. Should have stayed that way. Today’s rap sucks.

Clearly influential for upcoming rap and hip-hop. Interesting to see the funk still in there.

ES MI MOMENTO PARA RECOMENDAR UNA PEDAZO SERIE: THE GET DOWN HIHIJEIEIEJEIEJKEJE dj grandmaster os lo agradecerá

not my type of genre but it wasn't that bad, honestly I could listen to new york, the rest were fine.

Solid 5 for the album cover…not really my thing. Influenced by The Temptations and The Commodores without the genius of those bands.

Hasn’t listened to this for years, there’s some very weird/bad filler but Message and Nasty are classics. Good averages out the bad

This was a lot of fun. Bedrock of early hip hop. Gets off to a great start. Bit of always sunny beat with genius of love. The message is a classic. Would be a cert 5 if not for a couple of mishits (full synth Scorpio)

Nice blend of R&B and early rap.

Whiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiite Liiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiiines. Oh no, wait, NOT that one. Oh, OK. Still pretty jazzy and funky. I will trust others judgement on the seismic importance of this one.

Funky fun rap that wasn't awful to listen to. 4/5

DON'T. PUSH. ME. CAUSE. I'M. CLOSE TO. THE EEEEDGE. I don't know what to say. it seems to me that this album is like ironic thing.. 3/5

Spaltet - mit solchen Alben wurde der Synthesizer entweiht. Es steckt nur noch ein Hauch von Musik darin.

NORTH DAKOTA MENTIONED 5 STARS (but -1 star for mentioning North Dakota)

A lot more melodic and soulful than I was expecting. The electro-funk influences I expected were there, but a lot of it is directly descended from Stevie Wonder and Marvin Gaye.

very old school boom bap rap. Little bit dated, little bit too homophobic for me. average rapping skills

Really tough to rate it. The message, she's fresh and it's nasty are awesome tracks and I love the vibe and what this record has done to popular music.. But there's a lot of poor music on this record to my modern ears and sensibilities. Maybe a rare case of a record that I don't think is good but might return to listen to.

The Message is of course a classic early Hip Hop track but the rest of songs here really don't come close to it at all.

This album feels like 1982 is reaching forward into 2025 to give me a long-lost childhood hug. There is something so comforting about these tight beats and great samples that harkens back to a simpler time. The nostalgia is much needed.

Silly feeling album with the best love song to Stevie Wonder I've ever heard.

I feel like I could talk myself into any rating from 2 stars to 4 stars on this one, so I'll go in the middle. Sometimes it's cooking ("The Message") and sometimes it feels like some guys' high school project. The low point is probably that Stevie Wonder song. "The Message" is referenced in Hamilton, so that's a fun bonus.

The beginning of hip hop. Classic beats that have used for so many other modern songs!

Sometimes, you have to just accept that something is great, unabashed fun, and there's no point trying to be too clever or analytical about it. This is one of those times.

Hyvä sanoma... Jeesuksen hyvä sanoma

Important but sounds very dated

Highlight Song/s: It's Nasty (Genius of Love) and The Message I don't feel this album should've been included on 1001 albums, yes I suppose it is influential. But I suspect they only included this one because of the title track, which I feel is a bit lame. Anyways majority of the rating comes from the title track, because its just THAT good

Decent start, weak middle, excellent finish. For historical importance I'm gonna bump it up to 4, because it undeniably should be on this list.

This album feels like a party.

not my cup of tea

"She's Fresh" is super fun and funky. It's a little dated, but these guys helped invent the genre and it still is more interesting musically than a lot of early hip hop. Overall, cool album of fun, funky beats, pulling from some cool influences to create a really interesting album.

The Message was hugely influential, and I like it from a nostalgia perspective, but at the same time….cringey

Solid ass album!

The seventh guy on this album cover is Duke Bootee. You know him. You've always known him. “It’s like a jungle sometimes, it makes me wonder how I keep from going under” And the bars “The bill collectors, they ring my phone And scare my wife when I’m not home Got a bum education, double-digit inflation Can’t take the train to the job, there’s a strike at the station.” Give this man his flowers Rest In Power Edward Fletcher

Some funky samples but it did lose steam in the middle. Classic closer and really the highlight of the whole album.

Me gusta este funk

It feels its age, but it wasnt bad. It's just such a dated version of hip hop. Great for what it is and how important it was

I actually loved this - really made my day. The only thing is, Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five should be 6 people in total and there's 7 guys in the album cover, it really bugs me so it looses a star.

The Message was certainly a ride of an album. Now we get to what is probably the first hip-hop album by release date on this project, Forget Run-D.M.C., forget Duck Rock, this is the real first one and it shows as this album feels like it takes inspiration from many R&B and funk albums rather than it's non-existent contemporaries. For being an early hip-hop album, it's basic but still quite enjoyable the production and beats were fun and the lyrics were interesting with one of the tracks being a full-blown Stevie Wonder worship track (I mean, good taste, Stevie is good). It still has a lot of cheesiness but it is certainly quite enjoyable. Best Song: The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheel of Steel Worst Song: The Message

Very fun tracks, varied too. The Stevie Wonder tribute song is hilarious. Raps are occasionally TOO simplistic but all round a fun album!

It’s more than 40 years old but doesn’t feel aged at all. Still a masterpiece that can inspire hip hop heads for years to come.

Essential rap that is good 4/5

Hip hop has come a long way! Early as a piece and foundational it doesn’t translate and feels stale

Musicalmente está bien. Las letras y las melodías son lamentables. Le dedican una canción a Stevie Wonder (?) con una letra propia de un niño de cinco años, incluyendo "creemos en todo lo que ves"...¿En serio? ¿Nadie pensó en lo inconveniente de ese verso? Es gente hablando rápido, pero al menos tiene algo de ritmo humano. No obstante, una mierda. Esto es una patraña.

Things have really moved on since

Great early hip-hop. From the samples to the lyrics it all works!

There's so much joyous energy in this album. "Scorpio" made me say "Daft Punk who?" I wish this album was twice as long and I hope there is another Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five waiting for me in the 1,001 queue.

Flashy

A grand album. The rare case where a single track, "Scorpio" holds the entire thing back. It was a novelty for the time but now it is too much so becomes annoying. The rest is grand though!

Please don't evangelize to me in funk music

No está completo en spotify asiq no lo escuché completo, le pongo un tre

The beats are funky The rapping feels dated Bass slaps hard thoe, like really hard

Boy, is this not my thing...

Fav songs: Scorpio; The Message As an album in the strict definition of a cohesive collection of songs telling a story or setting a mood, this fails utterly. I appreciate listening to an early attempt of hip hop to bring an album together. That said, it's hard to get passed the corny paeans to Stevie Wonder on "Dreaming" and Our Lord and Savior, Jesus Christ, on "You Are." There two great songs on here definitely worth listening to but rest of the album is unnecessary. There are better hip hop albums in the whole.

Goofy album I couldn't help smiling at. This is the kind of album that your uncle would toss on to explain how "rap nowadays is all mumbling, this is REAL hip hop". It's hilarious man, just look at the album cover! Hip hop history! I also like the demonstration that they're just as capable as making soft and sweet melodies like you'd expect of that era with 'Dreamin' and 'You Are'. 'The Message' is one of the catchiest songs of all time and I'll die on that hill.

"Scorpio" sucks. "The Message" is ok. "The adventures of..." is someone who's just discovered how a dj turntable works. A lot of this is really dated though, and the album leans on good-natured silliness.

Beaucoup aimé ce mélange de hip-hop classique et de r&b, particulièrement la chanson titre et Scorpio, qui m’a semblé préfigurer les courants qu’emprunterait la musique électronique

"The Message" +2, "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheel of Steel" +1, rest of album is pretty dated

This was an incredibly weird album, the Stevie Wonder song was an interesting experience. The opening track and title track were my favorites, everything else felt a little too weird for me.

I'm Trying To Not Lose My Head Favs: She's Fresh It's Nasty The Message Least Fav: Scorpio

This album has held up to the test of time.

Did not expect the soul hits! Incredible early rap so awesome

FIIIIIRE! Who knew the creator of the first rap song ever also made an ode to Stevie wonder on the same album. Great stuff.

It is interesting to see the influence disco and that type of music has on the early development of rap. Overall liked the disco vibe it brought.

Banger after banger after banger

It flows in a weird way as an album. A lot more funk and soul than I expected. The Message and Scorpio were outliers compared to the rest of track. Something also tells me that they were big fans of Stevie Wonder. 10/10 for Scorpio and The Message. The rest were around 3-6/10 for me.

It's like a time travel machine that whisks you through 70s funk and soul and lands you in early-80s hip-hop, specifically in a particular dorm room in 1983.

Title track + It's Nasty are pretty good. The rest are fine.

toen rap/hiphop de mensen nog een geweten schopte ipv te stoefen over ho's en bitches... eerste songs zijn knaller en laatste is de beste... de gezongen nummers, die mochten gerust van de tafel rechtstreeks in de recyclagebak gevallen zijn...

Just listened to that one song

Another album which is important to have on the list because of sheer influence. The title track is amazing and most of the rest is pretty good, with a couple of weaker tunes (Scorpio). Quite different to what I expected in places, especially with the two soul tracks included as well, although I still quite enjoyed them despite the lyrics being a bit weak there

"The Message" as a singular track might be one of the most important in hip-hop history. Probably the earliest example of social commentary finding its home in hip-hop, a genre that was still in its infancy and largely consisting of party raps and fun wordplay at the time. Not to mention the (very iconic) rhythm track has been sampled numerous times since as well. I'll be honest though, the rest of the album is a bit hit or miss. There's a strange mix of slower, more romantic songs that you'd normally find in an R&B record and even a pure electro track in "Scorpio", a bit reminiscent of what acts like Afrika Bambaataa would put out around this time. The title track and a few others are worth the price of admission though (which is free in this case, but you get my point!)

I guess I am not a fan of r&b

I expected so much more from this. Underwhelming disco-funk, for the most part. The Message is great, obviously, but nothing else on here comes close.

Hip hop isn't my thing but I love funk. I get that this was early 80s and hip hop has changed a lot since then, but this is infinitely more listenable that any hip hop in the last 30 years. I know that's quite a 'get off my lawn' take, but whatever. There are some cool grooves on this album for sure, I would really call this more of a funk-adjacent album than hip hop. It's still not quite to my taste, but at least I didn't struggle to get through it. 2.5/5

Pretty funky.

Un 3.5 pour moi. Vraiment des solides tracks, gros album, influent mais au final ce n'est pas mon genre de hip hop préféré, un peu trop old school et répétitif. Quelques chansons viennent nuir au flow de l'album. Quand même une écoute divertissante

FUN. Mais trop inégal. 😢 3.49 étoiles

Most of the album consists of very charming R&B and primitive rap that feels of a piece with what a lot of other pioneers were doing at the time, then “The Message” itself plays and it feels like a transmission from an entirely other dimension.

Other than the religious song I like this so much I actually love it. And at least the religious song was just about God loving everyone so I forgive it.

Very solid 80s hip hop album!

its pretty good

Was funky, fun and more enjoyable than I thought it would be. However, there's too much transphobia, homophobia, and misogyny for my blood

Some albums need to be appreciated within the context of their era, and this is clearly one of them. Truly great albums are timeless, requiring no historical lens to appreciate them. Anyone with even a passing knowledge of hip-hop history understands the significance of Grandmaster Flash and the title track. But let’s be hones.. this album sounds incredibly dated now. That said, given the purpose of this list, I think it’s an excellent choice for inclusion. Do I think most of the music holds up in 2025? Honestly, not really.

A point for sampling TomTom Club. And another for having impact on music.

What is this? It's mostly trash. I thought the title track was good. "The Adventures of Grandmaster" was a look into what club hip hop sounded like at the time. Just skip everything else and listen to the title track.

I thought this just shy of fine. The Message is really good. Some of the other stuff is good, some of it is not great. I like some of the funk stuff in here, too, a little, but I won't be playing this one again anytime soon. But it's one of those albums that, while not for me, probably should be on the list.

Debut album. Funk / Hip Hop. This is an important album and a huge step forward for Rap / Hip Hop. The beats and tech used were crazy for 1982. The track Scorpio is a good example of this. A grounbreaking album. Dreamin' has great vocals. The track - The Message is an all time brilliant tune. Great beats and lyrics. Ahead of it's time.

Charmingly earnest in places, some really "modern" sounding moments that made me realize how influential this record is. The dj mashup at this end is so great, and so is the message. There is a sample of a song called "Mt airy groove" by a Philly sigma sound group, pieces of a dream

3/5

Some of the coolest sounds of the decade- can’t argue with you there. But I have to ask, what’s with the elongated love song to Stevie? Such a bizarre tone breaker and kinda ways down the entire album for me but I’m also not going to sit here and say that I didn’t have a ton of fun listening either.

Picking this up thinking it’s another album selected because of That One Song, but it’s more varied than I had thought it would be. Getting a kick out of It’s a Shame (Mt. Airy Groove) and The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheel of Steel.

Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five's was not what I expected, at all. I expected an early hip hop album--and it was, but it was much more than that! They incorporated lots of electronic sounds with funk and soul, and that sure made for a fun, upbeat album. "The Message" is iconic for its lyrics and how it showcases the early hip hop genre, but more than that, I loved how much it stood out on the album. Maybe more than that, I loved that they also proved they can sing beautiful, slower songs. A lot of artists can't rap and sing well. And "Dreamin'" was an adorable ode to Stevie Wonder to boot while displaying their vocal chops. The sampling of "Genius of Love" on "It's Nasty" was fun and fresh, but also showed how much this band enjoyed playing with electronic, something many hip hop artists don't do.

Wikipedia calls this "old school hip hop" but honestly, I don't really feel like this album is very hip hop, as a whole. To me, this listens like a soulful funk album with touches of hip hop here and there, but maybe I'm just being pedantic. The bits of hip hop that are on this album definitely are "old school hip hop", though; they're incredibly funky and infused with the black excellence genres of the time.. There's a lot of variety on this album, and it's definitely a jam. A fun listen!

This goes haaaarrrrrd solid 4/5 up in here

Sounds eerily familiar to something I know

Extremely dated rapping style, but they have some really good samplings.

Some ICONIC beats

I enjoyed this.

not for me

Very decent pioneer of rap. Some absolute bangers on this album but some filler as well. 4/5.

First full listen to this album. Dug it.

2+ Stars (6/15)

A compilation? Seriously, on this list? Sure, this is a solid compilation, but it’s not an album. This seriously throws into question the value of this project. Some of these songs don’t appear on any other album, but this was not an album intended for release as a cohesive project. Compilations should not be on this list.

Cool vibes!

Couple of electro songs at the start were fun, and obviously "The Message" is about as essential to hip-hop as a song can be. The rest is a hard skip though

Having been born in 1981, I might be in a unique position among the majority of the userbase here, in that by the time I was 6 or 7, I have memories of the golden age of hip-hop and how radical and new it was in comparison to contemporary culture. Granted, I was not cognizant of this record when it was released, but stylistically, it’s the springboard for the hip-hop that I have early memories of as child. Even the clothing and style…looking at the cover of this record brings back vivid memories of going to my grandparents house in West New York, New Jersey as a kid and seeing people walking down the streets with boomboxes on their shoulders. Because of that, I’m going to have a nostalgic bias towards this record. It’s a cornerstone of hip-hop. I mean, I was a little taken aback listening today by how it is really sort of a hybrid r&b/funk album and only a couple of tracks are what we’d consider hip-hop, but I can’t deny its influence.

Really funky and old school. Songs get a bit repetitive

Pretty sick album. The rapping is outdated, but It's Nasty, The Message, and The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash On The Wheels of Steel are all really cool. I don't think it's the best funk or hip hop, but it's a pretty great crossroad. Hope these boys met Stevie Wonder eventually.

Great album, only down spot for me was "Scorpio", it got a little tedious. Maybe I just wasn't in the right mood for it. Loved all the other songs, though.

i actually really vibed with this. very funky, very groovy. i forgot to take notes while listening but i do remember enjoying everything. “dreamin’” was the perfect r&b/soul song ngl. i appreciated its homage to stevie wonder. also, the last tune, “the adventures of grandmaster flash on the wheels of steel” was SO long and i loved it. the bass line was giving “another one bites the dust” by queen. apparently this was intentional because they full on sampled the EXACT instrumental (you know the one) from “another one bites the dust” around halfway through the song. i wish you could’ve seen my reaction because it went CRAZY. i really did like this. 4/5.

ciekawe to

The funkiness and rapping are welcome; the abuse of 80's electronic sounds in some songs, not so much. 5/10

Pretty okay. Many many samples originating from this one and then also a surprise christian song in there.

Liked it, saved a couple songs!! Cool to see where some iconic samples come from. Wouldn’t usually listen to this kind of music albums so not a 4

Innovative for the time, but to early to be an enjoyable Hip Hop album.

This album is a time capsule of early hip-hop energy; playful, funky, and socially sharp. It kicks off strong and keeps the vibe fun, but after Scorpio, it loses its footing with a few tracks that don’t hold up. That said, it knows how to reel you back in, especially with the title track, The Message, which stands tall as the undeniable centerpiece. It’s the one that carries the weight and legacy of the album. Overall, an enjoyable listen with a few bumps along the way. 3.5 Stars

The Message really stands out here, but there a couple of other hits.

Solid/fun hip hop record. "It's Nasty" is a highlight, but it losses a star for the robot voice in "Scorpio". No robots!

3/5

What an interesting listening experience. I'm a fan of funk, there's plenty of grooving happening on this album. There's also familiar samples from many future efforts, so it's kind of fun to see them in an early form. It feels like this was an influential album in general, which makes sense given the release year. The musical range was also interesting. There were electronic soundscapes, piano pieces, and standard funk instrumentations depending on the track. Vocal styles varied as well, with some soulful singing juxtaposed with group rap. You never knew what was coming next. For the negative, it did feel dated and as early-80s as it could get at times. There's not much they could do about that, though. I'm sure at the time it sounded cool af. It appears that the playlist I used had some tracks from the extended addition and not just the original album, so I'll do a sort of two-part critique here. For the original 7 songs, the diversity of songs and composition was really well done, as mentioned above. It culminated in a serious (but strangely fun) "Message", which punctuated it nicely. The extended tracks kinda bloated it, even though the added songs weren't bad. I can understand why they weren't included on the initial release. I'd say the album is good, especially considering where it came on the musical timeline. But, for me at least, it was not something I'd consider a level up at great. It's fun, funky, and enjoyable, and I would listen to the songs again. I don't know that I'd want to play the whole album with frequency. Overall: 3.5/5

Very early rap had always been a bit of a grey area for me, I obviously heard the rapper's delight song, but it always felt totally separated from any later 80s rap I'd heard. This does feel separated, but not really for the same reason, as I think this is extremely unique, and this style totally went extinct. I love the synths, which pretty much make up all of the beats. I prefer this a lot more than the run D.M.C thing from the other day where the samples can be a bit dodgy. This obviously also has a lot of comparisons to disco stuff, but also some weird other similarities, like the synth beats making some parts sound exactly like Kraftwerk. The sprinkles of guitar (both disco-type and rock n' roll type) are refreshing. The rapping in early stuff kinda sometimes feels like they're rapping over the beat (like in some of the run DMC ones) but this feels quite integrated, also the multiple people makes it not too boring. Also best not forget to mention what a breakthrough this must have been in terms of political commentary, as I guess they (and this album) basically invented ''conscious rap'', with the social issues which are brought up in here. Not too keen on the weird ode to Stevie Wonder, jut thematically, I came here for a rap album. Favourite songs: She's fresh, It's nasty (genius of love), Scorpio, the message, message II, New York, New York. The adventures of Grandmaster himself. Overall around 8/10

The title song and a few others are pretty good, and Scorpio stands out as a really nice electro entry, but there's a lot of dread weight in the form of wanna be Stevie Wonder and vestigial disco. I think payed way down this could be a fantastic EP, but it's a lackluster album.

3/5

Cruciale plaat, maar soms ook wat aandoenlijk. Je hoort de groep als het ware op de plaat zelf het genre hiphop uitvinden, en aftasten wat de beste balans is tussen disco, rap en electro. Zo is opener "She's Fresh" een Rick James-ripoff met te weinig rap-elementen. wordt in de Tom Tom Club-rap "It's Nasty" net het verkeerde loopje uit "Genius of Love" gesampled en merk jij tijdens "Scorpio" dat electro beter werkt met hier een daar een gesproken woord of zin, niet met complete verhalen door de vocoder gerapt. Vervolgens zijn er ook nog wat rare Quiet Storm-uitstapjes die niet goed op de plaat passen. Enfin, "The Message" is natuurlijk een all time great, net als "New York, New York". Onmisbaar pionierswerk, al met al, maar ik zou eigenlijk aanraden om de "White Lines" single te halen, in 1983 uitgegeven op 12" in Frankrijk. Daar staan alle beste tracks op, en zijn de missers weggelaten.

Oh, to be transported back in time when "fresh" was the top adjective for fly, dope, hot, etc. This is good fun to listen and it stands up better than many other genre-defining records. The high energy and fun spirit is strong. One always forgets if the Tom Tom Club provided or stole the riff on "It's Nasty." And obvioulsly the "je m'appele Melle Mel" explains hip-hop's popularity in France. One's pretty sure one didn't know what to do about "Scorpio" when on high school dance floors. The love song to Stevie Wonder works, if weirdly (with bonus R&B vibes [and what a bassline]). And the samples of Blondie and Chic and Queen upset or overturn one's sense of time and sequencing – where they added to a remaster? The title cut is classic, genre-defining (or genre-birthing), the first example of hip-hop being a newslike report from the front lines, with the "huh-uh-huh-uh-uh" is the genesis of a hip-hop convention. This is an historical artifact and very much not a relic.

This is rap but it's also loosely termed as "rap," mostly because there is a lot of singing on this one as well. You Are is essentially a piano ballad. Dreamin' is also a track that basically R&B and not rap. There isn't anything wrong with that, but this album essentially in the book due to The Message. If you are going to want to put early rap in the book there may be better artists that have a more representative footprint. I would probably have put one Eric B & Rakim album in this book over this one.

More fun than I expected. Will revisit again!

I can't say I relate to the cheese of it all but it's an important touchstone and, giving that a pass, it's pretty fun to listen to.

Not a fan of hip hop in general, this album was not an exception

Hrmmm. I wanted to really like this. I really want to at least like it. Honestly, it's a hard listen. I love that they are pushing the envelope artistically, and for sure I love the decades of amazing music they helped inspire. But it was just too hard on the ears for more than two.

3 - good funky hip hop album

wobbly vinyl, synth und distorted bass. Was will man mehr, Aber jetzt auch nicht weltbewegend

Interesting. At the time, like a lot of my peer group I had distain for this sort of music. It was for people who couldn't sing. Needless to say my opinion has changed over the years. This is a great album. I'm not going as far as a 5, as I think it builds rather than totally invents, but hey, that's just my opinion man. Will I relisten, possibly which is a pretty good endorsement. 4/5

why not

Very difficult to find on the streaming platforms. Nice 80’s album.

Whoa, this is way better than expected! The first two tracks as amazing funk / old school rap. Then the one with the robot voice is a retro-futuristic thing that amused me so much! Then two cheesy ballads that are boring, but one of them is hilarious because of the sincere, extremely cheesy lyrics about admiration towards Stevie Wonder. I laughed so hard with this one. Then, the final track is the all-time classic The Message. To be honest, I always thought this was a maxi single, not a full album, because this is the track that made history. But that said, the album is great, even with those corny ballads.

Wow. This is amazing for the time that it was created. I could give a shit about the Stevie Wonder track, but I was mildly elated to connect that white mackle more rapper guy's Downtown with the albums first track. Also, sifting through 'whosampled.com' after hearing some De La Soul (pass the plugs / peas) on the album was mildly entertaining. https://www.whosampled.com/Grandmaster-Flash/The-Message/ https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JGhoLcsr8GA

Legendary, iconic, and a watershed moment in hip hop music. But the soul tracks were a major disruption that took me out of it.

It is nice to hear the call and response "I love my mother" as part of She's Fresh (we mother's aren't often celebrated for our coolness). Scorpio may have been ahead of it's time but feels very dated and tiresome now and some of these tracks don't feel like hip hop at all. We all love Stevie Wonder but Dreamin' felt out of place. Mixed bag.

Grandmaster Flash is a genius. Seriously, in another environment growing up, he might have a doctorate degree in electrical engineering. He grew up taking electronics apart, scavenging speakers from broken down cars, and building amplifiers. He brought science to hip hop. Dr. Flash, as I’d like to suggest we all call him, invented turning the record to find the break beat instead of moving the needle by picking up the tone arm. He would mark on the vinyl with a crayon where a particular beat started and count the revolutions past the tone arm to keep track. Previously it had been frowned upon to touch the vinyl. The method seems so simple now, yet it had to be invented. Dr Flash did that. Moreover, he created a great album in The Message. People who talk about when hip hop stood for something…something culturally significant…this album was at the start. The two soul tracks, Dreamin’ and You Are, threw me for a loop, but in a good way. There are several classic beats referenced in later hip hop that feel refreshing in their original context. The beats overall sound great. I highly encourage everyone interested in learning about hip hop to watch Hip Hop Evolution on Netflix. Dr. Flash is in the first episode. The whole series is great. Watching that series beforehand, elevated this album for me.

Great for it's time, but a lot of duds. 2.5/5

Crazy how fast hip hop and rap evolved that this already sounded dated by the time I first came across it around Run-DMC’s peak but the parts that still work are timeless and...largely are devoid of any contribution from the actual group. Can’t overlook the Pretty Hate Machine connection. Keepers: Scorpio, The Message, Wheels of Steel

Heard a lot of songs that were used in modern samples. Cool album, and a fun listen.

Rating: 3.5/5 | Favorite Track: The Message --- The title track is iconic and a perfect track if there ever was one and there are other tracks on this I really quite enjoyed. On the whole though the album had consistency issues bringing the listening experience down a little. Still solid and influential record though.

Super fun, another example of an album I wouldn’t seek on my own but so glad it got suggested

Not my style but had some classic and fun beats. One song near the ended sounded like it was skipping though and it was annoying. Could've been a bad download from Spotify

hip hop foundations with some 70s light soul. It;s a mixed bag.

I made it through about 5 songs on this one, was surprised to find I knew one. Turns out I enjoy the 21st hip-hop a little bit more than rap, this was at least listenable compared to the rap albums I've encountered so far. Will try to finish this one at the earliest opportunity.

Listened Before? N As the Beasties said: OH MY GOD THATS THE FUNKY SHIT! Added to Library? N Songs added to playlist: The Message

Half the album are stone cold classics, with the other half being somewhat forgettable.

It was okay. I was a little disappointed that there was only one serious song and the rest of the album was about parties and how awesome each of the members are.

Still alright but obviously here for just the last song