The Message

Play that funky music, 80’er, ghettoblaster, samples

This album is incredibly important and for that it gets credit. However, this album is also quite uneven. It oscillates between rap, funk, electronica, and even outright easy listening in ‘You Are.’ I’m a fan of range on an album, but here it can be jarring. The bass work in this album is phenomenal and the singing is great though some of the harmonies fall flat. I’m a fan of the synth here as well as dated as it is. Lyrically this album has moments of social criticism and it’s there where it has its greatest moments. The best track by far is of course ‘The Message.’

Some really good classic hip-hop. Lots of variety and I was going to say the feel was more "fun", which I enjoyed, up until the last song which definitely had some more disturbing lyrics

Solid funk / proto-rap album. 7 songs and each is unique, a bit up and down. Enjoyed She's Fresh, It's a Shame, and The Message. The others were ok.

3/5 was chill

Eclectic mix. I like the different samples and styles.

I really enjoyed the beginning and end and it’s funky style but there was a stretch in the middle where it was really slow and exhausting. However the start and finish were fun and good

Interesting history. This album can't be labeled as just "hip-hop" - yes there are elements of it in most songs but "Dreamin'" and "You Are" are melodic soul songs without a trace of rap. But songs like "She's Fresh" which is awesome and catchy-as-hell (a perfect opening track) and the early/timeless hit "The Message" are just fun old-school hip-hop with killer basslines/melodies. "Scorpio" sounds like something Beck would definitely have listened to and taken a lot from 15-20 years later. Interesting/cool crossover note: "The Message" influenced Genesis in 1983 so much that in their hit song "Mama" Phil Collins took that "hahahaha" laugh directly from this song. It definitely is "of the time" but for me that's what makes it enjoyable - it's definitely worth a listen now and again, especially if you really like early hip-hop. Fun. 7/10 3 stars.

back to the roots

It's nasty sample for sweet fantasy was a cool surprise and the message is great. More signing than I thought would be on it

Not.my kind of.music

Very old school hip hop.

Good instrumentals and production, decent rapping all around too. Has some good songs too like Its Nasty and Scorpio. I'd say this album for me is alright, but gets a bit tedious by the end. I do appreciate the variety between early hip hop and the romatic songs as it makes it easier to listen for the first time. For some reason, I couldn't dig the title track which I know is very well regarded. Just was too long and had enough halfway through. Preferred it's sequel (Survival) in the deluxe tracks weirdly. Also really enjoyed New York New York a lot and seriously wondering why it wasn't on the original album.

YASS! Super classic! Love White Lines and The Message but this was so informative and interesting! Didn't realise how funky it was, like She's Fresh. And more funk than rap. Loved this. Will definitely listen to this again!

Legendary for launching a genre, but boy, is it dated. I'm also not sure the Stevie Wonder tribute was relevant or listenable when it was released. Best track: The Message

The influence and impact this single record from Grandmaster Flash has had on Hip Hop and Rap is incredible. The samples Flash uses alone are used in so many modern songs proving his inventiveness with making catchy beats and hooks. The Furious Five also serve as one of the more atypical, but very talented MC Crews of this golden age of early hip hop.

This reminded me of the first time I snapped my banjo string. I enjoyed the pain.

Leuk het begin van het de hip hop hype

groovettone

Certainly didn't expect those R&B tracks in the middle. Not sure what was sampled vs what was actually played. But some damn fine tracks on this album. 3.5/5

Good flow

One of those albums that's insanely important for moving the genre forward, but hasn't aged all that well. Certain songs (the entirely voice-boxed "Scorpio") are total misses, while certain songs (the title track) are just awesome, and still have a very important message (heh.) With context, good. If you weren't super into rap and didn't realize what the genre owed this record, pretty bad. Favorite tracks: "The Message", "You Are"

The Message and a nice sample / cover thing of Genius of Love. And a couple surprising RnB tracks. This would have been super innovative when it came out in the early 80s.

This is an album I can appreciate for what it is, but I don't know that I would go out of my way to listen again. I know these guys were rap pioneers and much of the album seems to bridge the gap between 70s funk/R&B and 80s rap. I enjoyed the bass on this album (Doug Wimbish, who later joined Living Colour), particularly on She's Fresh and It's a Shame (especially the last minute of the track). I also liked the Tom Tom Club backing track for It's Nasty. Favorite track was The Message. As soon as I heard the "ah-huh-huh-huh" and "it makes me wonder how I keep from going under" my immediate reaction was, "hey, they did that in Hamilton" (with the line "it makes me wonder why I even bring the thunder" and the laughing when they're singing "you don't have the votes"). I'm not a big rap fan, so I think I missed out on a lot of callbacks in Hamilton...I feel like I'm getting schooled in rap history during the 1001 albums journey and I'm enjoying it more than I expected I would. Calling it a 3 primarily because the album just didn't blow me away but I definitely enjoyed it.

Scorpio really gave me some electro vibes. Whole lotta pop-n-lock/break dancing music here. Honestly not sure I’d ever chose to listen to this again, but I appreciate that this is an important part of the Black music/dance/DJing/hip-hop landscape. Two stars for listenability, another star for historical importance.

okay bit funky

Jag tyckte att det va ganska så fett för de bryr sig inte om att matcha texterna till humöret och det respekterar jag...!!!

Otippad range på plattan? Har hört the message (låten) flera gånger men tänkte att grand master flash var en lite plojjig artist. Mycket bra finns att hämta! kommer återkomma till denna flera gånger!

Gott gung

Förvånandsvärt catchy, även om det är nåt jag kanske inte kommer lyssna på dagligen. Det kan nog finnas en del godingar att extrapolera härifrån.

I was already pretty familiar with The Message, the song. But I wasn't ready for Dreamin', which seems like it's from a different album altogether. Really appreciate the robot voices on Scorpio. Pretty fun listen all the way around.

This is such an inconsistent listen - topped and tailed by moments of true brilliance ('She's Fresh' - lovely Jimmy Castor Bunch sample, 'The Message') but the meat of the sandwich is hard yakka. 'Scorpio' is almost top tier, a great electro number, but it reaches its nadir when the Furious Five fall over each other to suck up to Stevie Wonder.

Message still sounds crisp. Love hearing the classic machine sounds but mixed in with great bass playing.

Title track and Nasty are great. Rest of the album feels like filler.

So, I’ve read that Grandmaster Flash was the first DJ to ever put his fingers on vinyl, which changed DJing for ever. The title track is epic. It paints a vivid picture of ghetto life in NYC in the 70-80s (as does the LP cover) and influenced a lot of others. Since I couldn’t find any sample credits anywhere, I guess synth hook is original? I like the song that samples The TomTom Club where one of the 5 raps about the joys of monogamy! Times have changed.

This was a fun listen and The Message is still one of the all-time greatest rap songs, its held up remarkably well after all these years.

Always thought early 80’s hip hop was a bit cheesy, this does sound a bit dated now, but enjoyed it much more than I expected. Can see the influence it had and the lyrics are still relevant in 2021. Scorpio great track reminds me of daft punk.

I've heard the hits before, but honestly had no idea who played them (this is becoming a regular thing now). This is why I love the 1001 Albums Generator. It gives me context for all the tracks I have heard in the past, but never knew who the artist was. I feel like I should have discovered this record a long time ago. I mean look at this album cover. I don't really see myself listening to this kind of stuff on the regular. It's a bit dated and cheesy, although that's also why it's fun. This is music you want to hear live or at a party. Alone on a computer isn't exactly the best way to appreciate this album, but I dig it.

It has a few head bobbing hits, but some real slow boring ones near the end. im still learning how to rate. 1 is obviously garbage, 2 is something i can take from it, 3 is some good hits and replays (could make it through twice), 4 is good, like has songs i will listen to outside this challenge, and 5 is rare but like nearly if not all songs are either great or connect to me in some way. with that in mind … between 2 and 3, so 3.

old school nice

It's not bad, but not my cup of tea. I liked guitar in It's a Shame.

Heard

Mostly forgettable, but not terrible to listen to. Good background music. "The Message" is good for it's commentary, but not the music. Highlight Track: "The Message"

Sounds very dated not and some frankly dreadful tracks on here (dreamin, you are) but you can’t deny the significance of this album or indeed it’s brilliance in parts also. The message is an absolute classic

Probably more influential than good these days. Clearly still working out how to make rap albums, quality varies a lot

Love old school hip-hop and this has a game changing lead track. But too many fillers and needs more GM Flash.

Second listen - in a week. Ok. Enjoyed it the first time, this time it was great too. Still only a 3/5 for me though. Some really great songs are left for the bonus tracks.

another album that was clearly very influential to others but it didn't excite me that much, a couple of big tunes, lots of filler

It was quite hard to take this seriously at first as it sounds exactly like a Look Around You parody of early rap. I’ll all for a positive message but the song about wanting to meet Stevie Wonder is a bit… odd? By the time it reached the title track though (and some of the expanded edition extras) it seemed like Flash had figured out the genre and laid a bit of a blueprint for socially conscious rappers of the future. Includes some probably-very-influential hip-hop production too.

It's easy to write this off as "hokey" - but these guys basically invented rap, so big props for that. I mean, not only did they popularize a movement and a genre, but Grandmaster Flash is also credited with creating some of the technology that made DJing (as an art form) possible - rewiring shit from Radio Shack so he could hear one record in his headphones while another one was playing in the speakers. Highlights are obviously "The Message" and "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash" - but it's all intriguing.

First Listen. I know a couple of the songs, but the rest is new to me. Love it on first listen. Standouts: The Message, Scorpio, It's Nasty, It's a Shame 3/5

The message är det som tar denna från en 2a till en 3a

Disgraceful that I have never listened to this album before. Sounds very '80s. No doubt that this was and is a significant album, but it is too late for me to truly enjoy it.

I was starting work for the day so I mindlessly clicked for my next album and pressed play, I half noticed the 2010 tag on Spotify and was like “this is anachronistic af” lol, I’m familiar with the early hip hop creators and of course I know about Grandmaster Flash so I find this quite interesting. Having said that, this carries its time stamp very heavily, and it’s a bit cringe by today’s standards (I mean, can’t imaging those 6 minutes about how they love Stevie not making mister Wonder very uncomfortable lol). but we have to recognize that this was groundbreaking and the quality of Flash’s art. Am I going to give it a 3 mainly for The Message (song) yes I am.

Hip Hop pioneers whose album was unfortunately only half available, hard to review the album like this

Soul, rap

Has a couple of really well known tracks, including the message. Albums is culturally significant.

Gewone goede hip hop.

Loses a star for the awful song about stevie wonder

The message es la rola, se nota que todo va centrado a esa canción por qué es la única aparte del intro que suena diferente, todo lo demás parece ser el mismo beat, el mismo efecto y el mismo sampleo de sintetizador repetido N cantidad de veces (entre ellas new York New York que es buena también)

Was ready to give this an auto 5 beforehand as I love their singles and their status as early pioneers, but scorpio is proper shit, dreamin' and you are are really not what I was expecting, and really quite rubbish (if you were hyped for some old school hip hop).

Track The Message itself is fantastic but the rest is of its era I think

the none hip hop songs are good

66. Olha sempre em frente. Vai com calma. Não ligues à gordura nos manípulos. MotA: The Message - Instrumental "Fresh"

chill, a bit boring, inoffensive

Surprisingly nice

It's pretty wild how stuff like this was able to come together and sound so fun. Some interesting new-wavey bits. A real hybrid record bringing together lots of disparate things. Some of the soul songs feel a bit like filler, but this album marked a cultural transition, so it can be forgiven.

I mean, it's not bad as pop, but as hip-hop, not my fav.

Started with a couple good songs, but holy crap did it get bad quickly. It’s a Shame and Dreamin’ are two of the cheesiest songs I have ever heard. Absolutely awful. The Message is great but overall this album is just too damn cringy and doesn’t hold up well at all.

It was okay but wasn't for me

I saw Grandmaster Flash and immediately expected 4 or 5. Sadly, this album doesn't do much for me outside of The Message and some of the beats. I wish it were a little more funk and a lot less robo electronica.

Det er gøy, men det er også ganske kårny. Man kan i hvert fall ikke kalle det tidløst. Blir mer en kuriositet, enn noe man faktisk har lyst til å høre på.

Mixed bag bit of funk bit of pop bit of rap. Singles good.

One banger and surprised by some tracks but didn't age too well

Understand this is very influential but primitive hip hop like just hasn’t aged well. However, obvious funk and electro influences here make for some enjoyable tracks, especially the title track

it's alright album cover is really pretty though

It has some fun synths

Dentro de todo me gustaron las canciones. Fue un buen disco. Me la bajó muchísimo que no estaba en spotify.

I like everyone knew the title track, but didn’t know what else to expect- it probably wasn’t this! It’s a bit of a mess really, trying to be several genres at once with varying degrees of success. The funk songs at the start are ok but nothing special, and the Stevie Wonder soul in the middle pretty bad. The quality is in the rap at the end, where The Message is by far and away the best song. There’s some decently interesting commentary on urban decay in New York there, but not enough to recover the album.

Disco trás algumas melodias interessantes com referências de soul music, apesar de ser um álbum de hip hop.

An important album, but not a particularly good one. Lots of filler.

Not my cup of tee.

The Message is considered a classic song - deservedly so. But the rest of this album is trash.

ПРЫГАЙ ЕСЛИ ЛЮБИШЬ СВОЮ МАМУ

Yes the Message is an epic track but this album is not epic. It doesn't hold up - lots of average sounding filler 2.5

With all due respect to these guys' place in history, this album is a mess. She's Fresh is interesting and the Message is a landmark. But between those two is a long line of cringe-inducing nonsense.

Better than I expected for one of these groundbreaking very dated hip hop albums - it holds up more than some of the much more stripped back early boombox stuff - the full sounding disco/RnB beats give it a compelling dynamism and groove, a big party feel, so the verses are just icing on the cake. The Stevie Wonder song and You Are are shockingly bad though - pure syrupy pap and awful crooning. The spacey synth riff on the Message makes up for it though.

scorpio is weird and fun, the message, and the adventures of grandmaster flash are divine but the rest was not for mee

Grappig om te horen hoe hier de funk aan het blenden is met hiphop. Het is pionieren. Dat geeft ze bijzonder plekje in de geschiedenisboeken, maar als een opzichzelfstaand album vind ik het niet zo sterk. 6/10 Highlights The Message (uiteraard, classic)

old hiphop hits differently…

Half the album isn't rap, the stuff that is is ok, a bit cheesy though. Just give me public enemy any day of the week over this

While I can't say I particularly enjoyed this, I still thought it was cool to hear an album from so early on in hip hop history. Even late 80s hip hop for me is pretty hit or miss at the best of times, so something from 1982, I'll be honest I didn't even know that full hip hop albums went back that far. This is cheesy as hell, but I feel like it's allowed to be. It definitely hasn't aged super well because of how cheesy it is, but being so early on in the genre, how were they to know what this would sound like over 40 years later? It's clear how much fun was being had while making this, and I appreciate that. It's just a shame how hearing it now it just feels more annoying than anything, because this well and truly is one of the first to do it.

Für Hip Hop noch ok, aber definitiv nicht mein Genre. 2/5

All over the place... lökigt.. väldigt långa låtar.. Men det är grunden till mycket annat bra

The non-rap tracks were nice, but the rap songs were so corny.

This was not good for me. I'm not much of a fan of early rap and this album was no exception. The message is a good track, but there're quite a few songs in the middle of the album that I never want to hear again.

Some song are really groovy, but there's also a lot of shithop

It's all about The Message man, the rest is window dressing. Supreme funky samples, dub-like, gets quite dark at times. Brought me right back to Grand Theft Auto Vice City, the video game that made me want to visit Miami. I have done since - twice. The first time was in 2012, I was 22, and had a great time at the clubs. Quite overwhelming for my relatively sheltered mind. The second time was earlier this year, for work. I almost missed my connection (I did - but the plane was delayed so I made it, even though they then told me they'd got rid of my seat). My luggage went missing and reappeared on the day I was due to fly home. I wore surfwear the first day, as there were no other clothes shops open. The weather was abysmal for Miami, raining and chilly. The food was, without exception, dreadful. I had to swap hotel rooms at one point because of a party next door. The album is fine, but only The Message is worth a re-listen.

disappointement ngl

2.43

This deserves a higher rating with how influential it is but the middle of the album is pretty bad. When it works though it’s quite fun. Rating: 2.4

Not really my jam. Didn’t finish the album.

Just super not my thing.

Some great stuff here, The Message is a classic, the love song to Stevie Wonder was a bit weird.

Some jams, but the mix and record scratch got too irritating too often.

Title track is great rest kinda sucks

Iste s Rapp, vermutlich ja, nun den es sind einzelne Stücke die ich nicht gut finde

boring

I appreciate this album’s place in the history of bringing rap/hip hop to the masses. As an album experience, however, it’s a bit of a mess. “The Message” is a clear cut 5 star song, and there are a couple of other solid tracks. On the other hand, the two R & B songs in the middle were unexpected, and pretty terrible. The Stevie Wonder tribute “Dreamin’” is especially odd, and given that Stevie was (and is) very much alive it’s almost creepy. Didn’t enjoy it.

I just dont really know tbh

2.5 Ok! 💃 Favorite song: it's nasty

I didn't enjoy this very much. Too techno, noisy for my taste.

No private session used for Spotify. Like the goofy fun hip hop tracks but wasn't into the r&b tracks.

This was fine. I thought it lacked a bit of fun though.

This was alright, didn't make a massive impression on me. Just not my thing really and that's fine.

2 out of 5. Glad to learn where Tom Tom Club got the beat for Genius of Love.

Best Song: She’s Fresh

I too respect Stevie Wonder but I would not sing about 1 guy for a 6 minute song

This lowkey sucked. The songs were cringy and poorly written, super repetitive, unpleasant. Really just a cringy album overall.

doesn't really do anything for me. it felt kinda all over the place. but at least it wasn't boring, so there's that

All over the shop and repellent at almost every phase.

Feels boring and inconsistent, but I liked the title track. Expected more I think?

Not a fan of I get that this is iconic. Influenced so many. Etc etc. but most of it (besides the message) is not very good. A few awful R&B poops on this too.

Ok. The Message is the only song I know or would relisten to. Album is not available on Apple but I found it on you tube. 2.5?

I enjoyed this flashback album.

2.5

I suspect today's album is a case where you kind of had to be there. I understand its importance in terms of being a breakthrough for its genre, but it's more of a historical footnote than something I really want to listen to. The title track is really the only essential thing here. 2.5 stars.

No doubt these guys were overshadowed in the 80s with the likes of NWA, Run DMC, etc. But, props need to be given for their influence. This was a quirky listen that drags in the middle with some really cheesy love songs. Was hoping for a bit more.

Good for samples. Not great for an album. I was listening to this in the car with my son going to his basketball game. On the way home he asked if we could not listen to it anymore. Maybe I’m just not cool enough. 2.25

I expected some basic beats and samples...was not expecting a love song for Stevie Wonder. A couple "hey, this sounds familiar!" but overall weird AF and not great. 2.25/5

funkopop

Some good songs

Understand this is very influential but primitive hip hop like just hasn’t aged well. However, obvious funk and electro influences here make for some enjoyable tracks, especially the title track

Apart from the headline single there is a lot of bluster on this album. Historically important

I wasn’t impressed

A mix of funk and disco, with a health dose of narcissistic bravado, a characteristic of the genre. Dutch the Disco and the brass balls, and I might come back. As it stands, average all around. Won’t listen again.

it was fun at the start but then i lost interest

Not really digging it

This gets a 2 simply because The Message is kind of a classic (though overly long by at least 3 minutes). But otherwise, hip hop from this era just kind of... sucks. And those Stevie Wonder fan tracks? Ooof, so bad.

A significant album that is little more than a museum piece now.

Una coleccion medio floja de canciones muy sampleables 2,5

I feel like “Hip Hop” as a genre name fits this album more than any other rap album. Not really my style personally

Лучшая песня: понятно какая Худшая: Dreamin В паре песен отличная бас-гитара. То, что не хип-хоп, слушать было очень тяжело

From the Vault #1 (January 5, 2026) Hey, me from the present here to deliver a friendly foreword. In a desperate bid to keep up with this list and to offset the pain and misery of rolling a hip-hop album, I have endeavoured to listen to some of the albums on this list ahead of their scheduled appearance, starting with all of the albums from my favourite genre. I've shuddered at the thought of how many hip-hop albums exist on the list, but now I finally have closure. Prior to starting this series of reviews, I had listened to 25 of the 85 included hip-hop picks. As of today, I've bumped that number up to a clean 72 albums (including the hip-hop albums I rolled before I could assemble a pre-written review for them). I should also mention that it's incredibly fortuitous that the first pre-written review I'm publishing just so happens to be for the first hip-hop album on the list. There was a 1 in 43 chance of that happening, so definitely not favourable odds. Anyways, I shall transport you to the immediate past, where the balding, smelly ape known as me from one-and-a-half months ago is about to deliver his opinion on this album: Here we are with the first-ever hip-hop album on the list. '82 seems like the time where hip-hop would establish it's footing. Grandmaster Flash is also a vaguely familiar name. Perhaps he's more prolific than this list lets on, though in all fairness it could go both ways - hip-hop artists typically have an ephemeral presence in the limelight. Guess I'll just have to give this one a spin. I'm surprised that this qualifies as hip-hop. This is just a dance album, isn't it? I suppose the vocals have that traditional hip-hop delivery. Anyways, this is a bit of a mixed bag. On the bright side, this length is great, there's a decent spread of styles and it has a good, bassy sound. The alternating vocalists is the best part of this album. I've always appreciated that as a unique quirk of hip-hop. "Improvise" by Jurassic 5 is more or less my favourite hip-hop song because of this. On the other hand, this is cheesy as shit, especially down the middle. The instrumentals are generally pretty restrictive and minimal, and what the hell was with that electronic track? The soul pivot was a real jarring shift, too. Overall, it's fine, but this sadly lost me as it went along. I've heard "The Message" before, as I'm sure everyone else has. Good song. The synths are pretty good, even if they are a little minimal. It ultimately does a good job at complementing the songwriting. The vocals are the strongest aspect, however. They build and transition between different tempos pretty effortlessly. Book time. "...an important milestone in hip-hop's history, displaying the key elements of lyrical delivery". Samples old funk songs among a bunch of other genres. Established the general theming and aesthetic of hip-hop music. More of a singles act. Yup, this definitely earns its stripes. I cosign this inclusion.

Ugh. It had some cool parts but outside of that really nothin I’ll come back to.

Some funky parts I enjoyed, but a lot of it fell flat.

I'd obviously include the title track in a book of "1,001 Songs You Must Hear Before You Die." The album, however... 2.5/5

The sound is incredibly dated; I feel like hip-hop albums from this era (80s) sometimes sound even more ancient than music from medieval times would... Also, these songs largely don't even sound like they belong in the same album together. "Scorpio"'s vocoder techno-pop sound was apparently innovative for its time but today sounds tired and generic. "It's Nasty" is alright but relies on a sample that I've liked better in other songs. The two ballads "Dreamin'" and "You Are" are genuinely bad, with the latter sounding like a filler song from a Christian album. The title song is certainly the highlight, but I wouldn't listen again. The stuttery closing song "The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash..." is baffling; it's anchored around a bassline from Queen but Grandmaster Flash adds voices that continually interrupt each other. The result for me is that the song sounds kind of startling to listen to, and not in a good way.

A very funky start. Good brass. Energetic. Nice. Track 2 has nice production and samples. The rapping is not my thing here but it makes sense as it's a very early hip hop album. A Bit too long. Track 3 does even less for me. I can imagine it being very refreshing when it came out, but today it's not something i can see myself going back to. Track 4. Is actually nice. Once again the rapping technique is very primitive. But I get it, off course. I appreciate the deserved Stevie Wonder nod on Dreamin', but I don't find this one essential. Track 6 while quit beautiful, I don't find fitting in the context of the record. And the speech in the middle is not my thing. The closer is decent with good production and better rapping. Maybe a bit too long aswell. I appreciate the inclusion of this album here. I like hearing the start points of genre and think it's important. But personally I didn't enjoy this one very much. It's unclear to me artistically. A 2.4, 2.5...

Very 80s. Couple of standout tracks

It has a track worth listening, the rest ain't that interesting or compelling. I don't know why exactly but I was very underwhelmed

As important as this album may have been for the history of hip hop in terms of shifting hip-hop towards social realism and commentary, I cannot say I enjoyed this album very much. To be fair I think this is just due to it being a product of its time. Although the production is stellar and I actually appreciate the minimalistic style, the performances from the rappers themselves in my opinion leave a lot to be desired. Awkward deliveries and stale lyricism is often carried by really nice chemistry of the group. I know for a fact without this we wouldn’t have people like Kendrick Lamar, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.

I enjoy it well enough for a bit, but the songs just get repetitive and drag on after a while.

É um álbum ok.

Ikkje mitt nye favorittalbum

Obviously important historically, and the title song is pretty impressive for its commentary and the foundation it lays for the genre. Still, it’s a very dated album. Some might describe the primitive techno song or the generic schmaltzy soul ballad as showing the album’s variety, but they added zilch for me. I wouldn’t listen to this again.

Worse than I thought it was going to be, but I had high-ish hopes.

Hip Hop, 52 eme album => 2/5 Plus funk et varié que les autres albums de ce type déjà écouté, même si certains morceaux paraissent long. Pour une fois je suis allé au bout.

Dit is zo'n invloedrijk album waar je anno 2026 eigenlijk helemaal niks mee kunt. Het is goed dat het er was, maar dit klinkt van geen kanten. Enorm gedateerd, kitcherig en bij gebrek aan een beter woord aardig 'corny'. Het is wel funky, dat zal m'n compagnon wel als dikke plus opgeven. The Message is wel een iconische track en als je GTA Vice City hebt gespeeld herken je hem waarschijnlijk wel. Maar verder krijg je op dit album anno 2026 heel weinig waar voor je geld. Van mij hoeft dit album dan ook niet in deze lijst. Ik hou het op een enigszins zure 2 sterren.

I mean the band that this album is coming from has me really hopeful. They sound like they’re gonna be super groovy. At only 8 songs taking up 45 minutes, this album kind of has to deliver. I’m not looking forward to every song being almost 5 minutes or longer. The way this is the only album from this artist is crazy. This band is not super popular? I’m confused why this album was on this list to be listened to. She’s Fresh - 3 Yesss funky horns. FRESH. I fear I’m going to get bored, it’s a lot of repetitive writing. I like the jazz bass and the horns are so fun but it’s a lot of yelling FRESH in different lines. Very jazzy with hip hop. It’s Nasty - 3.5 I think this one sounds the same as the last one? It’s got that bouncy hip-hop vibe with a similar style of ad-libs and callouts. I’m not sure what instrument I’m hearing like 2 minutes in, but I vibe. I also like how this one calls out a kind of hypocritical nature that Black artists face, where people thing the music they’re making is inherinently “nasty” but it’s not and people just need to listen to the fun vibe. I feel like this song has been sampled before cause some of it is sounding familiar. Scorpio - 1 Funky synth and voice modulation. It’s lasting way too long. Is the whole song going to sound like this? Their doing another “roll call” section, I stg there has been one in every single song. I did not enjoy that. There was no dynamic anywhere and the entire song was that modulated crap. It’s a Shame - 2 Already a step up from the last song. I don’t love this callout and response style of singing these guys do. Is this a commentary on social issues too? Dreamin’ - 2 Stevie Wonder love? This is prob my favorite one in terms of instrumentation and style so far because it’s in a easy listening vibe and it’s got a sweet message kind of. Okay the Stevie Wonder thing was cute, but now it seems kinda weird…”We believe anything that you see” is a strange line to me. I actually think I am dnf-ing this song. I get that they’re manifesting and showing adoration but it just feels like a super random yet specific song that I’m just not loving. You Are - 2 This song is the least streamed on the album. UGH I feel like I’m starting to become biased because I’ve not loved the last couple songs. But I’m boreddddd The Message - 7.5 maybe 8 Title track!! It better be good too cause this album has kind of not been. I’m not even that hopeful cause it’s freaking 7 full minutes long. I like the way he said “rrrats”. This one has flow I fuck with it. This song really hits home that if it’s not one thing its another and its just hard to LIVE bro. I can’t believe I’m saying this but I kind of think this song needs to be as long as it is to contribute to the narrative. This is the only song on the album that seemed to get any sort of traction I’m kind of confused why this album as a whole was suggested. Getting a little graphic with some added police violence at the end here but this song is by far the best part about this album. The Adventures of Grandmaster Flash on the Wheel of Steel - 4.5 Hating the cuts. But the samples in this one go kinda crazy like the Queen riff? Lets go. Very interesting tempo. And you guessed it, another roll call section. Idk if this was intended but the DJ cutting sounds so disjointed on this track. Oh and the last 4 minutes of this track is going to be a instrumental DJ set. Ooh this sample traveled in between my ears though and I like when they do that. Ok I read about how this track was kind of foundational for DJs and producers now and how this track mixing all of these different songs (using 3 turntables I guess) from a live set was pretty revolutionary for the producer and sound mixing aspect of it all. So, after reading about it a little more, I respect it. Idk if I would ever listen to it again though.

Influential to the hiphop genre. Almost everybody’s heard ‘The Message’. I was surprised by the amount of funk and soul on here, I thought it was going to be an album full of dated rap music. But I was pleasantly surprised.

Fanger den der tidlige hip hop ånd ret godt hvor rap lissom bare er et af elementerne. Men synes det var temmelig blandet kvalitet.

This is certainly funky. There are some good songs and some not good songs

this was a very strange album, there was an entire song dedicated to stevie wonder, and i love his music too but they were infatuated with that man, the message was peak and was def my fav song on the album, i didn’t love this album and it was kinda weird at times, but overall it was pretty fun

Hip hop legal, porém 2 pq só tem quatro músicas no spotify, porém escutaria mais de boa...

Maybe I was expecting a seminal album here, and was set up forcefully disappointment , but this was one of the most underwhelming listens I’ve had in this entire experience so far. The rap sounds very dated, which I can excuse, but the Stevie Wonder style so B-sides are on the whole goddamn awful. Poor.

Well... I have enjoyed most of the 80s/early 90s NY hip hip I've listened to through this project but this was not one of them. It reminded me of some other music of that era that I don't think has aged very well and I can't tell if it is meant to be serious or a little tongue in cheek which I don't think is a good review.

Super dated. There's some fun elements here but did I enjoy it? I found myself skipping to the next song for the entire album.

it was so boring I forgot it was on.

Oli tässä paikoittain ihan yritystä, mutta ei se kuitenkaan ihan lähteny.

Ei nyt oikein lähe tämäkään. Kuuntelin ensin töissä vähän sivukorvalla, ja sitten vielä uudestaan kotona ajatuksella, mutta ei kyllä missään nimessä herännyt innostusta kuunnella kolmatta kertaa. Tosi junnaavaa ja itseään toistavaa huttua. Kai tää on joku suunnannäyttäjä ollut, mutta ehkä vähän liian funkkimeininkiä itselleni. Ei nyt sentään vituttanut, niinkuin Panteran kautta, niin mennään kahdella tähdellä.

Very cute

The best part of this was the piano work in You Are. I didn't love the breathy vocals and it just wasn't my type of music.

Not my cup of tea. But glad it was on the list and enjoyed listening to it (once). Jam on it

It was a fun listen.

The message is good. Usually when I like a rap song from this era it’s just because I like the sample, so not sure how much credit they should get. This kind of rap feels like it’s from 100 years ago.

I get that this was an important album for the formation of Hip Hop, but it's just not a great, polished album.

R&B, Rap, Dance, 1982 -> 2

Important album but I would never listen to it again. Some of the songs were just weird… was there a live ballad for Stevie Wonder?? Did a slow jam break down to a spoken religious sermon ? At times it sounds like two completely different albums mashed together! Some of it was good 2.5 stars !

Dated, but influential

J'ai décidé que j'allais catégoriser en 3 les types d'album pour me simplifier la tâche - album corvée - album découverte - album que je connais déjà Ceci est un album corvée

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.

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.

Meh

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

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

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.

Funky.

🗯 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.

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

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!

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

Büro, Heidenheim, Deutschland. Etwas arg öde.

Very dated now

2/3

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.

It’s a Shame I Didn’t Like This More.

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.

not for me

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

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

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

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.

not my cup of tea

Please don't evangelize to me in funk music

Boy, is this not my thing...

"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.

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

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.

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.

not for me

2+ Stars (6/15)

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

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

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.

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.

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

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.

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.

Good enough groove and funk and then there's the HipHop part ruining it.

Ehhhhhh. Funk is just not for me I’m SORRY. Also my greatest moment of interest was when I spotted a Hamilton reference so that says it all.

Disco-Rap that sounds like the most 80s music ever I didn’t have a bad time listening, in fact I thought it was kinda funny. Title track was pretty decent at least

I liked "The Message" but didn't particularly find any of the other songs memorable

Definitely a classic but it’s not my type of music

This is not something I would listen to ever but I guess it's ok in a bland, boring sort of way. 2 stars or D+.

5/10 Not at all what I expected, which was a seminal early hip hop album. Instead it was a mostly heartfelt (Christian?) soul album that happened to have 2 or 3 classic monuments of rap. A major problem for me is that the title song, an epic about poverty and racism, is just straight-up homophobic. Don’t care if it “was of its time”, it doesn’t sit right with me. Best: It’s Nasty

Was looking forward to listening this, but was disappointed. Found it a bit child like. The message was the best track.

Definitely a trailblazing album and deserving of its place on this list. However, it isn't very good. Takes a weird turn in the middle too with some more ballad-esque songs. Regardless, this is the birth of hip hop and I'm glad the genre got better with time. 4.25/10 (2.125/5)

This album was fun and it was funky, both positives. But for a short album such as this, I expect/hope that the vast majority of songs are great. Sadly this album only had like 2 great songs and the second one was pseudo religious and that’s always a huge turnoff for me personally. So overall I thought the song that worked was great but if an album is being carried by ONE song, it has to be one of the greats, and sadly “it’s nasty” is good but not one of the greats.

Je sais très bien l'importance de cet album sur la scène musicale, particulièrement sur la scène hip-hop. Malheureusement plusieurs aspects de cet album ont très mal vieilli et ça donne quelque chose qui est un peu dur à passer au travers. Même The Message est un peu trop longue pour son bien. 5/10

The message is a good track but this album is so 80's corny hiphop that I can't get into it at all.

2.5 stars. Super influential but very inconsistent.

2.5

Some bits interesting but not a big fan

I enjoyed the funky beats in the first two tracks but the next four were tough to get through. The final track is obviously hugely influential and I love the beat but didn't enjoy the track as a whole as much as I thought I might.

I thought I would like this more than I did.

Meh

Not what i was expecting with the love ballads. Overall doesn't really hold up. 2.5 probably

Influential for a genre I dislike very much.

Robot voice song was good Check yourself before you wr- Oh, never mind Only saw the release date after the listen, had no idea it was so old. Doesn't change my rating, but it is impressive

…. no

Was already tired of it by the second track honestly. Maybe its just fatigue from having to listen to 2 disco adjacent albums back to back; but besides a few tracks here and there, something about the dated disco rap style here just didn't click for me.

Did not age well

Pioneers they may be... But some of this is really bad. Low 2.

This has to be up there for one of the corniest records ever made. And I mean that in both a good and bad way. On one hand, it's a fun and goofy album that slowly gets more serious and ends on a real high note. On the other hand, I feel like so much of the album feels dated and bloated. Definitely worth listening to the title track, but not much else worth staying for

Grandpa rap lol

Full respect for the classics, I really love The Message and Message 2 (Survival), but as an overall album experience, I wasn't feeling every song unfortunately

I liked.. some of this

A maior parte do álbum não tá disponível no meu país então... ¯\_(ツ)_/¯ Parece muito com o Fear of a Black Planet, só um pouco mais puxado pro Whodini. Legal, mas sofre dos mesmos problemas.

I like that they love their mothers and I like the genius of love sample but overall found it cheesy and preachy.

How often are we going to allow influence to carry the day? This album is embarrassing to listen to most of the time, the lyrics are the same level of the first year teacher who wants to teach his 8th grade students Algebra through the magic of hip-hop. If this album is indeed a foundational text in the genre, then what a shaky foundation it is. P.S. the group is called Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five but the album has seven guys on the cover? The f$%&?

As I look back at all the past albums, I see that I usually choose 2 stars, I will continue my trend.

hadn't listed to before, immediately thought of early RHCP albums, which turns out were heavily influenced by Grandmaster Flash.

Another difficult album to track down that I didn’t think was worth the effort. The title track was somewhat recognizable. The remaining 6 tracks sounded dated to me, with a cheesy 80’s hiphop feel.

Повторю сентимент в общем-то всех на этой земле: тайтл трек - великая музыка. В целом в начале есть неплохи вещи, но всё это звучит старо и иногда (Scorpio) прямо ну не очень. Уважаю, но не очень нравится. Обложка суперская тем не менее. Лучшая песня - The Message.

Old 80s rap

fresh

Right out of the 70s, not necessarily in a positive way. Extremely repetitive lyrics, extremely repetitive lyrics.

Did not expect to see funky hip-hop on this list

It feels like an important album in the history of hip hop but personally I don’t see myself coming back to it. Other than The Message, which is a classic. The rest was a bit slow and unremarkable.

pretty funny sound effects to hear now but cool record for the times.

not really my style

Style yes substance no

Not for me.. for me this album has 2 good songs and the rest is weird.

"The Message" has aged well. Just an all-time classic beat and the hook, "Don't push me cuz I'm close to the edge/I'm trying not to lose my head" is as relevant in 2023 as it was during the Reagan 80s. But the rest of this album, outside of some decent break beats, is a bad early-80s nostalgia trip.

There's some decent sampling on this record and I know it's one of the first hip-hop albums, but it's hard to ignore how corny and wack these rhymes are.

Schon wieder hipHop! Das übliche Gestotter eben. Aber echt gut produziert. Trotzdem: Ich kann sowas nicht am Stück hören! (2/5)

Hip-Hop or the start of Rap? Or both? Either way, I wasn't keen.

She's Fresh: 2/5 It's Nasty (Genius of Love): 2/5 Scorpio: 1/5 It's a Shame (Mt. Airy Groove): 2/5 Dreamin': 3/5 You Are: 4/5 The Message (Extended Version): 3/5 Message 2 (Survival): 2/5 New York, New York (12" Version): 3/5 The Adventures of Grandmaster Himself: 2/5 The Message (Instrumental): 2/5

I love hip hop but not this

Good beats but thats about it

This is not a good album. It has soul and I’ll give it points for that, but it would appear that Mr. Flash and his five associates are all one trick ponies. It’s not even a very good trick. This genre that he’s performing, whatever you’d call it, doesn’t quite have the flow and witty lyricism to keep it interesting like later hip-hop would, but it also doesn’t have the groove and funk of earlier R&B. Which means that the whole thing feels disjointed and as if they don’t know what they’re going for. It has some range, but nothing to really latch on to. I do, however, enjoy the backing beats. Wish I could like this more. 2/5

Ikkje mitt nye favorittalbum

Old-school hip hop, Pop

The Message is obviously brilliant and you’ll never go wrong with a Genius of Love sample but the rest is a bit flat Probably phenomenal at the time but sounds flat now

Dreaming of Stevie Wonder now too

I liked some songs, but I really didn't like others (Scorpio).

I typically really like 80s rap but this didnt really do it for me for some reason

oh brother. the sampling is soooo sick. revolutionary to the genre. but jesus the lyrics are so cringeeee

One of the last years you could spend half a verse of a hip hop song talking about how much you love your mother in the same song you do “shave and a haircut.”

Love a good Tom Tom Club sample. Not really what I expected, I liked the really high energy tracks but found the slower stuff like You Are harder to get through.

Love the message. I remember being 14 and flicking over to Wildstyle on Vice City every 5-10 minutes waiting for the message to come on (or be on next). Was looking forward to listening to the rest of the album but Jesus that was hard to get through. How can a song as groundbreaking as the message be pre-fixed by utter cross? Why was the message not on first, followed by similar politically conscious tracks, instead of terrible band intros, robotic autotuned samples, Steve ripoffs etc.. very disappointing. 1.5*

Starts well then turns into a giant turd, only to be saved by the title track.

Not so FRESH. Message nearly pulls it up to a 3 but would be generous. Pioneer at the time.

First listen Saved 3/8 Top track: The Message

Recognized two songs. Did not download any. Rap pioneers. Can only imagine the music they would have created if they came along 10-15 years later.

This really took a turn after the Stevie Wonder song. This was... Strange.

Scorpio and the Message are great, the rest is poor to mediocre. This is an important record, but I feel like they quite grasp what made them special.

I vet that it’s a classic hip hop record but I’m not a rap fan so this is hard to listen to.

Amazing where rap came from and what it has umm become…