1001 Albums Summary

I love hip hop. But I'm very particular about it: I adore that sweet spot of 90s boom bap (A Tribe Called Quest; Wu-Tang and that run of RZA-produced solo projects up to Ghostface's Supreme Clientele; Preemo productions), and then alternative figureheads MF Doom, Madlib, Dilla, etc. I find early hip hop a bit meh. I never experienced the era first-hand and, to my 2025 ears, the subsequent decades haven't been kind to it. This album is no exception: from the sample selection and to Marley Marl's hit-and-miss production, and LL Cool J's staccato-ish rapping so remnant of 80s rap. (I much prefer the smoother flow Q-Tip pioneered, and it's mad to think Tribe's The Low End Theory was released just one year after this one).