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Beastie’s Reissue Prompts My Top 10 Rap Albums Of The Past 20 yrs

By Kris McKusick | March 16, 2009

In the spirit of the 20th anniversary reissue of The Beastie Boys classic “Paul’s Boutique” (and High Fidelity), I bring to you the ten greatest rap albums of the past twenty years.

10) Outkast “Aquemini” (1998): For one memorable summer Andre 3000 and Big Boi ruled all of hip hop. “Rosa Parks” made sitting in the back of the bus the hippest thing ever - as if riding the bus itself wasn’t hip enough.

9) Eminem “The Marshall Mathers LP” (2000): This album perfectly sums up my attitude toward hip-hop (and sports). I love this album and I hate this album and I hate that I love this album, but man do I love this album!

8) Beastie Boys “Paul’s Boutique” (1989): I know what you’re thinking: A white rapper followed by a trio of white rappers…The Beastie Boys lived up to Chuck D’s claim that hip hop was a sampling sport (with aplomb) - this was a veritable sampling Olympics. Listen over and over again as the Dust Brothers sample everything from “Superfly” to “Welcome Back Kotter.”

7) Jay Z “The Blueprint” (2001): All Jay Z had to do was record this album and we’d be convinced of his greatness. He did two better; 1995’s “Reasonable Doubt” and 2003’s “The Black Album” cement his legacy as the best rapper ever.

6) Ice Cube “Death Certificate” (1991): Bemoan all you want the blatantly racist lyrics and excessive misogyny, Ice Cube never sounded better than he did on this uneven, yet essential, gangsta rap classic.

5) Kanye West “The College Dropout” (2004): An extremely talented artist from the Windy City at his virtuosic best. Hip Hop has yet to sound better than this in the 00’s.

4) A Tribe Called Quest “The Low End Theory” (1991): Who would’ve thought hip hop and jazz could fuse so seamlessly. Q-Tip flows like butter over popcorn on this avant-garde hip hop classic. Funny thing is, they made even better songs on 1993’s “Midnight Marauders” but Theory was their most complete and effective album.

3) The Notorious B.I.G. “Ready to Die” (1994): See number 9

2) (Tie) Gang Starr “Hard to Earn” (1994), Wu-Tang Clan “Enter the Wu-Tang 36 Chambers” (1993): These two albums recorded a year apart illustrate the promise of East Coast hip hop. Sadly, it would never sound better but Gang Starr’s DJ Premier and Wu-Tang’s RZA remain two of hip-hop’s most innovative producers. Not to mention, the various Wu-Tang solo albums are a showcase for RZA’s unique production. Chef’s “Only Built 4 Cuban Linx” (1995) and GZA’s “Liquid Swords” (1995) are prime examples.

1) Dr. Dre “The Chronic” (1992). Yep, I said it; hip-hop never sounded better than Snoop Dogg’s smooth sing along-like flow over Dre’s P Funk derived beats. 17 years later the production is still the best ever; it’s literally the only gangsta rap album you MUST own. Ice Cube and N.W.A put the West Coast on the map and Dre took it a step farther (with a little help from Snoop). A true masterpiece if there ever was one.

And that, my friends, puts a stamp on the ten greatest rap albums of the past twenty years.

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The Best of the Best Music Movies

By Admin | September 18, 2008

Sure we’ve all seen or at least heard of “A Hard Day’s Night”, “Jailhouse Rock”, and “Don’t Look Back” - all legendary movies about legendary musicians, but what about movies about the music itself? Here’s your accumulative top five:

1) Hustle and Flow - Terrence Howard stars in this great movie about breaking barriers in the music business.

2) The Blues Brothers Movies - Oh yeah. That’s all that can be said about these music, fun, and comedy filled movies that make you want to sing, dance, and laugh at the same time. Memorable characters and memorable guest stars make for some memorable movies.

3) School of Rock - Well, you’re not hardcore (like Jack Black) unless you live hardcore - or maybe that’s unless you can teach a whole bunch of fifth graders what it means to really feel the wonderful music that is rock and roll.

4) Once - This movie didn’t get the largest amount of buzz when it came out around a year ago but since winning that Oscar for the song “Falling Slowly”, it certainly got more notice. A moving, exciting, and inspiring movie.

5) Walk the Line - Joaquin Phoenix shows off some serious acting skills in his portrayal of Johnny Cash, alongside Reese Witherspoon who won a best actress Oscar for her performance. A great movie about the ‘highs’ and lows of making it big in the industry.

Writer’s suggestion: Idlewild - Andre 3000 and Big Boi of Outkast team up together again for a great film about mixing the music of the past with the music of the future. Artistically mastered in all parts of production and a real memorable piece.

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