Albums I listened to this week [7/6/08]

Turk - Young & Thuggin' [2001]
Turk is from New Orleans, Louisiana and was, at the time of Young & Thuggin', signed to Cash Money Records. As a result, the entire album is produced by Mannie Fresh. That's a good thing. Also, the album features guest appearances by other Cash Money artists. That's not necessarily a plus.

The themes on this album are fairly predictable:

• Thug
• Beef
• Hustle
• Money
• Shine
• Stunt
  

Will I listen to this album again? If so, it'll be due to Mannie Fresh's beats (who should make at least one instrumental album, or at least reserve the right to use his beats on an instrumental album a year or two after selling the beats to artists).

I can't comfortably identify the songs as highlights. Instead, I'll focus on my favorite beats from the album.

Best beats: "It's In Me," "Yes We Do," and "Untamed Guerrilla"
Songs to avoid: "One Saturday Night"
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Snowgoons - Black Snow [2008]
From what I can tell, Snowgoons have had a foothold in Hip-Hop in Germany for quite a while and are well known for their solid production skills. The first time I heard about the crew was upon the release of the full-length album German Lugers in 2007. That album featured vocal appearances by some of the best in underground Hip-Hop: Craig G, Ed O.G., Wise Intelligent, Jus Allah, Chief Kamachi, Sean Price, O.C. and more.

This time around, Snowgoons stick to the script by utilizing a wide variety of underground MCs (meaning MCs you'll rarely, if ever, hear on commercial radio or see on MTV or BET - if you're still watching those channels for music), including: Apathy, Ed O.G., Supastition, Ill Bill, Killah Priest, Defari, Boom Bap Project, Pacewon and Smif-N-Wessun.

Highlights:

• "The Curse" (with King Magnetic, Reef The Lost Cauze, and Charon Don)
  
• "Casualties Of War" (with Smif-N-Wessun and Respect Tha God)
• "Hold Up" (with R.A. The Rugged Man, Lord Lhus, and Savage Brothers)
• "Knockatomi Plaza" (with Side Effect)
• "Lost" (with Respect Tha God, Block McCloud and Doap Nixon)
• "Sick Like" (with Sick Jacken, Cynic, and Bacardi Riam)
  

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Will.I.Am - Songs About Girls [2007]
Will.I.Am of the Black Eyed Peas dropped his solo album last fall. Much of the album sounds like the soundtrack to a college spring break getaway. A few songs in particular have a strong pop feel with lots of male/female call and response elements. I could have done without these songs (such as "The Donque Song" and "I Got It From My Mama"), but I guess I understand the mass appeal behind them.

The album includes a guest appearance by Snoop Dogg and production work by Will.I.Am and Polow Da Don.

I preferred some of the smooth, laid-back tracks such as "She's A Star," "Ain't It Pretty," and "S.O.S. (Mother Nature)." The latter two cuts sound like something I would expect to hear on a K-Os album.
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Boyz N The Hood Soundtrack [1991]
I'd forgotten the strength of this soundtrack. It provided a nice balance including west coast rap (Ice Cube, Yo-Yo, Kam, Too Short, Compton's Most Wanted), R&B (Hi-Five, Tevin Campbell, Tony! Toni! Tone!), and jazz (Quincy Jones, Stanley Clarke).

The soundtrack also brings back memories of one of my favorite movies. I can nearly visualize every scene that coincides with each song from the soundtrack (including the scene where Ricky is shot in the back, Tre and Brandi's love scene, and Doughboy's house party when he is released from jail).

Highlights:

• "How To Survive In South Central" (by Ice Cube)
• "Just Ask Me To" (by Tevin Campbell, Chubb Rock)
• "Just Me And You" (by Tony! Toni! Tone!)
• "Just A Friendly Game Of Baseball [Remix]" (by Main Source)
• "Growin' Up In The Hood" (by Compton's Most Wanted)
• "Setembro" (by Quincy Jones)
  

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Ras Kass - Razzy Kazzy
Ras Kass would hold a slot somewhere within my Top 20 MC list. It is a travesty that he has never received the acknowledgment he deserves.

I'd heard a few of these tracks before on prior underground releases (such as "Dreams," "Understandable Smooth" and "Home Sweet Home"). That doesn't make it any less enjoyable. Guest artists include: KRS-One, Xzibit, Sheek Louch, Sauce Money, Skillz, Scipio, Kon Artis of D-12, Mad Lion, and Bootleg of The Dayton Family.

Highlights:

• "Sophisticated Thugs" (with Bootleg and Ideal)
• "Dreams" (over the beat from 702's "Where My Girls At")
  
• "One On One" (with Punchline)
• "Understandable Smooth Sh*t" (with Anita Baker sample)
• "Home Sweet Home"

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Snoop Dogg - The City Is In Good Hands
Sometimes I wonder if I'm a hypocrite. Here, Snoop Dogg and DJ Drama provide a mixtape better than most full length albums. However, much of the theme isn't that different than the material on the Turk album that I criticized earlier in this very same post: Be a pimp, be a boss, get money, guns are cool, smoke weed.

Maybe it's because Snoop's track record dates back to my teenage years. Perhaps it's because Snoop's lyrical delivery isn't as simple as Turk's.

Guest artists include MC Eiht, Kurupt, and Goldie Loc. Highlights:

• "If There's A Cure" (which samples Diana Ross' "Love Hangover")
• "The City Is In Good Hands"
• "That Sh*t" (The beat sound like a KLC / No Limit production from the mid 1990s. Also, MC Eiht makes a guest appearance.)
  
• My favorite line: "You ain't gotta pimp my ride / It's already equipped with a pimp inside." Nice little wordplay based on MTV's Pimp My Ride show.
  
• "Diamonds On My Neck" (with Kurupt)
• "Let Me Know" (with MC Eiht, Goldie Loc, and a hook sung by someone who sounds like John Legend)
• "Let Me In This B*tch" (with Warzone)

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R.A. The Rugged Man - Die, Rugged Man, Die [2004]
I have slept on R.A. The Rugged Man for far too long. His lyrics are funny, witty, and full of punchlines (such as "I'll pull an L.L. and leave my draws in your hamper").

His lyrics make it very clear that he loves and respects Hip-Hop. In "Lessons," he provides a brief summary of his Hip-Hop career by discussing a wide variety of topics such as:

• His early interactions with the Neptunes
• The deaths of Jam Master Jay, Big L, Biggie, Big Pun, and Buffy of the Fat Boys
• His role as a white rapper (including references to Bubba Sparxxx and Eminem)
• EPMD's breakup
• His bitterness about Alchemist giving the "I'm The King" beat to Royce Da 5'9"
• Steve Stoute carrying Kid 'N Play's luggage back in the day
• His disdain for fans who don't know of Kool G Rap

The beats don't always provide a great landscape for R.A.'s rhymes, but if you are into lyrics you'll probably see past that. He constantly references the pre-2000 era of Hip-Hop, which is wonderful for someone raised during that time period.

Highlights:

• "Lessons"
• "Chains" (with Killah Priest and Masta Killa)
• "On The Block"
• "How Low" (which samples Kraftwerk's "Trans Europe Express")
  

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