List of hip hop albums:
This list provides a guide to the most important hip hop albums, as determined by their presence on compiled lists of significant albums: see the "Lists consulted" section for full details. The brief accompanying notes offer an explanation as to why each album has been considered important. The organization of the list is by date of release, ranging from Run-D.M.C.'s eponymous debut in 1984 to Jay-Z's 2001 album, The Blueprint.
Since for the period of 1979–1983, hip hop was a music for 12" singles rather than albums,[1] the absence of old school hip hop from the list has been compensated for by providing it with its own section of notable releases. Notable compilations of songs which contain important hip hop breaks (short percussive interludes used as the rhythmic basis for a hip hop song) are also included.
[edit] List of important albums
- Run-D.M.C.: Run-D.M.C. (Profile, 1984) 1 2 3 6 7 Containing the early singles that saw off the old school, this is considered a superior rap album to any that preceded it.[2]
- Run-D.M.C.: Raising Hell (Profile, 1986) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 Crossover hits like "Walk This Way" co-exist with the quintessential hip hop of tracks like "Peter Piper", "Perfection", "It's Tricky" and "My Adidas".[4]
- Beastie Boys: Licensed to Ill (Def Jam, 1986) 1 2 3 5 6 7 9 Licensed to Ill was responsible, along with Run D.M.C.'s Raising Hell, for establishing the hip hop album as a fixture of the mainstream.[5][6]
- EPMD: Strictly Business (Fresh, 1988) 1 2 3 4 5 6 The slow-moving funk of Strictly Business, with its loud bass and laid-back rapping, was a new sound in hip hop.[11]
- MC Lyte: Lyte as a Rock (First Priority, 1988) 1 2 3 4 5 The treatments Lyte gives rap competitors and ex-boyfriends in tracks like "10% Dis", "I Cram to Understand U" and "Paper Thin" make this debut one of the best albums of the era.[15]
- Ultramagnetic MC's: Critical Beatdown (Next Plateau, 1988) 1 2 3 4 5 7 Critical Beatdown's abstract rhymes in strange syncopations laid on top of sampling experiments proved widely influential, from Public Enemy to gangsta rap to several generations of underground hip hop artists.[16]
- Public Enemy: Fear of a Black Planet (Def Jam, 1990) 1 2 3 6 7 Fear of a Black Planet, containing the singles "Fight the Power" and "Welcome to the Terrordome", was the similarly incendiary follow-up to It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back.[22]
- De La Soul: De La Soul Is Dead (Tommy Boy, 1991)1 2 3 5 7 Following the success of their debut, De La Soul killed off their hippy image, producing this sometimes frustrated, sometimes uplifting album with rich grooves in both moods.[29]
- Main Source: Breaking Atoms (Wild Pitch, 1991) 1 2 3 5 Breaking Atoms is noted for introducing both Nas and Akinyele, for its clever production (by Large Professor) and for its sophisticated storytelling in tracks like "Peace Is Not the Word to Play" and the metaphor for racism that was "Just a Friendly Game of Baseball".[30]
- Cypress Hill: Cypress Hill (Ruffhouse/Columbia, 1991) 1 2 3 4 5 Sardonic and menacing, marijuana-toking Cypress Hill's debut had B-Real's unmistakable nasal-whine delivery and extraordinary beats on this commercially successful record.[31]
- A Tribe Called Quest: The Low End Theory (Jive, 1991) 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 "The album demonstrated that hip-hop was an aesthetic every bit as deep, serious and worth cherishing as any in a century-plus of African-American music".[32]
- Dr. Dre: The Chronic (Death Row, 1992) 1 2 3 5 6 7 10 The era of wide-scale sampling would draw to a close in the wake of this hugely successful and hugely influential record, which used live band "interpolations" to create a slow, laid-back music which formed the background to raps of chilling violence.[36]
- Souls of Mischief: 93 'til Infinity (Jive, 1993) 1 2 3 5 There were hazy jazz samples, a bohemian air and a torrent of rhymes on the classic debut record from Souls of Mischief of East Oakland, California.[37]
- Nas: Illmatic (Columbia, 1994) 1 2 3 5 6 7 As writer Peter Shapiro frames it, Illmatic demonstrated a fitting of production to lyrics worthy of It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, an analytical evocation of street life that matched the power of N.W.A., and a command of the microphone not heard since Rakim.[40]
- Notorious B.I.G.: Ready to Die (Bad Boy, 1994) 1 2 3 5 6 This album's platinum sales, rap skills, and bleak vision mitigated by humor and funk, completed the revitalization of New York hip hop begun with the success of the Wu-Tang's debut a year before.[42]
- Common Sense: Resurrection (Relativity, 1994) 1 2 3 4 5 "I Used To Love H.E.R." is an extended metaphor for hip hop that attracted much attention, while on tracks like "Resurrection" and "Watermelon" Common's style is warm and witty, the tracks full of wordplay and assured jazzy production.[43]
- The Fugees: The Score (Ruffhouse/Columbia, 1996) 1 2 3 4 6 Massive singles aside, this was a dark, downtempo album; it sold over 18 million copies worldwide and was widely respected.[46]
- Jay-Z: Reasonable Doubt (Roc-A-Fella, 1996) 1 2 3 5 6 Jay-Z combined elements of the New York underground with a mainstream sensibility on his debut, proving himself a strong presence on the mic in the process.[47]
- Outkast: Aquemini (LaFace, 1998) 1 3 5 7Critical, analytical and emotionally intelligent, Aquemini was ambitious and successful both musically and lyrically.[49]
- Eminem: The Slim Shady LP (Aftermath/Interscope, 1999) 3 5 6 8 This contains some Dr. Dre productions and Eminem's deliberately offensive wordplay; the huge single "My Name Is" is an example of both.[50]
[edit] Old school hip hop
- Spoonie Gee, The Godfather of Hip Hop (Tuff City, 1997) 5 Almost all of the best releases by "perhaps the first great MC" are compiled here.[55]
- Afrika Bambaataa, Looking For the Perfect Beat: 1980-1985 (Tommy Boy, 2001) 3 5 Bambaataa is one of hip hop's most important figures; this collection best preserves his legacy.[56]
- The Best of Enjoy Records (Hot Productions, 1989) 3 5 Enjoy were responsible for some of the most essential old school recordings; some contained here are "Superrappin'", "The New Rap Language" and "Feel the Heartbeat".[57]
- Pumpkin, The Tuff City Sessions (Old School Flava, 1995) 5 Pumpkin was the musician, percussionist and band leader behind many old school tracks for the Profile, Enjoy, and Tuff City record companies. This collection does not have his own "King of the Beat" (Profile, 1983) and suffers from poor sound quality, but captures some of his performances for Grandmaster Caz, Spoonie Gee and others.[58]
- The Sugar Hill Story - Old School Rap To The Beat Y'all (Sequel, 1992) 5 This is the definitive collection pertaining to the earliest hip hop label, compiled for Sequel by David Toop.[59]
- Live Convention '82 (Disco Wax '82) 1 This is a bootleg of a live event at T Connection on which one can hear various extracts and breaks, and Grand Wizard Theodore cutting up "Do the Funky Penguin" with rap over the top.[60]
- Cold Crush Brothers: All The Way Live in '82 (Tuff City, 1994) 5 The Cold Crush Brothers were the direct inspiration for The Sugarhill Gang. This live 1982 recording obviously does not contain their 1984 single "Fresh, Wild, Fly and Bold", but it is an essential old school document. See also Cold Crush Brothers Vs. The Fantastic Romantic 5 (Tuff City, 1998).[61]
- Wild Style (Animal '83) 1 3 The soundtrack to the movie Wild Style has historical weight and yet "still feels like now", in the words of Jeff Chang.[62]
- Go-Go Crankin' (4th & B'way, 1985) 5 Go-Go Crankin' is a hard-to-find early compilation of the related genre go-go. See also Meet Me At The Go-Go (Sanctuary, 2003).[64]
- Street Jams: Electric Funk Vols. 1–4 (Rhino, 1992) 5 These are compilations of the sub-genre electro.[65]
[edit] Breakbeats
The break, the instrumental portion of a record (of any genre, though perhaps most often funk or rock) that emphasizes the percussive pattern, is the fundamental unit of most hip hop music. The collections below collect the original songs that contain some of the most popular breaks in hip hop.
- Super Disco Brakes (Winley) [66] Vol. 1 was released in 1979, making it one of the first releases connected to hip hop culture, and almost certainly the first breakbeat record.[67]
- Ultimate Breaks And Beats Vols. 1–25 (Street Beat, 1985–1990) 5 This comprehensive and influential series began just as the sampler was taking a central role in hip hop music.[68]
- Kurtis Blow Presents The History Of Hip Hop Vol. 1 (Rhino, 1997) 5 One of the few breakbeat collections not of dubious legality.[68]
[edit] Lists consulted
Lists 1–5 are exclusively hip hop publications by writers respected in the field. 6–9 are essentially rock publications, though with some breadth of coverage, obviously; 6–7 are American, 8–9, English. 10 is an English dance music publication that none-the-less had hip hop accounting for more than a fifth of its list. Albums that appear on any four lists or more have been included.
- "Hip Hop's Greatest Albums By Year" in Sacha Jenkins, Elliott Wilson, Chairman Mao, Gabriel Alvarez & Brent Rollins. ego trip's Book of Rap Lists, New York: St. Martin's Press, 1999, pp. 331–337. ISBN 9780312242985
- "Top 100 Albums of All-Time", The Source, January 1998.
- Oliver Wang (ed.) Classic Material, Toronto: ECW, 2003. ISBN 9781550225617
- Brian Coleman, Check The Technique, New York: Villard, 2007. ISBN 978-0-8129-7775-2
- Peter Shapiro, Rough Guide to Hip Hop, 2nd. ed., London: Rough Guides, 2005. ISBN 978-1843532637
- "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time", Rolling Stone, November 2003.
- "100 Greatest Albums, 1985-2005", Spin, July 2005.
- "100 Best Albums Of All Time", NME, March 2003.
- "Top 100 Favourite Albums of All Time", Melody Maker, January 2000.
- "Best Albums of All Time", Mixmag, 1996.
- ^ David Toop, Rap Attack, 3rd. ed., London: Serpent's Tail, 2000. (p. 213) ISBN 978-1852426279
- ^ Shapiro, p. 327
- ^ Shapiro, p. 228
- ^ Shapiro, p. 327
- ^ Shapiro, p. 26
- ^ Stephen Holden, "Bon Jovi and Bonbons", Pop Life, New York Times, December 30 1987.
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 41–42
- ^ Shapiro, p. 126
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 32–33.
- ^ Shapiro, p. 337
- ^ Shapiro, p. 124, p. 126
- ^ Shapiro, p. 30
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 304–306
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 282–285
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 253–254
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 374–376
- ^ Shapiro, p. 198
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 84–86
- ^ Shapiro, p. 26
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 309–310
- ^ Shapiro, p. 200
- ^ Shapiro, p. 304
- ^ Shapiro, p. 363
- ^ Shapiro, p. 389
- ^ Shapiro, p. 175, p. 177
- ^ Shapiro, p. 302–303
- ^ Shapiro, p.42
- ^ Shapiro, p. 152, p. 154
- ^ Shapiro, p. 85
- ^ Shapiro, p. 245
- ^ Shapiro, p. 73
- ^ Shapiro, p. 365
- ^ Shapiro, p. 157
- ^ Shapiro, p. 320
- ^ Shapiro, p. 299
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 108–109
- ^ Shapiro, p. 170
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 387–388
- ^ Shapiro, p. 339
- ^ Shapiro, p. 270
- ^ Shapiro, p. 290
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 281–282
- ^ Shapiro, pp. 64–65
- ^ Shapiro, p. 259
- ^ Shapiro, p. 387
- ^ Shapiro, p. 146
- ^ Shapiro, p. 187
- ^ Shapiro, p.147
- ^ Shapiro, p. 294
- ^ Shapiro, p. 122
- ^ Shapiro, p. 189
- ^ http://entertainment.timesonline.co.uk/tol/arts_and_entertainment/music/article4826317.ece
- ^ Shapiro, p. 346
- ^ Shapiro, p. 351
- ^ Shapiro, p. 345
- ^ Shapiro, p. 5
- ^ Shapiro, p. 124
- ^ Shapiro, p. 369
- ^ Shapiro, p. 352
- ^ Toop, 67
- ^ Shapiro, p. 64
- ^ Oliver Wang (ed.), p. 163
- ^ Shapiro, p. 344
- ^ Shapiro, p. 157
- ^ Shapiro, p. 121
- ^ Toop, p. 67
- ^ Shapiro, p. 384
- ^ a b Shapiro, p. 378
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