The record that really broke The Fugees out of the box – not their debut, but the album where everything really came together – especially the fantastic mix of vocals and MC work that Lauryn Hill brought to the group! The album was a key bridge between hip hop and soul back in the day – of the sort that made R&B bend to the needs of hip hop – and not the more commercial other way around. And, the record's even got Wyclef and Pras sounding pretty great too – on titles that include the classic remake of "Killing Me Softly" – plus "How Many MC's", "Ready or Not", "The Score", "Family Business", "Zealots", "Fu-Gee-La", and "No Woman No Cry". CD

Heavy soul from the Bay Area scene – a fantastic set of tracks from the enigmatic Goapele! Goapele's an underground singer with a really righteous feel – and she's not afraid to use some heavy beats and funk to send her message home. The set's got a really well integrated instrumental feel – shifting slightly in style from track to track, but always with a positive and progressive approach only serves to push Goapele's lyrics all that much deeper. No softness here – just a mad kicking approach that's made us give the Bay Area another listen these days! Features guest work by Soulive, Pep Love, Zion I, and Casual – and titles include "It Takes More", "Closer", "Ease Your Mind", "Got It", "Romantic", "Too Much The Same", "Catch 22", "Salvation", and "Back To You". (Neo Soul, Hip Hop) CD