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NYC features Kool G Rap and Jinx Da Juvenile. The flip features Flipmode Squad and American Cream Team.

Fat Joe's first LP – a very strong slice of east coast early 90s gangsta that's way stronger than the 14-year-olds who listened to Joe in the 00s will probably ever know. With quality production all the way through by The Beatnuts, Diamond D, Showbiz and Lord Finesse and scratches by Rob Swift and Rock Raider (Roc Raida). Features guest appearances by Grand Puba (that to our ears anyway, sound better than his solo stuff from that time), Diamond D, Kool G Rap, Apache, and King Sun. With the hits "The S**t Is Real", "Watch The Sound", "I'm A Hit That", "Flow Joe", "You Must Be Out of Your F***in' Mind" and eight more.

10 tracks, including "Puerto Rico/Black People", "Feel The Vibe", "You & You & You", "Boriquas On Da Set" (original and remix), "The Cypher Pt 3", "Know Da Game" and "Pay Ya Dues", featuring an all start cast of rappers, including Heltah Skeltah, Lost Boyz, Sadat X, Fat Joe, Craig G, Roxanne Shante, Biz Markie, Big Daddy Kane, Mobb Deep, Kool G Rap, Keith Murray, Busta Rhymes and the Cocoa Brovaz.

Hard to believe how important this soundtrack was, back in the day. One of the first good hip hop soundtracks, and a motherlode of great cuts like "Paid In Full (7 minute Cold Cut remix)" by Eric B & Rakim, "Butcher Shop" by Kool G Rap, "Colors" by Ice T, "Mind Is A Terrible Thing To Waste" by M.C. Shan, and "Go On Girl" by Roxanne Shante. More by Salt N Pepa, Big Daddy Kane, 7A3, and Rick James. Marley Marl produced the motherlode of these cuts, and this was the early days of the Cold Chillin/Warner alliance.

Fantastic stuff – incredibly hard and incredibly funky, and a masterpiece all the way through! Long before there was any talk of gangster rap, Jalal of the Last Poets recorded this album of gamblin', pimpin', and hard double dealin'. It's a fantastic album-long ride through the dark side of the black underworld, and is the aural equivalent of a blacksploitation flick. Kool & The Gang provided the music – and Jalal tells the whole story throughout, in the same hard rappin' style he used with the Last Poets! The record's an undisputed classic, and includes the sample classic "Sport", plus loads of other righteous funky cuts like "Spoon", "Grit's Den", and "Sentenced To The Chair"!

Sweet beats from this cool French duo – a pair who've got that same sort of genre-jumping quality we've loved in French grooves since the days of MC Solaar! The approach here is mostly hip hop, but there's strains of Neo Soul, jazzy funk, and more – shifting the vibe nicely from track to track, but always with a nicely cohesive feel. Some cuts – billed as "samba rap" or "rap bossa" – show a nice Brazilian influence – and titles include "Byrd", "Avolta", "Dance Me", "Kool Out", "Now That I Know You", "Oedeep", "One More Time", and "So Tired".

Odd six track promo sampler from Epic. The best track here is "Rock On" from Funkdoobiest with a good combination of hyped vocals over mellow production. Also includes a short un-named verse from Kool G Rap. Other tracks: Mystidious Misfits "I Be", Vicious feat. Shyheim "Life Of A Shortie", Mista Grimm "Situation Grimm (acapella)", Dana Barros "Check It (acapella)".

A strong, well-assembled History Of Queensbridge – featuring rarities and freestyles from breakout hip hip superstars, blueprint era legends and longtime underground heavies alike – include Nas, Mobb Deep, Kool G Rap, Noreaga, Tragedi Khadafi, Cormega and more! Features MCs from Queensbridge proper and collabos with legends from elsewhere in and around NYC – and the titles include "Testaments" by Cormega, "Black Life" by Mobb Deep & ACD, ""Triple Threat" by Nas, Noreaga & Nature, "Holla Back To Dope" by Kool G Rap & Nas, "Freestyle S**t" by Cormega feat Busta Rhymes, "Real" by Tragedy Khadafi, 'Freestyle 1994" by Mobb Deep, "Gun Ring" by E Money Bags, "Thug Chronicles" by Kool G Rap & Havoc, "Betrayal" by Nature & Tragedy Khadafi and more. 20 tracks in all.

Double LP collection from 1987-88. Public Enemy "Don't Believe The Hype", EPMD "Strictly Business" (club mix), De La Soul "Plug Tunin", Rob Base & DJ E-Z Rock "It Takes Two", Kool Moe Dee "Wild Wild West" (extended remix), Salt-N-Pepa "Push It" (remix), Run DMC "Run's House", and five more.

A funky & far reaching compilation on Perfect Toy! Shake-A-Leg features Afro Beat, jazz funk, funky hip hop and raw soul – compiled by Tobias Kirmayer and Jerker Kluge – highlighting the kinds of grooves they spin at their monthly club nights in Munich! It has a timeless feel, thanks in no small part to the duos penchant for selecting numbers that stretch as far back to the 70s roots, as well as some of best tracks from the diverse contemporary funk underground. Includes hip hop funk from Othello & DJ Vajra and Breakestra feat Chali 2na, Soup, Double K & Mixmaster Wolf, classic jazz funk era heroes Grant Green, Joe Thomas and Eddie Jefferson, modern Afro Funk from Ikebe Shakedown, Latin Beat from Cesar's Salad and much more! Titles include "Family Rap" by Breakestra, Chali 2na & others, Grant Green's cover of Kool & The Gang's "Let The Music Take Your Mind", "You Can Bet Your Swet Bippy" by The Joe Thomas Group, ""Outlines Part 3" by Ernst Arno, "Hard Steppin" by Ikebe Shakedown, "Yenyere" by Cesar's Salad" and more.

The best music in years from RZA – the man who introduced styliized martial arts soundtrack funk to hardcore hip hop – and the soundtrack to his own damn stylized martial arts film, The Man With The Iron Fists! Musically, it's top notch! RZA's wise enough to contemporize his tried-and-true style rather than revisit it – with swelling soul strings and a crisper sound than the dusty Shaw Bros-sampling Wu Tang sound of past endeavors –and he's joined by a diverse roster of guests that includes Ghostface, Raekwon and other Wu veterans, Kanye, MOP, Pharoahe Monch, The Black Keys, Corrine Bailey Rae, Danny Brown and many more! Includes "The Baddest Man Alive" with The Black Keys, "Black Out" with Ghostface, MOP & Pharoahe Monch, "White Dress" with Kanye West, "Rivers Of Blood" with Wu Tang Clan and Kool G Rap, "Chains" with Corrine Bailey Rae, "The Archer" with Killa Sin, "Just Blowin' In The Wind" with RZA and Flatbush Zombies, "Your Good Thing Is About To End" by Mable John, "Built For This" with Method Man, Freddie Gibbs & Streetlife" and more.

Dawn of the 80s party rap from Kool DJ AJ! "Ah, That's The Joint" is notable as an early Terry Lewis production, but what's really great about it is how brilliantly it rocks a 70s funk vibe underneath the vocals. The bass groove is unstoppable and the the beat is incredible – with benchmark rap style with call & response backup vox.

Quality production all the way through by The Beatnuts, Diamond D, Showbiz and Lord Finesse, with scratches by Rob Swift and Rock Raider. Features guest appearances by Grand Puba (that to our ears anyway, sound better than his solo stuff from that time), Diamond D, Kool G Rap, Apache, and King Sun. With the hits "The S**t Is Real", "Watch The Sound", "I'm A Hit That", "Flow Joe", "You Must Be Out of Your F***in' Mind" and eight more.

A stone classic from Black Heat – the group's second album, and even tighter than their first! The group's size has dropped a bit between albums – but that only helps them cook even more – dropping a bit of the horn section from before, which allows even more emphasis on their razor-sharp rhythms! There's a slight hint of Afro Funk in some of the rhythms – and the keyboards cook with lots of sweet clavinet lines – mixed with a production style that features some bubbling electronic elements that remind us a lot of that crazy "magic bag" that was used by the Lafayette Afro-Rock Band. That group might be a good point of comparison, but the band also shares a lot of Kool & The Gang's ensemble funk style – especially on their cover of "Love The Life You Live" – which they burn here beautifully! Other tracks include "Super Cool", "M&M's", "Rapid Fire", "You Should Have Listened", "Times Have Changed", and "Check It All Out".

Fantastic live stuff from the classic early period of Kool & the Gang! The set swings mightily with a sound that's hardly matched on some of their studio albums, and the band proves that their tightness isn't just a batch of studio tricks as they blow away the crowd at the Sex Machine night club. There's lots of great live jamming here, and some of their best early cuts like "Let The Music Take Your Mind", "Who's Gonna Take The Weight", "Funky Man", and more. This is a very nice reissue pressing, with a cool gatefold wraparound cover, and some very heavy funky wax! Another one that we never thought we'd see again on vinyl – now out for the masses at a nice nice price.

Proof that the US Army had plenty going on during the 70s – as you'll hear from this killer set of military-produced grooves from East Of Underground! The set goes way past the previous East Of Underground reissue – to feature work by the groups Soap, Black Seeds, and Sound Trek – all wrapped up in a beautiful package that's as visually pleasing as the music is funky! The cuts here were all recorded by US Army servicemen during the height of the Vietnam war – as Army-issued albums designed to encourage recruitment (as if a few funky grooves could help offset the bad press the war was getting on TV!) But despite that odd origin, the music here is all pretty great – mostly covers of familiar tunes from the time, but recorded with a nicely gritty quality that's mighty nice – and which makes the overall feel of the records like digging into some lost small studio tapes – ala Numero! Now Again have done a great job of putting together the whole package, too – contributing a wealth of notes and photos, and really digging deep into the scene in which these unique records were created. Not only that, but the packaging also replicates the style of the original odd releases too! The set features an LP each of music by East Of Underground and Soap – plus another LP that features a side each by the groups Black Seeds and Sound Trek. Titles include "I Just Want To Celebrate", "Kool & The Gang", "Walking In The Rain", "Backstabbers", "I Love Everything About You", "Ain't No Sunshine", "Go Outside In The Rain", "Black Magic Woman", "Hell Below", "Higher", "Popcorn/Santana", "Walk On By", "Java Girl", and "Get Together".

Proof that the US Army had plenty going on during the 70s – as you'll hear from this killer set of military-produced grooves from East Of Underground! The set goes way past the previous East Of Underground reissue – to feature work by the groups Soap, Black Seeds, and Sound Trek – all wrapped up in a beautiful package that's as visually pleasing as the music is funky! The cuts here were all recorded by US Army servicemen during the height of the Vietnam war – as Army-issued albums designed to encourage recruitment (as if a few funky grooves could help offset the bad press the war was getting on TV!) But despite that odd origin, the music here is all pretty great – mostly covers of familiar tunes from the time, but recorded with a nicely gritty quality that's mighty nice – and which makes the overall feel of the records like digging into some lost small studio tapes – ala Numero! Now Again have done a great job of putting together the whole package, too – contributing a wealth of notes and photos, and really digging deep into the scene in which these unique records were created. Not only that, but the packaging also replicates the style of the original odd releases too! The set features a CD each of music by East Of Underground and Soap – plus another CD that brings together an unusual double LP by the groups Black Seeds and Sound Trek. Titles include "I Just Want To Celebrate", "Kool & The Gang", "Walking In The Rain", "Backstabbers", "I Love Everything About You", "Ain't No Sunshine", "Go Outside In The Rain", "Black Magic Woman", "Hell Below", "Higher", "Popcorn/Santana", "Walk On By", "Java Girl", and "Get Together".

The first new solo effort from Wu Tang gamer Masta Killa in a few years – and a timeless bit of raw, soul sample-based hip hop from one the more underappreciated Wu MCs! It's thankfully light on guest rappers – save for an appearance by Kurpupt and a vault verse from ODB, Masta Killa is the only voice. Production by Mathrmatics, 9th Wonder, Koolade, Inspectah Deck and others. Includes "Soul & Substance", "R U Listening", "Things Just Ain't The Same", "What U See", "Divine Glory", "All Natural", "Wise Words", "Dirty Soul", "Cali Sun" with Kurupt and more.

The first new solo effort from Wu Tang gamer Masta Killa in a few years – and a timeless bit of raw, soul sample-based hip hop from one the more underappreciated Wu MCs! It's thankfully light on guest rappers – save for an appearance by Kurpupt and a vault verse from ODB, Masta Killa is the only voice. Production by Mathrmatics, 9th Wonder, Koolade, Inspectah Deck and others. Includes "Soul & Substance", "R U Listening", "Things Just Ain't The Same", "What U See", "Divine Glory", "All Natural", "Wise Words", "Dirty Soul", "Cali Sun" with Kurupt and more.