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Know the Ledge - Eric B & Rakim
Method man- Wu Tang Clan
The ? Remains - Gangstarr
Slam - Onyx
Tru Fu Schnick - The Fu schnickens
Headbanger - EPMD
Brother on the Run - Kool G Rap
Nuthin But A G Thang (freestyle)
Nuthin But A G Thang - Dr. Dre & Snoop Doggy Dogg
Deep Cover - Dr. Dre ft. Snopp Doggy Dogg
Madizm - Channel Live ft. KRS One
Most Beautifulest Thing In the World - Keith Murray
Who Got The Props - Black Moon
Yo That's That Sh*t - Diamond D
Gangsta Bitch - Apache
How Can Just Kill A Man - Cypress Hill
Time 4 Sum Akshun - Redman
That's When You're Lost - Souls Of Mischief
Funky 4 You - Nice & Smooth
DWYCK - Gangstarr
The Choice is Yours - Black Sheep
uptown Anthem - Naughty by Nature
Fakin the Funk - Main Source
Lookin' At the front Door - Main Source
They Reminisce Over You - Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Can I Get Open - Original Flava
Let the Rhythm Hit'em - Eric B & Rakim
Protect ya neck - Wu tang clan
Live At the Bar B Que - Main Source
Dowhatchalike - Digital Underground
Psycho - Lords of the Underground
Jingin baby - LL Cool J
Rated XXX - Kool G Rap
Around the Way girl - LL Cool J
Regulate - Warren G ft. Nate Dogg
Time To Flow - D Nice
Massaple (bite the rix mix)- Gangstarr
Party and Bullsh*t - Notorious BIG
Punks Jump Up To Get Beatdown - Brand Nubian
Check the Rhime - A Tribe Called Quest
Get It Together - Beastie Boys ft. Q Tip
Hip Hop Vs Rap (DJ Spinbad Remix) - KRS One
I Used To Love Her(DJ Slynkee remix) - Common
Passin me By - The Pharcyde
Nuff Respect Due - Rakim
Dead Or Alive - Kool G Rap
International Zone Coaster- Leader of the New School
Burn Hollywood Burn - Public Enemy ft. Ice Cube
New Jack Hustler - Ice T
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Long Time, No Sugar
(Brown Sugar - D' Angelo)
Common 2 Opensouls
(The Corner - Common)
Fuel 4 Troy's Fire
(They Reminiscence Over You - Pete Rock & CL Smooth)
Dilla Soul Glow
(Much More - De La Soul)
Ta-Lib-Illa-Docious
(Listen - Talib Kweli)
Runnin' 2 Get Some
(Runnin - The Pharcyde)
Tribes Re:Born
(Check The Rhyme - A Tribe Called Quest)
Lyall Bay Globetrotter
(????)
What They Do To Get Up
(What They Do - The Roots)
4 Music Spinnas
(????)
Takes Is Fly
(Stakes Is High - De La Soul)
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1. ROAD TO THE RICHES
First-time listeners (like myself) may be surprised to hear how much a younger G Rap's voice resembles that of Black Thought from The Roots. (That may be due more to a conscious effort by Black Thought than anything else, though: ?uestlove has told many stories about how Road To The Riches is one of Thought's favorite albums.) G Rap completely destroys Marley Marl's beat, and younger listeners will be amazed that rap music sounded like this in the 1980s.
2. IT'S A DEMO
Kind of a really stupid title, since this song is clearly not a demo track, but G Rap demonstrates his craft (hey, I just got it!) over a relatively decent beat that will remind you of Eric B. & Rakim's “I Know You Got Soul”.
3. MEN AT WORK
There's just something about rapping over the “Apache” breakbeat: Black Thought sounded great on “Thought @ Work” (which was obviously influenced by this track), and Wale did alright by himself on his Black Thought tribute, but for the hip hop heads that have been in it for the long haul, Kool G Rap is the end-all be-all, and this song is fucking awesome, even today. Go ahead, my younger readers: go to Youtube and give this track a spin before finishing this write-up. It's okay, I can wait.
4. TRULY YOURS
Hey, welcome back. Pete Rock was obviously a fan of this song, since he remade it (with G Rap in tow) for the first Soul Survivor disc. G Rap's second verse is incredibly homophobic, and would never fly today, but it is still impressive that he went the entire verse without saying the f-word. (And no, I'm not talking about “fuck”, although he doesn't say that, either.)
5. CARS
Ultimately, this song is kind of silly, but it's still entertaining. What is it about sampling Gary Numan (a revelation that you should have been clued in upon after reading the very title of this song) that makes rappers want to stand out even more? (See: Gza/Genius and The Rza on “Life Is A Movie”.) Hearing rappers sample New Wave tracks is always a plus for me.
6. TRILOGY OF TERROR
While that is a cool fucking title, it would have made more sense if there were two other rappers on this track, or even if G Rap had three verses, but with what we're given, this track is pretty blah.
7. SHE LOVES ME, SHE LOVES ME NOT
The “love rap” that was mandatory on hip hop albums back in the day. G Rap fares better than Big Daddy Kane did, since G Rap's song actually has a really good beat (except for the flourishes during the chorus). It's not that great of a song, as G Rap sounds uncomfortable with the subject matter, but it could sound a lot worse.
8. COLD CUTS
Uses the same sample (one of many, many samples on here) as an Ultramagnetic MC's track, which I can't remember the name of at the moment. After the last song, this gets listeners back up to speed, energy level-wise, since it's essentially the deejay cut, although G Rap does pop up at the beginning.
9. RHYMES I EXPRESS
I wasn't that impressed with this song. It's because of the beat, though: it just didn't work for me.
10. POISON
I never realized that the vocal sample shouting the song title from that Bell Biv Devoe song was from this fucking track. There was no way I could have seen that coming (since I've never owned a Bell Biv Devoe album, so I never would have ever looked at any album credits). Just like most of the tracks on here, “Poison” features G Rap ripping the shit out of the backing Marley Marl beat, with fantastic results.
11. BUTCHER SHOP
G Rap spits an ode to his deejay, Polo, over a beat that is only alright. The lyrics are delivered with a ferocity that is solely lacking from hip hop today, though.
THE LAST WORD: With the exception of a couple of songs, Road To The Riches fucking rocks in a legendary manner, and is completely relevant to today's hip hop audience. Unfortunately, Kool G Rap isn't necessarily the first rapper younger fans think about when they decide to research the history, so this album has likely been bypassed numerous times. Make no mistake, this CD is really good, especially of you're a fan of lyrical delivery. Road To The Riches contains some classic Marley Marl production and choice cuts by DJ Polo, and comes highly recommended by me, which is always nice. Also, the links scattered throughout the post lead you to the 2006 re-release, which is full of demo tracks and alternate takes, which should satisfy the collectors that I know read this blog. Enjoy.
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March 11th, 2010Uncategorized