Eric B. & Rakim: Paid in Full (2LP) [ISLAND]

Why you'll love it

This 2LP set spreads the duo's debut over four sides. "Eric B. Is President," "I Know You Got Soul" and the title track helped set the template for golden age hip hop.

This edition

• 2LP set

About the album

In 1985 Eric B. went looking for a rapper to match his turntable work on New York's WBLS, and a soft-spoken Long Island kid named Rakim answered. They started recording in Marley Marl's home studio, and once their single "Eric B. Is President" landed, Island Records signed them up. The album followed in the summer of 1987, cut between Marley's place and Power Play Studios in Manhattan.

Rakim's calm, intricate flow changed what rapping could sound like, and Eric B. built hard, simple beats for it out of funk records. "I Ain't No Joke" is a masterclass in quiet menace, "I Know You Got Soul" lifts Bobby Byrd, "Move the Crowd" and "My Melody" ride long, rolling grooves, and "Paid in Full" loops The Soul Searchers' "Ashley's Roachclip" under a bassline from Dennis Edwards and Siedah Garrett.

English duo Coldcut remixed the title track as "Seven Minutes of Madness," adding a sample of Ofra Haza, and took it into the top 15 across Europe. They were paid 700 pounds for the job, which by our reckoning makes it the best-value seven minutes of the decade.

Also at Kops: more Eric B. & Rakim on vinyl · browse Hip Hop / R&B

Tracklist

Listen

On 4th & Broadway / Island, a reissue of the 1987 album.