Pete Rock: Soul Survivor (2LP) [LOUD/LEGACY]

Why you'll love it

The 2LP reissue of Pete Rock's first solo album, seventeen tracks produced entirely by the Chocolate Boy Wonder himself. The guest list is a who's who of 90s rap: Raekwon, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Inspectah Deck, Prodigy, Black Thought, Kool G Rap, O.C. and more.

This edition

• 2LP set
• Seventeen tracks over four sides
• Loud / Legacy pressing (cat# 19958415931)

About the album

Pete Rock spent the early 90s making some of the finest records in hip hop history with CL Smooth, including the immortal "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)." When the duo split, he stepped forward with Soul Survivor in 1998, handling all the production himself, rhyming on a few tracks and handing the mic to an extraordinary line-up of guests. The beats are classic Pete Rock: dusty soul and jazz samples, horns stacked in layers, drums that thump and swing in equal measure. His drums alone have launched a thousand imitators, and here they are at their very best.

"Tha Game" brings together Raekwon, Ghostface Killah and Prodigy for one of the great posse cuts of the era, "Truly Yours 98" and "Tru Master" show him at his smoothest, and "Strange Fruit" and "Verbal Murder 2" hit hard. There are Wu-Tang members all over the record, plus Black Thought, O.C., Kool G Rap and Large Professor. It is a producer's album in the best sense, the sort of record that makes you want to go find the original samples. Proper headphones essential, neck brace optional.

Tracklist

Listen

On Loud / Legacy (cat# 19958415931), a reissue of the 1998 album.