Slick Rick: Behind Bars 180g Vinyl LP

Why you'll love it

This Music On Vinyl reissue puts Behind Bars on 180g vinyl with an insert. The album reached No. 11 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, and its singles "Behind Bars" and "Sittin' in My Car" both made the top 12 of the Hot Rap Singles chart.

This edition

180g vinyl
Insert included

About the album

Most rappers make their third album in a studio. Slick Rick recorded a good part of his while on furlough from prison, more of it in 1993 when he was allowed out to work, and the producers then built the music around his vocals, sometimes years after he'd laid them down. You'd never guess it from the results: the British-American storyteller sounds as unhurried and sharp as ever, every line delivered with that worldly, laconic drawl.

The production list is stacked. Vance Wright, Prince Paul, Easy Mo Bee and Warren G all contribute, Pete Rock and Large Professor handle remixes, and Doug E. Fresh, Nice & Smooth and Warren G drop by on the mic. "Sittin' in My Car" reunites Rick with Doug E. Fresh over a Billy Stewart sample, "I'm Captive" borrows from Run-DMC's Peter Piper, "Let's All Get Down" brings in Nice & Smooth, and "Behind Bars (Dum Ditty Dum Mix)" leans on a Les McCann groove.

Vibe reckoned Rick's street brilliance and sparkling wit could be distilled even from behind bars, and The Spin Alternative Record Guide called it a hip-hop revelation. Few albums have been finished under quite such a strict curfew, and fewer still sound this relaxed about it.

Also at Kops: more Slick Rick on vinyl · browse Hip Hop / R&B

Tracklist

Side A
1. Behind Bars
2. All Alone (No One To Be With)
3. Sittin' In My Car
4. A Love That's True (Part II)
5. Cuz It's Wrong
6. Let's All Get Down

Side B
1. I'm Captive
2. Get A Job
3. A Love That's True (Part III)
4. It's A Boy (Remix)
5. Behind Bars (Dum Ditty Dum Mix)