Old School Rap, Vol. 1-4

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Customer reviews

review by: The Music Enthusiast date: 2008-07-15 rating:
A Fantastic Concept Ruined by Poor Execution
Why oh why did the old Rapmasters series I used to rock in high school go out of print? Now that was classic old school hip hop compiled by people who lived through the era and knew from what they chose! This series is a mediocre substitute at best.

Granted, there are quite a few genuine classics on here...Wild Wild West, The Message, The Show, Paid in Full, etc. But there are also a few questionable selections...Ice Ice Baby? Really?!?

On the plus side, the curse words, etc., are not edited out on most of the songs on discs 1,2, & 4, and you do get to hear some of these classics as the artists originally intended. No, I'm not fiendin' for foul language. I just want to hear these songs as they were originally released. Think the chorus of The Roof is on Fire! That just wouldn't be the same with certain swears bleeped out!

And then we come to disc 3. Unlike the rest of the series, which presents these classic, must have hip hop cuts in their full glory, Vol. 3 ruins them by slicing and dicing them into truncated versions. Some genius decided that simply presenting these immortal songs in their entirety wasn't good enough, and they hired the legendary Grandmaster Flash to chop them up and present them mix tape style. You only get the middle of La-Di-Da-Di, for example. The intro and the last verse are missing. On top of that, the CD is only about 40 minutes or so instead of the usual 60-70 minute length utilized in the rest of the series. The one major benefit of authentic mixtapes (or CDs) is that they're much longer than official releases and can present up to 90 truncated songs. Not so here. You get all of the detriments of the format with none of the benefits. A word to the brilliant mind that envisioned this atrocity: When I want a mixtape (or CD) I'll hit up the bootleggin' brotha on the corner. When I'm buying an official release on amazon or from some other major retailer, I expect to get the full length cuts.

If disc 3 had been presented in the same format as the rest of the series, with La-Di-Da-Di, Request Line, I Got it Made, etc., full and intact, I could have seen my way clear to giving this box set 4 or maybe even 5 stars. As it stands, however, no way.

There really should be a comprehensive old school hip hop box set out there, but unfortunately, this isn't it.

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review by: date: 2008-03-06 rating:
Really disappointed
I'm really disappointed in this set. Whoever mastered it should be fired. Songs are abruptly cut off (Rock Master Scott & The Dynamic 3 - Request Line), they start late.. its a mastering fiasco. The song selection is great but crappy mastering ruined what would be a great collection. For what it cost, I expected it to be perfect.

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review by: BasketGal date: 2005-10-02 rating:
Livin' in the 80's!
GREAT CD set!! I'm once again living in the 80's!!! My favorites are White Lines, LaDiDaDi, and Joy and Pain. It doesn't get any better than this.....

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review by: date: 2005-09-01 rating:
Good CD's
I got the box set for my birthday a couple years ago. All four CD's are pretty good. Some of my favorites are White Lines - Grand Master Flash, The Show - Doug E. Fresh, Childrens Story - Slick Rick, 6 N' The Mornin' - Ice T, Back to the Hotel - N 2 Deep, Freaky Tales - Too Short, and Aint no Future In Yo' Frontin - M.C. Breed.


review by: The AKA date: 2005-08-16 rating:
Old School Rap, Vol 1-4
This box set really took me back to the good ol' days of the 1980's. I literally dance all around my room when I listen to the CD's! Each rap reminds me of a fun and special time in my life. This is a great collection! So many of the old school rappers are represented.A+++!

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