reviews
Know your roots
Various Artists - The Roots Of Hip-Hop: From Church To GangstaAlternative Press - Editorial Intern on 6/4/09 @ 12:05 PM - altpress.com
The Roots Of Hip-Hop isn't a collection of old-school rap tracks. Instead, this unique compilation reaches way back to a time before hip-hop even existed. The 26-track disc proves the seeds for rap were being planted as far back as the 1920s. Musically, it's a mix of blues, boogie and jazz-don't expect head-nodders here, the origins are in the subject matter and the delivery of the vocalists. A raw ode to escaping prison, Richard Berry's "The Big Break" could easily have been the inspiration for gangsta rap. 2 Live Crew's freaky sex rhymes can be traced to "Terrible Operation Blues" by the Famous Hokum Boys and Dirty Red's "Mother Fuyer"-both were quite dirty for their time in the 1930s and '40s. Roots is a must have for the hip-hop historian. (HARTE) Eddie Fleisher
Official Website: http://www.harterecords.blogspot.com/
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