TOP FIVE DEATH ROW RECORDS RELEASES
For as much of a cliché as it’s become, it is true that like Nirvana’s Nevermind in the rock world, when Dr. Dre’s The Chronic dropped, the landscape of rap completely changed pretty much overnight. As a case in point, listen to MC Lyte on either side of The Chronic: "Poor Georgie" (1991) versus "Ruffneck" (1993). Pretty dramatic change. Gangsta rap, already gathering some significant momentum on the back of NWA collectively and individually, became the predominant mainstream form courtesy of another alumnus in Dr. Dre, where it remained for a much longer time than is typically the case with a particular flavor of a genre. Dr. Dre's g funk variety in particular dominated rap for a good half-decade, in the same way grunge directly or indirectly influenced virtually every prominent rock act and an untold number of others.
While it quickly became a geographic rivalry of the West Coast versus East Coast practitioners of gangsta rap, I never felt compelled to pick a side. I liked the menace and grit of Wu Tang Clan as much as the more laid-back West Coast g funk flavor, the polished "take hits from the 80s" of the Puff Daddy and the Family variety and the more hard-hitting gangsta rap from both coasts. Eventually in the 2000s the sound and geographic focus would shift south, but the 90s were the decade of gangsta rap in the mainstream, and the g funk sound was so popular that even quintessential East Coast rappers like Notorious B.I.G. would borrow the sound ("Going Back to Cali").
On the West Coast/g funk side of things, Death Row Records is to this day synonymous with that sound, with its brand, logo, and signature sound having achieved iconic status. Having said that, for such an instantly-recognizable label, its discography is surprisingly lean. Nevertheless, there are a trio of legitimate classics in the catalogue as well as several other fine albums in their own right. While the label would be surrounded by characters of questionable morals and the attitudes of many of the artists on its roster could hardly be called enlightened, sonically and aesthetically since Dr. Dre’s The Chronic hip-hop has never been the same. In this Top Five, we’ll take a look at the best of the massively influential and highly controversial Death Row Records.
5. The Lady of Rage-Necessary Roughness (1997)
Super underrated emcee. This album is what a hungry rapper sounds like, with The Lady of Rage spitting fire and never taking any bars off. While there might not be an "Afro Puffs"-level track here (although a few like "Super Supreme" come close), it’s a strong listen from a somewhat forgotten figure of the era, who you’ll find featured on seminal albums like The Chronic and Snoop Dogg’s Doggystyle. They say timing is everything, and with the release of the record pushed back by several years and given g funk was starting to yield ground to the onslaught of the sheer volume and quality of New York producers and emcees by this time, her first (and only) full-length kind of got lost in shuffle, which is really too bad, as it’s quite good.
4. Above the Rim Soundtrack (1994)
"Afro Puffs" is great, but this soundtrack is not just The Lady of Rage doing all the heavy lifting. In fact, it’s a very strong track list overall that also includes highlights like the first-rate "Anything" by SWV with its instantly-recognizable beat and first-rate vocal performance, a vintage cut in "Pour Out a Little Liquor" from the Tupac-helmed Thug Life, and the all-time g funk classic "Regulate" by Warren G with its iconic Michael McDonald sample and the vocals of the king of g funk hooks Nate Dogg, who, like The Lady of Rage, we’ll see again below. There are plenty of gems on here, an interesting snapshot of where this branch of rap and R&B were at the time of peak g funk.
3. Snoop Dogg-Doggystyle (1993)
The atrocious cover art belies an all-time classic in Snoop Dogg’s high water mark Doggystyle, featuring mega-hits even non-hip-hop fans recognize like "Gin and Juice" and "Who Am I (What's My Name)." The Lady of Rage comes roaring out of the gate in the "G Funk Intro" "bout to tear shit up," which contrasts very effectively with Snoop’s laid-back flow, while other highlights include: the g funk update to Doug E. Fresh and Slick Rick’s "La Di Da Di" in "Lodi Dodi"; the eerie "Murder Was the Case"; "Doggy Dogg World," an example of the perfect marriage of old-school funk with this then-fresh hip-hop approach; and my personal favorite track on the record in "Ain’t No Fun (If the Homies Can't Have None)," with its easy late-afternoon-sun beat, Nate Dogg’s vocals, and the simple, sticky chorus.
2. Tupac-All Eyez on Me (1996)
This was the last album Tupac would put out before his death—a double-album in fact—and it is packed with bangers: the "Ain’t No Fun"-esque "All About U," the seemingly-effortless flow from Tupac and the memorable chorus from K-Ci & JoJo on the lighter "How Do U Want It," the one-two punch with Snoop Dogg on "2 of Amerikaz Most Wanted," and the soulful ballad "I Ain’t Mad at Cha," one of the best lyrical performances in Tupac’s catalogue. Alas, if only Tupac had chosen to include the original single version of the dancefloor-filling anthem "California Love" with Dr. Dre and Roger Troutman rather than the remix on here (side note: the video, conceived of by Jada Pinkett Smith inspired by Mad Max Beyond Thunderdome, is a fantastic accompaniment). Nevertheless, it’s still a classic record. This is like nit-picking the 1992 Dream Team roster.
1. Dr. Dre-The Chronic (1992)
A true game changer. The rapping is of course superb, and the production was groundbreaking; despite being steeped in Parliament Funkadelic and other throwback funk, it was in the manner Dr. Dre employed it that was so distinct not just from contemporaries but to this day. It's striking how a record could be so chilled-out yet nakedly menacing at the same time. Dr. Dre’s oeuvre including The Chronic is a masterclass in production; back in 2005 Kanye West would write for Rolling Stone:
Dre productions like Tupac's "California Love" were just so far beyond what I was doing that I couldn't even comprehend what was going on. I had no idea how to get to that point, how to layer all those instruments. The Chronic is still the hip-hop equivalent to Stevie Wonder's Songs in the Key of Life. It's the benchmark you measure your album against if you're serious.
Not only is the album monumentally significant as explicated above—to say nothing of the numerous other careers that exploded off The Chronic’s wild success—it is no mere historical artifact. It doesn't sound in the least bit dated despite being over three decades old. The classics—"Let Me Ride," "Nuthin’ but a 'G' Thang," etc.—are just that, but the whole album is essentially without weakness, considered by many to be one of the greatest hip-hop albums of all time.