The Album [Explicit Lyrics]

The Firm (Rap) | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 21, 1997)
• Original Release Date: October 21, 1997
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: Explicit Lyrics
• Label: Fontana Interscope
• ASIN: B000001Y4J
• Also Available in: Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl
• Average Customer Review: 3.6 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (51 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #22,629 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Track Listings

1. Intro

2. Firm Fiasco

3. Phone Tap Intro

4. Phone Tap

5. Executive Decision

6. Firm Family

7. Firm All Stars

8. F*** Somebody Else Intro

9. F*** Somebody Else

10. Hardcore

11. Untouchable

12. Five Minutes to Flush Intro

13. Five Minutes to Flush

14. Desparados Intro

15. Desparados

16. Firm Biz

17. I'm Leaving

18. Throw Your Guns

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Firm Fiasco, August 29, 2004

By 

Ikechukwu Agu "hip-hop head" (Palo Alto, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Album (Audio CD)

In my opinion NaS is the greatest rapper of all time but he's lucky this album didn't end his career. This album is hardly deserving of the one star that I gave it. The title of the first real track on the album, "Firm Fiasco," provides a fitting description of the quality, or lack thereof, of this album. The best tracks are "Phone Tap," "Five Minutes To Flush" and "Desperados" but even these tracks are little more than average. On an individual basis Foxy Brown turns in a typically, in my opinion, forgettable performance (see "F*** Somebody Else"). Nature is no substitute for Cormega (see the track "Affirmative Action" on NaS' It Was Written album for a good song by the original Firm i.e. with Cormega instead of Nature before his beef with NaS). AZ and NaS (Escobar) normally perform well but this is easily the worst performance in each of their careers. They trade in usually ill lyricism about hood life for fantasized stories abt being Mafiosos. Do yourself a favor and don't buy this album, unless you are a huge NaS fan. Don't believe the hype either, even the concept of The Firm cannot be seen as a "supergroup" as it was billed to be. Dr. Dre is a top tier producer but his style doesn't mesh well with NaS and AZ and no group with Foxy and Nature as members can ever be a supergroup. If you're looking for a good NaS or AZ release, this simply is not it. Luckily NaS' Escobar persona was just a phase and he, Dre and AZ went on to bigger and better things.

7 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Despite critics reviews this album Delivers, October 25, 2004

By 

G$ "Z-Wad" (B-More, MD) - See all my reviews
(VINE VOICE)   

This review is from: The Album (Audio CD)

No matter what the critics say I think this album is a damn good one. I would have liked to see Cormega on it but differences occured and newcomer Nature (whom I also am a fan of) filled in. I think the album got hyped up WAY too much and people expected something that was better than perfect. Production is pretty good, Dr. Dre & Glove do 5 songs, Poke & Tone do 6, Dr. Dre & Mel Man do 1 and L.E.S. does 1. It has 2 classics and 2 near classics, and no songs that I skip. It starts off a little slow but once it picks up, it stays up. Despite all this I think the four rapper "group" put together a quality album that is a must have for rap fans.

#2 - 7.5 (Nas, AZ, Foxy Brown)
#4 - 8.5 (AZ, Nas, Nature, Foxy Brown, & Dr. Dre on the hook - about having your phone tapped by the feds)
#5 - 7 (Nas, Nature, AZ)
#6 - 8 (Nature & Dr. Dre)
#7 - 8 (Foxy Brown & Pretty Boy)
#9 - 8.5 (A sex song by the all so sexy - Foxy Brown)
#10 - 9 (Nas & Foxy Brown)
#11 - 9 (freestyle - by Wizard)
#13 - 9 (Nature - about being raided by the feds)
#15 - 10 (classic - Canibus, Nature, AZ w/ Nas & Foxy Brown on the hook)
#16 - 9.5 (remake of "Square Biz" - Nas, Foxy Brown, Az & Dawn Robinson on the hook)
#17 - 9.5 (Nature & Noreaga - check out "Magic & Bird" by these two as well - it's hot)
#18 - 10 (a classic w/ AZ & Half-A-Mill (R.I.P.))

Nas - b. Nasir Jones - 9/14/73 - b. Long Island, NY moved to Queensbridge, NY
AZ - b. Anthony Cruz - around 1973 - Brownsville, Brooklyn, NY
Foxy Brown - b. Ingrid Marchand - 9/6/79 - b. Bronx, NY moved to Brooklyn, NY
Nature - b. Jermaine Baxter b. 1972 - QueensBridge, NY

Check all my reviews out

6 of 7 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Firm flop, April 25, 2002

By 

Mike Terry (STL) - See all my reviews

This review is from: The Album (Audio CD)

This album had to be one of the most disappointing projects of 1997.
How bad is this album?
Well, after its release AZ apologized for being involved in such a bad project on his album 9 Lives. Producer Dr. Dre is quoted on one of his songs off 2001 calling it "the Firm flop."
Nas' career almost fizzled into nothing under the Escobar nickname...and it took the brilliant Stillmatic project to resurrect his career.
Foxy Brown pretends she was never involved. And Nature...the last minute replacement for Cormega...has also gone nowhere since.
Yeah, there are 5 or 6 songs worth a listen (especially Phone Tap and Desparados), but there is more garbage than quality material.