Customer Reviews

Legal Drug Money

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(7)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I'm only writing this review to set the record straight. There is a reviewer here that states "Lost Boyz puts Queens on the map" or something to that effect... I would like to say to this person: HAVE YOU LOST YOUR MIND!!!! Hip Hop didn't begin when you started listening to it jack ass! There is a long and glorious history that came before the Lost Boyz, and a large part of that history is QUEENS!!!! The Bridge, KRS-ONE, Nas dropped before the LBs, and he's a QUEENS BRIDGE MC, not to mention the group that REALLY put hip-hop on the map as far as mainstream American society is concerned: RUN DMC!!!! I could go on and on naming the liniage of great MCs hailing from Queens way BEFORE LBs even thought of picking up micraphones, but seeing as you have no real knowledge of hip-hop, you probably wouldn't know what I was talking about.... I will say that this CD "Legal Drug Money" is a hip-hop must have. It has at least 2 All-Time Classics in Renee, and Lifestyles, as well as several other notable hits... but overall it has a few too many filler songs to call the whole CD a classic.
Still, though, it's something you should have in your collection, and worth the buy.

How could you not not own this and call yourself a hip hop fan. If you don't own this stop what you're doing and pick this up right away. Freaky Tah & Mr. Cheeks bring us their best record ever! If you remember this was considered mainstream at the time...I wish mainstream still brought us music like this. A great LP from the LOST BOYZ!!! RIP Freaky Tah

This debut from New York's southside Jamica, Queens crew led by Mr. Cheeks has made boyz with their hustlin', partying, street grooves on Legal Drug Money. With memerable, catchy hooks and freestyle rhymes the Lost Boyz had themselves an almost classic. Their party, upbeat joints like "Music Makes Me High" and "Get Up" are what makes this such a hot commodity. On the other end of the spectrum we have "Renee". This is a song mourning over a death. Besides, Mr. Cheeks uses the word love and keeps it raw and hardcore. Member Freaky Tah also represented on here with Mr. Cheeks and with a solo song, "1,2,3". Going back to their most obvious freestyle flow, listen to the two of them on "All Right". A couple more upbeat tracks would have absolutely made this a classic.

Everything about this CD is perfect. The beats, the rhymes, this is what hip hop is all about. The Lost Boyz got brains, heart and soul, and it's depressing we won't hear from them anymore (not with Freaky Tah at least). Check out Channel Zero for maybe the best hip hop song ever recorded.

Hearing the four man crew from Queensbridge, The Lost Boyz, once again brings back nostalgic memories of the golden age of hip hop music. Mr. Cheeks, Freaky Tah (R.I.P.), Spigg Nice, and Pretty Lou knew the formula to making good music, with most concepts working. With many dope recognizable singles such as "Music Makes Me High", "Renee", and "Lex, Coups..." (there is a remix floating out there I strongly recommend you hear). But what separates this crew from other groups is personalty. Mr. Cheeks is very charismatic on the microphone, and Freaky Tah plays the background vocals (those unfamiliar, think of him being what Flava Flav is to Chuck D in Public Enemy, only more serious).

One reason that makes this album great is their creative hooks, some of them will have you remembering for a while. "Music Makes Me High", and "The Yearn" are both entertaining (although I believe "Da Game" is very similar to the latter song). "1,2,3" is another great song too with the late Freaky Tah on the solo. "Get Up" is another song to easily remember, and slightly changes the atmosphere on the album. Other dope tracks to check out are the title song, and "Lifestyles of the Rich and Shameless".

This album is great for the '95/'96 era and can easily stack up to the many east coast hip hop albums that came out around that time. The album flows great, and I personally believe many fans will enjoy. The lyrics are definitely on point majority of the album. Peace.

Lyrics: A-
Production: B+
Guest Appearances: N/A
Musical Vibes: B+

Top 5 Tracks:
1. Lex, Coups, Bimaz, Benz
2. Music Makes Me High
3. Get Up
4. Legal Drug Money
5. The Yearn

Honorable Mention:
1. 1,2,3
2. Renee
3. Lifestyles of the Rich and Shameless

When this album dropped in '96, everybody's ears perked up a bit and heads turned. Mr. Cheeks, Freaky Tah (R.I.P), Pretty Lou and Spig Nice collaborate to create The Lost Boyz from New York. Cheeks' simple yet effective flows and Tah's deep background shouts over catchy, original beats, helped to make this an underappreciated, classic album.
Every song on this LP is sick. The Boyz show they can jam ("Music Makes Me High", "Get Up", "Jeeps, Lex Coups, Bimaz & Benz") and take it serious ("Renee", "Lifestyles of The Rich and Shameless", "1,2,3"). Although "Straight from Da Ghetto" is my favorite track on the album, every song is truly unique and just plain good. Of their 3 albums, this is hands down their best work. This album would have gotten 5 stars, if only front man Mr. Cheeks had more substance and creativity in his rhymes and flows. Not to take anything away from Cheeks or the album, it's great...not perfect.
Bottom Line: An ideal East-Coast album. 4 stars. Peace.

This is the best hip hop album I've ever heard. You cannot beat tha Lost Boyz for a excellent mixture of rhymes and beats. 1,2,3 (Thousand Problems) has an awesome hook and Renee is a chilled out song that shows off the abilities of the Lost Boyz, who can rock an awesome party beat or a laid back chilled record.

Freakie Tah R.I.P
Shaun

I consider LB as hiphop revolutionaries just like Mos Def, Talib Kweli, Common, etc... They may not have had very complex lyrics but their simple lyrics carried a lot of knowledge. They are AWAKE to the world especially with racism, depression, and violence... check out "Renee", "Channel Zero", "Lifestyles of the rich and famous" if you don't believe me....

Their lyrics are on point and the beats are real nice... some tracks almost have an ATCQ feel to them. There's no guest appearances on here so you'll expect to hear Mr. Cheeks doing all the lyrics with Freaky Tah providing backround vocals. But Tah gets his chance to shine on "1, 2, 3" and he's an OK lyricist not as good as Cheekz though...

This is a very good debut CD for any group to come out with. It's such a dissapointment that LB had to end their carreer due to the tragic loss of Freaky Tah... R.I.P... and I heard now the Mr. Cheeks's latest solo attempt songs aren't up to his usual potential and it's sad to see one of hiphop's best groups vanish...

Check out this CD...

I'm Out .... Mind Power!

legal drug money,lost boyz 1st lp,may be the best album in rap history.this album has something for evrybody, each track is classic, with tight beats and deep lyrics.tracks like ''jeeps,lex coups...'', ''renee'', ''channel zero'', and ''1,2,3'', is what real rap is supposed to sound like.

In my mind, this CD is what east coast hip hop should sound like. This album had an impact in that was summed up well by one reviewer that said: "When this album dropped in '96, everybody's ears perked up a bit and heads turned." This was one of those albums that you could turn on and just zone out to. Tracks like "The Yearn", "Music Makes Me High", and "Get Up" were sure to get any party started while cuts like "Legal Drug Money", "All Right", "Straight From The Ghetto", and "1,2,3" were equally effective tales of ghetto life. Then you throw in classics tracks like "Jeeps, Lex Coups, Bimaz, & Benz", "Lifestyles Of The Rich & Shameless", and "Renee" and you have as good a rap album as you're gonna find on the east coast. Even the intro is hot without taking all day to get to the point. This is easily the best album released by the Lost Boyz. It seems that Mr Cheeks leads the charge while Freaky Tah picks up the slack. Tah doesn't rhyme much, but he does manage to spit a few bars on "Legal Drug Money", "The Yearn", "All Right", and "1,2,3". And when he's not rhyming, he's ad libbing in the background on most songs (don't front like I was the only one that was singing along with Tah in most of those songs). There are a few shortcomings that keep this album from achieving classic status. Freaky Tah has a very simplistic flow that can come off as boring from time to time (but not often). Then there are tracks like "Da Game" and "Is This The Part" that could've been left off the album and no one would've missed it. Aside from those mishaps, the rest of the album is flawless. It's been 8 years since this album came out (damn, that was 8 years ago?!) and you can still zone out to it in 2004. Overall, this album is near classic with party jams and street tales that are effective in their purposes. This CD is definitely worth your money if you're considering buying it.

Standout Tracks: 1 2 3, Legal Drug Money, Straight From Da Ghetto (My Favorite), Renee, Jeeps Lex Coups Bimaz & Benz, & Get Up