Customer Reviews

The Lp

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

 

 

This album is flawless. I can't remember the last time I played an album all the way through from beginning to end like I did with this one and didn't want to skip or turn it off once. Classic!

Ever since he said "Queens represent buy the album when i drop it" on Tribe's Midnight Marauders album, i have been waiting with my arms crossed and my Pumas patting. Finally...15 years later he's droppin it. LP has been plagued with people BS'ing him for too long...i am happy this brother is getting his just due. The younger generation should turn off the radio and take notes from this pioneer. He is the living embodiment of pure Hip Hop. I can't say that for MOST rappers. LP is just the perfect Hip Hop cat with the rhymes and the beats. He'll never fry in Cris' baby.

The long and storied history of "The LP" continues. Shelved in the mid '90s after a few singles dropped, Large Professor's debut album floated around in bootleg releases for over a decade.

"The LP" had quasi-official releases in the early 2000s, but the quality varied. Now, we have this (apparently) definitive edition....there's a lot of tracks I had never heard before, and others that existed only as rough quality Napster-era MP3s. Most of the tracks here seem finished, although a few cuts suffer from bootleg-level quality.

Any fan of Large Pro, or mid '90s New York hip hop should do themselves a favor and get this.

Former Main Source emcee Large Professor aka Xtra-P solo debut The LP was shelved in 1996 by Geffen/MCA Records after releasing two singles, "Ijuswannachill" and "Mad Scientist". Luckily there were a few promo pre-releases that were issued out by the record label. I myself have obtained an issue of this album although recently, Large Pro was able to release the album himself. The track listing is different than the Geffen/MCA release (the original has 12 songs while this release has 18- the other tracks maybe newly recorded or outakes from the original LP). Production here is pretty mellow and relax sounding all thoughout the album. Mix that in with Xtra-P's deep and dull voice (and a few sub-par lyrics), and you have a monotmous sounding album, which might have caused the label to never release it. It's unfortunate because there are some good songs here production wise.

Some of the songs here really standout. "One Plus One" featuring Nas is a pretty solid track. Another track I found outstanding was "For My People". Production wise, the song is great, and Large Pro doesn't sound too bad on that song. "Funky 2 Listen To" is a good song, despite it being 3 minutes and Large Pro spits one short verse, and the remainder of the song is full of Biz Markie samples. "Dancing Girl" is my favorite from this album. The vibe on this song is perfect making it one of the best on this album. The two singles, "Ijuswannachill" and "The Mad Scientist" are also good songs.

The bad part about this album is that some of the songs are very uninteresting to listen to due to the mellow voice and production of Large Pro. Both "Spacey" and "Sunrise" barely hold my interest. "Hungry" is another mellow song, and the lyrics are uninteresting. "Hard" isn't mellow, but the lyrics are subpar as well.

Despite it being shelved, the album is pretty good, although not as great as Breaking Atoms. Expect a lot of mellow production on here, which may cause loss of interest to a few listeners. Fans of mid 90's rap & Main Source should find value in this album here. For those who are on the fence about this album, I recommend you listen to a few samples before purchasing this album. Peace.

Lyrics: B-

Production: B+

Guest Appearances: B+

Musical Vibes: B

Top 5 Tracks:

1. Dancing Girl

2. For My People

3. One Plus One (featuring Nas)

4. Ijuswannachill

5. Funky 2 Listen To

Note- The Tracks: Intro, Amaman, Queens Lounge, Browne, Big Willie, and Outro does not appear on the promo copy by Geffen/MCA Records in 1996. Also the track listing is different, and the track "Large Pro: Verbs" is "Sunrise" on the original copy.

Nobody was a bigger Main Source fan than me. I followed the Extra P's career ever since Breakin' Atoms. I was excited to find out The Large Professor would be coming out with a solo joint. When I found out he signed with Geffen back in 95/96 I was got worried. The 90's had proven hip-hop labels like Loud, (Good) Def Jam, Jive, Ruffhouse, and many others. At that time the only other rap group I can think of that was on Geffen was The Roots. Anyway, the singles kept coming. The videos were out but... no album. To hear the album got shelved was a disappointment but not a surprise. I've always wondered why rappers back then signed to labels that either had a shady reputation (Wild Pitch), or had no track record or a bad track record with hip-hop records (Capital Records and Geffen).

I got a hold of this album through connections in the industry around 1999 or 2000. This was before the MP3 craze took off so it was on cassette. This album was boring and uninspired to then just as it is now. I Juswanna Chill was a good track that I really liked then and I played the heck out of it on the college radio station but the rest of the tracks seem lazy and the lyrical punch that Large Professor packed with Main Source and the cameos that followed was missing. One Plus One with Nas shoulda been incredible. It was bland. The beats on the singles I Juswanna Chill , Spacey, and The Mad Scientist were dope but most of the other beats are plodding and boring. Amaman had a bangin' beat and Big Willie had a nice laid back jazzy piano sample.

All in all this album, as anticipated as it was, just did not and does not cut it. The people at Geffen may not have been keen when it came to rap music but they were wise not to put the $ into promoting and releasing this album because it would have tanked... badly. Now I am still and always will be a Large Professor fan. I didn't care for his First Class album or his Main Source album. They both had decent tracks but being that he's now nearly 20 years past his prime, I'm glad to hear cuts from him at all. I can't let my appreciation for his past accomplishments bias my opinion of his music. Good albums don't get shelved. This was not a good album.