Customer Reviews

Mama Said Knock You Out

5 star:		(20)
4 star:		(11)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(2)

 

 

I have to admit, I was not a big fan of LL Cool J back in the day, with the exception of this album. I had this one on cassette, and I just couldn't stop listening to it. The songs all had a nice rough edge to them, even the more pop numbers. Marley Marl throws down some of his best beats for LL to rhyme over.

First of all, "The Boomin' System" is one of the best songs ever to kick off an album. LL extols the virtues of 12" subwoofers over a track that requires them.

There are plenty of great songs here. "Farmers Blvd." is a great posse cut over a simple, effective piano riff. "Milky Cereal" is a hilarious relationship saga in the style of Coolio's "Ghetto Cartoon" and Ghostface's "The Forest." Of course, Uncle L did it years before either of those two.

Leaving out "Mama Said Knock You Out" isn't doing justice to the album, but everyone knows about that song. What you might not know about is "Jingling Baby (Remixed But Still Jingling)," and my favorite of LL's "I will pimp you no matter what" songs, "Mr. Goodbar."

In an eternal paradox, the Almighty makes his way into LL's lady-pleasing on "The Power of God," and LL gets hassled by the cops on "Illegal Search."

Not having listened to all of LL's albums, I can only claim this one as the best by ignorance. But it's pretty good.

"Mama Said Knock You Out" definitely came on time for LL Cool J, after his third album "Walking With a Panther" disappointed heavily. LL rose up from that flat album and a battle with substance abuse to make this comeback, which is one of rap's greatest albums. It came right on time, as the album kicks off with the stereo anthem "Boomin' System". Then the ladies lover praises Black women with the smash single "Around the Way Girl". "Mr. goodbar" is the attogant LL at his best, licking his lips and burning machismo. "Murdergram" has him waging war on anybody with the guts to battle him. ("Pass the brass knuckles, lemme break his jaw!") "Cheesy Rat Blues" has L tackling those who are materialistic and only care about money (it's also pretty funny). Then he comes swinging on the title track, one of hip hop's hardest songs. THEN he does the unthinkable. He disses three MC's in one song. He ripps apart Kool Moe Dee, MC Hammer, and Ice-T on "Til' the Break of Dawn", saying to Hammer that "my old gym teacher ain't supposed to rap". Tracks like these prove why LL is a genius in the battle rap. Songs like "6 Minutes" and "Milky Cereal" are downright catchy, but of course you can't forget the ... chorus of "Jinglin', Baby" (They're jingling, baby/Go 'head baby". That song still rocks any party. Those who hate on LL need to just chillllll, and let him do his thing, and this album controls you from the beginning to the end.

Replete with the 3 R's -- rhyme, rhythm and reason - this album by Mr Cool is distinguished also by its humour. There are lots of very good songs lurking beneath the rap which makes his music palatable even to those not into hiphop. Mr Good Bar contains some hilarious declarations while elsewhere LL proves that rap can be every bit as soulful as, well, soul music. That doesn't mean he's lost his roar - the titl track and Illegal Search are sizzling roots rap pieces bobbing on a funk train. There's also some gospel rap on the last track!

Mama Said Knock You Out was LL Cool J's fourth studio album. By the time of its release in late summer of 1990, it helped cement LL as a long-term force to be reckoned with in hip-hop. 1989's platinum+ seller "Walking with a Panther" was met with mixed reviews by hip-hop's urban audience. The criticisms were legion: `LL had become too commercial'. `He was clearly being upstaged by rival Kool Moe Dee'. `Hardcore acts like Ice-T and N.W.A. had a bigger street following'. `Political rappers like Public Enemy and KRS-One made LL look out of touch'. The list goes on. Fortunately, LL chose to partner with golden-age production maestro Marley Marl for a remix of the single "Jingling Baby", the success of which helped Def Jam to green-light the MSKYO sessions.

Normally, LL skipped a year between releases, but Panther was just barely over a year old when "The Boomin' System", MSKYO's first official single, was released. Essentially an ode to driving slow with your radio blasting, the single sampled the same James Brown bass riff as was used by En Vogue for their debut hit "Hold On" (the radio mix of "System" duplicated it note for note, while the album version tweaked it slightly). The LP's second single, "Around the Way Girl", was a tremendous urban radio hit, where LL gives props to all his female fans: "I want a girl with extensions in her hair/ bamboo earrings, at least two pair." On "Cheesy Rat Blues", LL pokes fun at his own image, imagining himself as a washed up rapper who finds himself pelted with "my old tapes" when he visits the shopping mall.

The title track is a thunderous announcement of LL's return to form: "Don't call it a comeback, I've been here for years/ I'm rocking my peers, puttin' suckers in fear/ making the tears rain down like a monsoon/ listen to the bass go boom!" On the whimsical "Milky Cereal", LL gives his romantic conquests breakfast-cereal names, hearkening back to "My Rhyme Ain't Done". "Illegal Search" (originally a b-side to the "Jingling Baby" remix) finds LL touching a political theme as he narrates a fictional police confrontation. It's a smoother, LL-style take on N.W.A.'s cop-trouble rants. LL manages to directly answer some of his then-rivals on "To Da Break of Dawn": Kool Moe Dee is ripped for his "Star Trek shades", MC Hammer is likened to "my old gym teacher" and Ice-T is derided as a former "downtown car thief". Perhaps the most surprising song is "Farmers Blvd. (The Anthem)", where LL teams up with some childhood rhyming pals for what is his first `posse cut' featuring his own vocals (he had previously contributed written lyrics for the Stop the Violence Movement's "Self-Destruction").

The other album cuts are worthy, so this is fortunately not the album of a few good singles and tedious filler. LL and Marley crafted a hip-hop masterpiece to announce the 1990's, but its appeal is far from dated.

After the luke-warm reaction to his "Walking With A Panther" album LL went back to his old stomping grounds in an attempt to rejuvenate his talents and come back out stronger. It was here while his grandmother (Big Momma)spawned the words of encouragement to her disillusioned grandson "Just Knock'em Out" and so we got this album. LL promptly hooked up with Marley Marl and together they came up with this, the 1st of 2 albums they did together. Marley's production skills were+still are legendary. His beats are bone crunching and the samples that accompany them are always original. They percussion on this album in the form of piano riffs and guitar licks were simply mindblowing as they were used in perfect ration to the rock hard beats and funky basslines. All of this was before LL even ripped a verse!!!!!! Around this time LL was in afew beefs with Kool Moe Dee and Ice-T so alot of his verses were heavy battle type rhymes were he took no prisoners. The title track alone was, is and always will be 1 of the greatest diss records of ALL TIME!! The opening track "The Boomin' System" was about the systems that heads were fitting into their cars and that whole car culture that was peaking in the early 90's. The legendary line "2 mile an hour so everybody sees you" still gets me amped. "Around The Way Girl" was huge back then and still holds its own as a decent rap ballad by an mc that has mastered the genre. "Eat 'Em Up L Chill", "Mr. Good Bar" and "Murdergram" are all tight head nodders that showcase his impressive, more amped, stronger, rejuvinated style to the tee. "Murdergram" is a live performance that will literally blow your mind, what breath control??!! "Cheesy Rat Blues" is a tale about how the tide can turn and you could be left without a pot to p*ss in and what could happen to the people that are supposedly by your side, in times like this. A very personal track. "Farmers Blvd" was a track were LL shouts out his crew and afew of them for some mic time and put it down nicely. Next you hear the immortal words "c'mon man..." and the horns and then all hell breaks loose with "Mama Said Knock You Out" exploding through the speakers. One of my all time favourite hiphop songs EVER. "Milky Cereal" explores the subject of getting laid. Nice beat and funny rhymes. "Jingling Baby" is a superior version than the 1 on the "Walking With A Panther" album, in my opinion. Marley's production is top notch. "To Da Break Of Dawn" is another diss joint where LL rips apart Ice-T and Kool Moe Dee with relative ease to be honest over a smooth hard beat laced with acid tongued rhymes that Im sure would still sting those cats now. "6 Minutes Of Pleasure" and "The Power Of God" were the only tracks that I thought were weaker back then and even more now. The last track that I havent mentioned is "Illegal Search", a humourous tale about the police and their treatment of his race but with a nice funny twist. Still after 16years this is a soundbomb. A timeless classic. He and hiphop certainly dont make joints like this anymore.

After WALKING WITH A PANTHER was met with decidedly mixed fan reaction (though undeniable commercial success), LL fired back by creating his best work yet. The arrangements aren't as intriguing as those of RADIO, but MAMA features a much more inventive and varied sound.

The singles were all over urban radio from 1990 to early 1992, and (like the rest of the disc) they hold up flawlessly. "The Boomin' System" (#48 Pop, #6 R&B, #1 Rap) is the ultimate cruisin' song, while new jack swing-influenced "Around The Way Girl" (#9 Pop, #4 R&B, #1 Rap) is still the best hybrid of R&B and hip hop ever produced. The lessor-known single "6 Minutes Of Pleasure" (#95 Pop, #26 R&B, #7 Rap) is an undervalued gem, while the Grammy award-winning title track (#17 Pop, #12 R&B, #1 Rap) demonstrates what LL is all about.

But while the hits are terrific, the rest of the album is also first rate. This is definitely LL's most consistent album, and he manages to take on a variety of issues, from his own career backlash ("Cheesy Rat Blues") to racist cops (the terrific "Illegal Search"). His zesty humor surfaces in funny parables "Mr. Goodbar" and "Milky Cereal," while he effectively balances the intensity of "Murdergram" with the nostalgia of "Farmers Blvd." "Eat `em Up L Chill" and the remix of "Jingling Baby" are guaranteed party-starters, while "The Power Of God" allows LL to get reflective without being sappy. Basically this is a record where everything works, and virtually nothing could be improved upon. A hip hop tour de force, MAMA will knock you out!

If you're looking for the original recording this is NOT it.

The parts of "The Boomin' System" wherein the lyrics are supposed to be "...pass the Heineken..." and "Roll up a fat one..." are silenced out. The CD is fine other than that; my search continues. <.<

ONE OF THE GREATES HIP HOP ALBUMS OF ALL TIME FROM LL COOL J. THIS IS WHEN LL ROCKED THE MIC HARD. i THINK THIS SHOULD BE A 5 MIC CLASSIC. THIS IS HIS BEST ALBUM. sOME PEOPLE MAY THINK RADIO IS HIS BEST ALBUM BUT I THINK MAMA SAID KNOCK YOU OUT IT. iT'S VERY ENJOYABLE TO LISTEN TO AND IT HAS A VARIETY OF TRACKS. SOME OF THE TRACKS HE MC'S SOME, HE TELLS STORIES ,HE MAY DO FOR THE LADIES. THAT'S SOMETHING THAT'S MISSING IN RAP ALBUMS TODAY, VARIETY. tHAT'S WHY I ORINGINALLY RESPECTED LL. NOW ALL HE SEEMS TO DO IS TO APPEAL TO THE LADIES. LL GET ANGRY AGAIN

Of all of LL's releases, this one is near or at the top in my view. This is what first got me to like LL in the first place! Before that, I would hear his singles and all but couldn't really get into him. Then, I heard this CD and I was turned into a fan from that day!

"The Boomin' System", "Mama Said Knock You Out", "Around The Way Girl" and "Jingling Baby (Remix)" were the deal closers for me here! But, even his weak tracks on here were better than a lot of rap that's out there today! Definitely get this for your rap collection!

I was like what 13. And i remember my mom putting in this CD, and hearing Boomin system. Its amazing. I mean you will probably not find an album like this. Maybe better, but not similar, meaning its so unique that the probability of you finding an album as good as this, about the same thing is 1 and 100000000000000000. So yes buy this album now please, you will not be disappointed