Customer Reviews

Straight Outta Compton

5 star:		(79)
4 star:		(13)
3 star:		(3)
2 star:		(4)
1 star:		(5)

 

 

The first five tracks of this groundbreaking disc are the most powerful in rap. Bar none. Period. This disc is critical to the understanding, progression and growth of rap as a form of musical expression and art. And because NWA spawned so many influential artists, this disk is critical listening for any student of rap.

I am of two minds about the violent lyrics on this disc. I don't like the idea of violence, but I think its important to view the violence expressed on this album in the context of (1) what was happening in LA at the time of its release and (2) the fact that an element of rap is fictionalization and exaggeration.

If you are new to rap and just beginning to enjoy to the genre, I recommend this disc. It is an excellent entre both to the gangsta style and the talents of Dr Dre, Ice Cube, Eazy E, and the rest of the NWA Crew.

Ok well, you might ask yourself, who is the NWA? They ain't just some fools from Compton, they compose of six of the most lethal rappers who ever touched a mic, and one of the most creative DJ's who is known to create chaos on the wheels of steel (Technics 1200 turntable). You got people like Dr Dre, Ice Cube, and Eazy-E providing lyrics that cross the line of explict by a mile. If that isn't enough you have MC Ren, The D.O.C. and Arabian Prince (Brother Rab) in the backseat also spitting madness on the album. The whole CD in general has its highs, and lows. Also it provides a variety of styles. "COMPTON'S N THE HOUSE (REMIX)" is Dre and MC Ren rapping live on stage with cutting by Yella. "STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON" is a classic gangsta rap track with really dope bass and beat production by Dr Dre. Eazy-E's "8-BALL (REMIX)" is a story about him and his beer which sounds very familar for its 1988 setting. If you want to hear the explict lyrics I was talking about listen to "GANGSTA GANGSTA" AND "F--- THA POLICE" with heavy influence from Ice Cube. My personal favorite is when the NWA combines some of its electro beats with hip-hop flavor when Arabian Prince and the rest of the NWA on the track "SOMETHING TO DANCE TO". Also upcoming star The D.O.C. who was famous for his song "IT'S FUNKY ENOUGH" which was released a year later, appears on "PARENTAL DISCRETION IS ADVISED". The ONLY "clean" tracks on the album are "SOMETHING TO DANCE TO", "QUIET ON THA SET", and "EXPRESS YOURSELF". But don't let this album get to your head. When you listen to it, remember that these guys told everyone in interviews that they aren't gangbangers, they just use that image to make money. For example, Ice Cube isn't really from the "hood". He went to the classy San Fernando Valley High School and took drafting classes at a university in Arizona. Dr Dre and Yella both were part of the famous World Class Wreckin Cru who performed songs wearing sequins, make-up, lip gloss, and more. You might know Ice Cube, Eazy-E, Dr Dre, and MC Ren for their solo CDs, but you haven't really been a fan of them until you peep this album first. This is NWA's second album and went gold when it orginally released in 1988. Enjoy the album when you get it though, this is really a classic in any old skool or gangsta rap collection.

NWA, in my opinion, was the lone rap group to attract much conterversy for their lyrics that were simply based on facts. Being a minority and growing up in a society like Los Angeles in the 1980's was a difficult struggle. I myself am a minority and can relate with their lyrics. At that time, every other group did not focus their beats based on the streets in detail like NWA. Back in '88, their songs encouraged us to express ourselves and take advantage of our First Amendment Right. They exposed what life is really like in the lower income suburbs of American cities. The lyrics about the police were harsh but true. In a way, they remind me of Texas' own Geto Boys. Both showed that minority life is difficult and described how corrupt the local government is when it came to the lower class society. I, to this day, continue to bass out to their music in appreciation to their "exposing" of the true ghetto life...

A masterpiece in rap-music, Straight Outta Compton marked a milestone in the history of hip-hop when it came out in 1988. It's a fantastic mix of violent lyrics, beats harder than concrete, skillful production and agressive scratching by DJ Yella. N.W.A might have disbanded long ago, but they're still one of the greatest groups in the history of hip-hop. I just love this record, one of the best buys I've ever made. Straight Outta Compton is the best gangsta-rap album ever recorded.

R.I.P Eric "Eazy-E" Wright

I first heard Straight Outta Compton in seventh grade and completely flipped out. I could not believe what I was hearing. The beats were aggressive and funky and the lyrics were callous and cold, materialistic and mysoginistic - ugly. There was also the timbre of the voices of the rappers themselves. Ice Cube belted out his rhymes from the gut with a controlled brutality. MC Ren had a cold, methodical sound and a masterful flow. They wrote songs about violence, money, and bitches - nightmarish litanies that could only originate from one place - staight outta Compton.

My personal favorite is the classic anthem, "F!@# Tha Police" which so evocatively depicted the frustrations and mistrust of the urban black teenager directed towards police officers. Long before Rodney King, Ice Cube bellowed, "...Police think they have the authority to beat a minority!" This kind of blatant and uncompromising social commentary along with the brutality of the production and overall sentiment was what made this album so gratifying.

Unfortunately, Straight Outta Compton spawned a whole genre of music based on expoiting poor minorities and glorifying violence and materialism, resulting in filling the bank accounts of rich, (mostly) white record company executives. The music got soft and the message was lost. Straight Outta Compton stands alone as a unique artistic statement that is still relevant today.

This was the album. The one that started the "gangsta rap" genre that, depending on how you looked at it, revolutionized hip hop or killed it. That's why I love and loathe this release at the same time. When this hit big time back in the late 80's, everybody jumped on the gangsta bandwagon trying to cash in on NWA's success by "keepin' it real". Unfortunately, this meant old-school rappers who avoided the gangsta-gravy train(Eric B & Rakim, Big Daddy Kane, Boogie Down Productions, etc) all got eventually lost in the shuffle to the more flashy, media-hyped gangsta rappers. Too bad, cause those other rappers were waaaay better than the flood of NWA copycats. If you want the other release in the late 80's that changed the face of rap, go see the reviews for PE's It Takes A Nation of Millions...

Anyway, having said all that, I still enjoy this release. From the hard-core funky beats, the political/message-driven lyrics, and the old-school "multiple alternating mc's" rap style of delivery, this is a great cd to have in your rap collection. The new re-mastered version supposedly has 4 bonus tracks too so it's worth a purchase. Favorite tracks: Staight Outta Compton(the definitive song of its sub-genre), **** tha Police(absolutely brutal and angry), and Compton's N tha House(inadvertently amusing because the "f" word is used so many times!). Overall, a great rap album I've enjoyed listening to through the years, but hope others don't just make this their stopping point as the 80's had many other great rap artists that did so much for this maligned genre.

There's a lot of controversial ideas on this record but, whatever you think about the views these guys are expressing, this is incredibly powerful stuff. The first time I heard the title track reminded me of the first time I heard "God Save the Queen" by The Sex Pistols--I was completely floored. The rest of the tracks are very powerful, too, particularly when Ice Cube is belting away. He's really the main reason I like this album so much, I think. Without him, the group never really did anything for me. With him, however, they created one hell of a debut.

"Straight Outta Compton" was the first rap album that really blew me away. Growing up as a white kid in the suburbs (and being part of N.W.A's core audience, as it turned out), I was familiar with rap music as a singles format (Kurtis Blow, Grandmaster Flash, Whodini, etc.)--mainly through friends and acquaintances at school who listened to it...and who sometimes even made their own demos!

Anyhoo, listening to this album on tape in my room with my headphones on--so my mom couldn't hear all the cursing--I was really impressed at the explosiveness of the music and especially, N.W.A's attitude. It had a street credibility and rebellious spirit that was sorely lacking in the cheesy hair bands of the time. (Remember Winger, anyone?)

Looking back, I was simply too young and too green to comprehend the realities of the American inner city: the drugs, the poverty, the crime, the hopelessness. I just thought it was cool that these guys were cursing. I had no idea that anyone (especially the FBI) would actually think this was more than music (as the murders of 2Pac and Biggie so sadly proved).

As music, "Straight Outta Compton" has aged since its release. While Dr. Dre and DJ Yella certainly were innovators at the time, the beats owe a lot to Run-D.M.C. and sound a little dated. The attitude, fortunately, has not aged a bit.

The first three songs are where the bread and butter lie. The title track is as brutal an intro as you're gonna find anywhere in popular music. "F--k Tha Police" is a timeless classic whose harsh message about police brutality has unfortunately not diminished with time. "Gangsta Gangsta" is a brilliantly descriptive narrative of street life. These songs are some of the best American music ever recorded. Period.

The rest of "Straight Outta Compton" is a tad checkered (which is why I only gave it 4 stars). Out of the remaining 10 tracks: one is solid enough to compare with the first three ("Dopeman");

Three are songs I love because they display N.W.A's caustic --and often hilarious--sense of humor ("Parental Discretion Iz Advised"; "8 Ball"; "I Ain't tha 1"...kudos to Ice Cube and Eazy-E on those ones);

One ("Express Yourself") is an inferior recording and has a subsequent remix that is better. Look for it on the 1996 N.W.A release "Greatest Hits";

One is an adequate presentation of why MC Ren is called "the George Harrison of N.W.A" ("If It Ain't Ruff");

Three are boring ("Somethin' Like That"; "Compton's N tha House"; "Quiet on tha Set");

And one is simply perplexing ("Something 2 Dance 2"). Can *YOU* imagine N.W.A dancing? I can't!

Anyway, the meat and potatos of "Straight Outta Compton" are the first three songs. Except for Public Enemy, you won't find more hard-hitting social commentary anywhere--even if it is of a nihilistic manner. You also won't find any track here that explores some of the other downsides of the street life (i.e., losing loved ones to violence, court dates, incarceration, etc.), but you also won't find many other performers in popular music with the guts to tackle these issues either.

"Straight Outta Compton" is rude, nasty, thuggish, profane, violent, and utterly compelling. It is the only N.W.A CD you should buy.

I downloaded a few songs from the net off this album out of pure curiousity. I have Dr Dre's the Chronic and had one (later) Nwa album a long time ago, but some of it was for humorous purposes only. Well, after hearing this album let's just say, I am hooked. The songs in question are the first four from the album, and I haven't liked a rap album this much since Public Enemy or Ice T. You see, I am very naive when it comes to rap, I know that I am primarily a metal head, but this album may do well to change some of my perspective on the rap genre. First of all, the beats are great, sort of in between the "Bomb Squad" and Dre's later "G funk" production. The ryhmes really kick a** as well, despite the protestations of them not being genuine. This album is a timeless rap album, the comparison to "Never Mind The Bollocks" is pretty dead on, because like John Lydon, Ice Cube seems to be the most intelligent of these guys. Dre is also great but it is funny hearing him saying he "Doesn't smoke weed" when he later did the album "the Chronic". Bottom line: Rap can be just as extreme and full of integrity as any other form of music, this album gets me pumped up!

With a combination of Ice Cube's raging lyrics, MC Ren's rhymical mastery, Eazy E's stinging vocabulary and beats from none other than yella and the one and only Dr Dre its not difficult to see that this is, and will remain to be the finest rap album of all time.