Solesides Greatest Bumps

Various Artists (Artist)

Product Details

• Audio CD (October 31, 2000)
• Original Release Date: October 31, 2000
• Number of Discs: 2
• Label: Quannum Projects
• ASIN: B00005086N
• In-Print Editions: MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (20 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #79,072 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Nobody could have predicted the impact these scrawny young upstarts from sleepy Davis, California, would have on the hip-hop world. Their debut 12-inch in 1993 seemed novel, a track apiece by Blackalicious and Lyrics Born and an instrumental cut-and-paste symphony by DJ Shadow. It took the hip-hop community by storm, though, and the fledgling label was elevated to elite status when Latyrx (Lyrics Born and Lateef) and Shadow dropped their monumental mid-90s debuts. With their rare funk samples and heady, tongue-tying lyricism, Solesides helped jump-start the vaunted independent hip-hop revolution of the past decade. This release presents Solesides' growth and maturation and offers some of their rarest out-of-print and vinyl-only gems, a blistering new posse cut ("Blue Flames"), and a host of freestyles and demos. Other highlights include Blackalicious' "Count and Estimate" and selections from their Melodica EP. Though the core of Solesides record today under the Quannum moniker, Greatest Bumps chronicles a spirit, innocence, and freshness that resuscitated hip-hop. --Hua Hsu

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

8 of 8 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars True Hip-Hop, October 16, 2002

By	Bart Seaman (Bend, OR) - See all my reviews

This is a truly phenomenal album. Mainstream rap artists claiming to be hip-hop give people the wrong impression of what hip-hop really is, in my opinion. Hip-hop is about lyricism and turntablism, and constantly pushing the boundaries of both. This album does exactly that--the Gift of Gab, Blackalicious, and Latryx demonstrate amazing vocal skills with truly intelligent lyrics. DJ Shadow builds beats from the ground up, climbing towards the limits of intricacy. Hip-hop is about respect. If you can respect and appreciate true hip-hop talent, then this album will never disappoint you. Keep supporting the real hip-hop revolution.

11 of 13 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Only 4 stars because I have all their albums already!, January 19, 2001

By	"1bigkid" (Sherman Oaks, CA United States) - See all my reviews

Some people seem to think that there are some new songs on this double CD. There are, but only a very few. This is an anthology of the Solesides/Quannum life cycle, but by no means their "Best of". If I didn't have any of their other albums then I'd have given them a solid 5 stars, because it is a very good album. But if you already have all their other albums, the best "bumps" on this are to be found on the other albums or singles. Those songs "unique" to this double LP were some of their earliest demos or earliest singles in their career, and while interesting to listen to, are hardly anything compared to their current releases. Because of this, the songs that I was interested in hearing the most, the earliest pieces, are a little disappointing. Not to take away from a great album, but if you have all of their stuff already, you'll be playing their other albums more than this one. For those interested in the group, this is simly an interesting hear to watch their styles develop. Any poor quality tracks are because they were some of their earliest conceptions. If you don't have much of their stuff, and you love independent, experimental hip hop, this is a strong contender to listen to.

8 of 9 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars hip hop fans, don't sleep on this one, March 23, 2003

By	iub-lowdown (Bloomington, IN) - See all my reviews

Wow. I cannot stop listening to this album (or at least the first disc). I'll take it through step by step here :) It starts on a bit of a misstep with "Rhyme Like A Nut!" and "Entropy Part 1" but these deserve to be on there as they are formal introductions to Gab and Shadow. Not on par with their songs to come, but still good. After that, it's classic track after classic track. "The Wreckoning" is simply amazing and one of my favorite hip hop tracks EVER. It's arguably even better than the "Live 45 Mix" version as Lateef rhymes for longer, and the minimalist Shadow beat means you don't miss a word. Gab kicks off "Deep In The Jungle" with what is definitely one of his greatest verses. "Send Them" has one of the funkiest dance hall beats I've ever heard, and the song is from '93! And as for anyone who hasn't heard the classic "Lady Don't Tek No", just find a way of listening to it. Beyond words.
As for the second disc the quality drops just a tad. It is mainly freestyle raps (still tight, especially Lateef's) and cuts from Latyrx's "The Album". Of course, if you don't have the album you won't notice and you'll probably love it. Unfortunately "Fully Charged on Planet X" is pretty mediocre, and "Hot Breath" is just plain bad. Even at under 2:00 it should have been left off the album. If I was compiling the album I would have taken out some of these weaker offerings and just put the remaining tracks from the Melodica EP on here ("Attica Black" and "40 Oz For Breakfast" are noticeably missing)
The only reason not to own this would be if you already have the Melodica EP and The Album. Even then, you're missing out on some classic tracks you can't get anywhere else. The liner notes are even great, as they list all of SoleSides' releases, and a look into the history of the SoleSides crew. Definitely get this one.