From Illmatic to Stillmatic: The Remixes [EP]

Nas

Product Details

• Audio CD (July 2, 2002)
• Original Release Date: July 2, 2002
• Number of Discs: 1
• Format: EP
• Label: Sony
• ASIN: B000068TLI
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 3.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (28 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #181,898 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars It's an EP for god's sake!, December 27, 2004

By	A Customer - See all my reviews

Duh!

Most EPs are 5-8 tracks long, so I don't understand why people are saying this CD is too short. The remixes on here are pretty decent, they're much better than the crap remixes on the Illmatic 10th Anniversary album. The "Life's a B****" arsenal remix is on-point and the "Affirmative Action" remix is nicely done as well. Hardcore Nas fans won't be dissappointed, and should be willing to dish out 9 bucks for these decent remixes of classic Nas joints.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars 1994-2002 = Remix Time!, January 4, 2003

By A Customer

Title: From Illmatic To Stillmatic: This Is The Remix
Artist: Nas
Genre: Rap/Hip Hop
Release Date: July 2, 2002
Label: Ill Will/Columbia Records
Length: 24:56
Number of Tracks: 6
Production List: Nas, Tha Arsenal, The LG Experience, Large Professor, Track Masters & Ty Fyffe

Track Listing + Rating out of 10:

1. Life's a B**** (ft. AZ) - 9
2. One Love - 8.5
3. It Ain't Hard To Tell - 10
4. Street Dreams (ft. R. Kelly) - 10
5. Affirmative Action (ft. Foxy Brown & AZ) - 10
6. One Mic - 9.5

Pros: After over 8 years of Nas' career, he finally released a great remix album. He even updated his older songs. He used lesser known producers take over most of the production on the EP. All The tracks are dope. The album is censored for people who don't like explicit material.

Cons: This album is way to short, it should contain a few remixes from the albums "I Am" and "Nastradamus" and there is no explicit version for people who like uncensored material.

Overall: Excellent EP!

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars For die hard Nas fans only! (2.5/5), March 27, 2006

By	ctrx ('bout to show you how the EAST COAST rocks...) - See all my reviews

This remix album was released at the busiest point of Nas's career, where he had been releasing so much relevant and mainstream music that a remix album was almost inevitable, especially during 2002, when almost every big rapper was putting out one of these. The remixes here are new takes on some of his most classic songs, and most of them don't really improve on them any. The only people considering buying this probably know the originals anyway, so they wouldn't buy it to hear Nas's lyrical power, and they would most likely be disappointed. Another thing that will deter many listeners is that the tracks are all edited, and the censorship is done poorly. "From Illmatic to Stillmatic: The Remixes" does well for what it is, but don't be expecting anything too much.

The only remix here that really significantly improves over the original is the "Life's a B**ch" Arsenal mix on this EP. Nas and AZ's verses are left unchanged, and instead of the toned down, slow beat on the original, there is a faster, saxophone laced beat. The "One Love" mix has a more defined bassline and vocals during the chorus, it's actually nice to hear. "It Ain't Hard to Tell" sounds very different than the original and is not worth listening to because it's not even close to as good. The "Street Dreams" remix is a little better than the original, but I didn't like the original that much anyway, and it still reflects that awkward period of Nas's career. The "Affirmative Action" remix is very unimpressive, replacing the original beat with a very tired and played-out old school piano line that we've all heard before. The "One Mic" remix isn't good either because except for the slightly sped-up drum pattern, it's virtually indistinguishable from the original.

The bottom line is that if you're a die hard Nas fan, you might find value to having these remixes in your collection, but otherwise I would not recommend it. That said, Nas is maybe the greatest hip hop lyricist ever and any music that is graced with his verses is worth listening to at least once. Newer fans should buy any one of his classic LPs before this.