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5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
The best collection of classic rap tracks ever, September 18, 2003
Wow. As if the "inspired" soundtrack (which was still great, mind you) wasn't enough, Shady Records has decided to bless us with another great soundtrack...the film's REAL soundtrack, featuring songs that actually WERE in the movie. And wow, they chose the songs well. Without a doubt, "More Music From 8 Mile" is a must-own for those who aren't familiar with what is probably the greatest era of rap - the early- to mid-1990s' gangsta scene. Specifically, if you want to hear some classic material by Tupac, Notorious B.I.G., Mobb Deep, and Wu Tang Clan among others, you must own this CD.The CD opens with the infamous Mobb Deep kicking "Shook Ones, Part II", one of the most sonically pleasing rap tracks ever. The eerie piano riffs and chuncky bass of this song were a sensation in 1995, and even today, this song is still ill as ever. Next up is Notorious B.I.G.'s immortal "Juicy", who uses his beautiful lyricism to diss all who said that he'd never succeed in life, with style over a sweet Mtume sample. Biggie's verses are just as fantastic on "Get Money" with his Jr. Mafia homies, another track worth treasuring. You also get to hear Outkast at their earliest and finest on "Player's Ball", plus Tupac and MC Breed hitting hard with "Gotta Get Mine". And how could one forget the hard-as-nails, acid rain bass and brutal lyrics of Mobb Deep's other inclusion on this soundtrack, "Survival of the Fittest"? There's also a lot of material from the Wu Tang Clan and its members on this album. The best inclusion is the Clan's "C.R.E.A.M.", which, with its oriental-sounding piano riffs and vivid lyricism by Clan members Raekwon and Inspectah Deck, is perhaps one of the most beautiful rap songs ever to grace the ears of hip-hop fans worldwide. Method Man and Ol' Dirty B@stard get their equally respectable turns to shine on "Bring Da Pain" and "Shimmy Shimmy Ya", respectively. However, my problem came when I realized that, as comprehensive as this soundtrack is, it does not include ALL of the songs heard in the movie. A lot of other great mid-90s' rap tracks were heard in the film, and sadly, many of them weren't included on this disc (see http://imdb.com/title/tt0298203/soundtrack for the complete soundtrack list from this film). Why on Earth didn't they include "Insane in the Brain" by Cypress Hill, "Who Shot Ya" by Notorious B.I.G., "Temptations" by Tupac, and "Gang Stories" by the South Central Cartel, all of which were heard in the movie? At only 12 tracks long, the thought occurred to me that they could have (and should have) released a double-disc album instead. Nonetheless, it's hard to complain when you're given so much great material as it is. "More Music from 8 Mile" is what it is - a hand-picked compilation of rap's finest stars ever and the best work from their catalogs. Even if you have heard some of the songs on this album, or own albums by the rappers whose work is on it, you should still buy it anyway, just to remind yourself again of how great rap used to be in the mid-90s'. Sadly, with the 21st century domination of Cash-Money and Murda, Inc. over the rap game, with all of their fake no-talent "artists", rap has gone downhill, and probably won't ever be this good again. If you ever hear somebody playing "Hot in Here" again, just make 'em "shook" by putting on "Shook Ones, Part II" and pumping up the bass. There ain't no such thang as halfway crooks.
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is quite Hip-Hop”
