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Step in the Arena
 
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Step in the Arena [EXPLICIT LYRICS]

Gang Starr
4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews) | More about this product
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Listen to Samples and Buy MP3s

Songs from this album are available to purchase as MP3s. Click on "Buy MP3" or view the MP3 Album.
                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                                         

Samples
Song Title Time Price
listen  1. Name Tag (Premier & The Guru) [Explicit]0:36$0.99 Buy Track
listen  2. Step In The Arena (Explicit) 3:37$0.99 Buy Track
listen  3. Form Of Intellect [Explicit] 3:40$0.99 Buy Track
listen  4. Execution Of A Chump (Explicit) 2:41$0.99 Buy Track
listen  5. Who's Gonna Take The Weight? (Explicit) 3:56$0.99 Buy Track
listen  6. Beyond Comprehension [Explicit] 3:13$0.99 Buy Track
listen  7. Check The Technique (Explicit) 3:57$0.99 Buy Track
listen  8. Lovesick [Explicit] 3:27$0.99 Buy Track
listen  9. Here Today, Gone Tomorrow [Explicit] 2:17$0.99 Buy Track
listen10. Game Plan [Explicit] 1:08$0.99 Buy Track
listen11. Take A Rest [Explicit] 4:20$0.99 Buy Track
listen12. What You Want This Time? [Explicit] 2:41$0.99 Buy Track
listen13. Street Ministry [Explicit] 1:25$0.99 Buy Track
listen14. Just To Get A Rep (Explicit) 2:42$0.99 Buy Track
listen15. Say Your Prayers [Explicit] 1:24$0.99 Buy Track
listen16. As I Read My S-A [Explicit] 3:02$0.99 Buy Track
listen17. Precisely The Right Rhymes [Explicit] 3:25$0.99 Buy Track
listen18. The Meaning Of The Name [Explicit] 2:55$0.99 Buy Track

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Frequently Bought Together

Step in the Arena + Daily Operation + Hard to Earn
Price For All Three: $32.95

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  • This item: Step in the Arena ~ Gang Starr

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  • Daily Operation ~ Gang Starr

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Product Details

  • Audio CD (January 15, 1991)
  • Original Release Date: January 15, 1991
  • Number of Discs: 1
  • Format: Explicit Lyrics
  • Label: Virgin Records Us
  • ASIN: B000008FVT
  • Also Available in: Audio CD  |  Audio Cassette  |  Vinyl  |  MP3 Download
  • Average Customer Review: 4.7 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (18 customer reviews)
  • Amazon.com Sales Rank: #70,952 in Music (See Bestsellers in Music)

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Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com essentials

Gang Starr's second album is quintessential hip-hop and is easily one of the greatest rap albums of all time. In contrast to their 1989 debut, No More Mr. Nice Guy, which was filled with seriously uptempo jams, Step in the Arena slows down the pace, unveiling low, slow, and deceptively complex tempos along with some jazz-tinged loops and beats, all of which firmly established DJ Premier's slot in the producer hall of fame. Furthermore, the slower sonic pace proved to be a perfect fit for Guru's distinctive monotone flow. The album hits on every aural level, from the lumbering bass and blaring horn combo of the title track to the swirling sax blurts, unnerving siren, and kinetic scratch attack of "Who's Gonna Take the Weight" to the laid-back smooth jazz soul of "Love Sick." Guru's verbal volley can only be described as smooth hardcore, with no-nonsense lyrics that effectively strike a balance between the street and the intellect. Toss in tracks like the anti-hoodlum anthem "Just to Get a Rep" and the scathing "Execution of a Chump (No More Mr. Nice Guy, Part 2)," and you've got yourself a bona fide classic that sounds as fresh today as it did when it was first released. --Spence Abbott
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Customer Reviews

18 Reviews
5 star:
 (15)
4 star:
 (1)
3 star:
 (2)
2 star:    (0)
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Average Customer Review
4.7 out of 5 stars (18 customer reviews)
 
 
 
 
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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

 
5 of 5 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Sure Shot, May 1, 2000
Step In The Arena has to be one of Gang Starr's best albums. From the funky "Who's Gonna Take The Weight?" to the laid-back "Love Sick" to the amazing title cut, Step In The Arena is flawless. Guru and Primo to me are probably the greatest duo in hip-hop. If you don't have any Gang Starr material, be sure to pick this one up. DJ Premier's jazzy, thumping beats and Guru's distinctive monotone are one-of-a-kind. The production, lyrics, and delivery are always on point. This album embodies everything a hip-hop group should be. This is a must-have for any Gang Starr/hip-hop fan.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars A Timeless Classic, August 13, 2005
"Step In The Arena" did feel a lot like an debut album than a sophmore release, not taking anything away from "No More Mr. Nice Guy" but that album was more like a demo record. Whereas "Step In The Arena" was a peek into the future as to what was to come later for GangStarr. Guru's veteran type flow/hungry new coming MC intensity and Premier's bass heavy jazzed out beats made this album a timeless classic which could go toe-to-toe with the new material being release today. Any true hiphop head needs to have this CD in their collection.
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4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars Gang Starr's best "jazz" record, March 6, 2005
By Demetrius A. Armstrong (Huntington, WV USA) - See all my reviews
(REAL NAME)   
"Step in the Arena" is an excellent introduction to Gang Starr. Even though it is their second album, it shines as their true debut. Coming around the same time as Pete Rock & CL Smooth's "Mecca and the Soul Brother", and A Tribe Called Quest's "The Low End Theory", "Step In the Arena" utilizes jazz just as effectively, and combines Guru's clever wit with DJ Premier's street sensibilities. Probably serving as DJ Premier's definitive early 90's production, the beats are hard in the way they ride so easily. Their bass heaviness was dense enough to pull strongly at the airy light jazz samples and hooks to achieve an equilibrium that became a gold standard. What you have in the end is an extremely listenable mix of two genres deeply connected to each other in their way of communication with and their origination within Black America (namely, jazz and hip-hop). While it was in no way a light weight on issues that confronted Black America in the early 90's, it didn't concentrate on them as feverishly as some of it's contemporaries. It did what a Gang Starr record always does, and that's putting the limitatations of all that are lesser in sharp relief. Squeezing 18 tracks in just over 50 minutes, the average song was just 2 to 3 minutes, but they were used very well, and are a study of minutes of near perfection. If it weren't for their 1998 comeback masterpiece "Moment of Truth", this would more than likely still stand as their best album because it garners the trait of all albums produced in that similar vein. Those were works deeply connected with the time of their inception, but age so gracefully that they still sound just as good or better still than anything today. Simply put, "Step in the Arena" is one of the most stunning albums by a rap duo when all the dynamics are right, and it holds as one of the lesser referenced but still true highlights of hip-hop's new jack phase.
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Most Recent Customer Reviews

3.0 out of 5 stars "...The DJ's Name Is Premier, and I'm The Guru..." (4 stars, ignore the 3)
For starters, I origonally gave this a 7, but when I heard this album again, I think its closer to an 8. Maybe a 7. Read more
Published 19 months ago by Chandler

5.0 out of 5 stars LOVE IT, LOVE IT, LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE IT!!!!!
this album is, right up there with DAILY OPERATION, my absolute favorite gang starr album. HARD TO EARN gets props as well. this album does NOT sound dated. Read more
Published on February 17, 2007 by Martin L. King

5.0 out of 5 stars Classic, no doubt.
I probably can't say anything that hasn't already been said about this masterpiece, however the sound of this album should not be misunderstood, This is one of those albums that... Read more
Published on April 16, 2006 by Dr Strangetone

5.0 out of 5 stars Cream of the crop
This album IS what hip-hop music (rap) is supposed to sound like in 1991. Beatwise, Primo was just getting started but his sample selection and generous use of the 808 kick made... Read more
Published on April 16, 2006 by Berk

5.0 out of 5 stars Step In The Arena; My personal favourite
Quality guarantee doesn't come around very often in hip-hop, but Gang Starr delivered four solid albums during the 90's. Read more
Published on March 29, 2006 by RapSuperstar

5.0 out of 5 stars Waaaay underated album!!
This is the type of album that separated Gangstarr from the rest of Hip Hop.Jazzy yes but not Tribe,De La, or Jungle Brothers at all. Read more
Published on February 16, 2006 by Nathan Martoff

5.0 out of 5 stars Good second release
This may be a tad better then there debut this album came out in 1991 and has some great beats by DJ Premier that are eerie sounding check out"Just to get a rep". Read more
Published on September 24, 2004 by Chris

5.0 out of 5 stars STRAIGHT UP CLASSIC MATERIAL
One of the TOP 5 ALBUMS OF ALL TIME...EVERY SONG IS OFF THE CHARTS..GURU AND PREMIER FOREVER..GET THIS IF YOU DONT HAVE IT..GET ANOTHER COPY IF YOU HAVE 1.. Read more
Published on May 6, 2004 by rmc

5.0 out of 5 stars Gang Starr: Definition of Rap
Although so old it is a genius album and undoubtedly better than any present artists around (apart from the underground and the minor few). Read more
Published on April 13, 2004 by cacophonous_A

3.0 out of 5 stars The Foundation
In most circles these days, your first album is the starting point of what could be a great career. Read more
Published on August 7, 2000 by Sean Daly

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Step in the Arena
67% buy the item featured on this page:
Step in the Arena 4.7 out of 5 stars (18)
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