Search - Philly's Most Wanted :: Get Down Or Lay Down

Formulaic Yet Fresh

JayGar | Boston, MA | 04/05/2004

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The recipe for successful commercial hip-hop seems to be overly thuggish rapping over bright and bouncy club-style beats. Everyone from Jay-Z to N.O.R.E. to P. Diddy has repeated this formula time and time again. Enter Philly's Most Wanted. This young duo from Philadelphia released "Get Down or Lay Down" in 2001. The vast majority of the record was produced by The Neptunes, who, after crafting hits for Mystikal, Jay-Z, and Beenie Man the year before, were on the verge of huge success that they are currently enjoying, making songs for every popular act in the music business.
The Neptunes created beats for a large number of the songs here. This makes them sound very interesting. The two rappers, Boo-Bonic and Mr. Man, constantly rap about nothing but beautiful women, getting respect from the haters, packing heat, and selling drugs. Sound familiar? Of course. But how can you be mad when they are presented over such a lush soundscape? The line-trading of "Philly Celebrities" has such a bouncy beat that you cannot help but think of riding with the top down in the summertime. And the verses spit on "Cross the Border" and "Please Don't Mind" sound so slick that the average lyricism and tired subject matter (pushing drugs and picking up girls at the club, respectively) doesn't even phase you.
Of course, there are a few weak points. By the end of the CD, the trademark Neptunes beats sound a little boring and the lyrics become a little predictable. But still, you can't get mad when The Neptunes produce great music and the few other guest producers (including Just Blaze) fare just as well. Congratulations to Most Wanted AND The Neptunes for creating a rap album that although based on what has been done and will be done many more times, still manages to sound fresh, giving you beats to nod your head to, ride to, and quick lyrics you won't need to decipher but rather just listen and enjoy for music's sake."

Phillys Most Average

thebigsmooth | Oshkosh, Wi | 10/14/2001

(3 out of 5 stars)

"i really wasn't expecting much from this album but it was suprisingly decent...... it has some good songs on it esp. "cross the border" which kills in clubs and house parties.... some other good songs are "suckas part 2" and "please dont mind".... overall the cd has some tight beats(done by neptunes) but the flows are extremely weak and there voices are even weaker.... so the weak flows and nice beats kinda cancel each other out which makes for an all right cd that's good for some head bobbin....... check this cd out if you have some extra money........"

4.5 star Near classic Debut album

G$ | B-More, MD | 09/07/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Mr. Man & Boobonic bring a very tight album for their debut. After basically coming from nowhere, I never heard them on another song before this album or after this until their 2nd album dropped 3 years later. The Philly natives bring 14 songs, with the Neptunes providing beats for 10 of them (and actually they're for the most part very nicely produced even though I usually can't stand more then 2 or 3 of their beats on 1 album), T-Mix of Suave House nicely does 2 songs, and Epitome & Just Blaze each do 1. Of the 14 songs on here, 3 are classics, another 2-5 are near classics, 4 are ok and the rest are good, none I really skip over. Guests are minimal, rapping on 3 songs and doing hooks on a couple others. A must have album for rap fans.



#1 - 9.5 (tight beat)

#2 - 9

#3 - 8

#5 - 9.5 (f/ Andre Wilson -- nice relaxing ebat)

#6 - 10 (CLASSIC -- tight beat)

#7 - 9 (f/ Tammy Lucas -- nice beat)

#9 - 6.5

#10 - 7.5 (f/ Neptunes)

#12 - 10 (CLASSIC -- tight beat)

#13 - 10 (CLASSIC -- great beat -- f/ Beanie Sigel & Roscoe P Goldchain)

#14 - 9 (nice beat)

#16 - 6.5 (f/ Clipse)

#17 - 7

#18 - 8 (f/ Pusha T & Fabolous)



Mr. Man & Boobonic -- Philadelphia, PA

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