Search - Various Artists :: Best of Sugar Hill Records (Mcup)

Most of Sugar Hill's best

Robby Raeford | 06/19/1999

(4 out of 5 stars)

"I picked up this cd instead of the "Sugar Hill Gang vs. Furious 5" cd, and I'm happy with my pick. This cd has a lot of variety on it. I don't like R&B, but I like the Crash Crew's "On The Radio." "Rappers Delight" is, to me, one of the greatest hip hop songs ever. (I don't pick single favorites.) But next to all the greats and the rare material (ever heard of The Mean Machine?), it still has some problems. One of these problems is the drag of a few songs. "Scorpio" is, musically, a blast, but it drags. Why? It has no rapping. There is a distorted voice talking (almost rapping?) but it isn't enough. Another track that could be cut out is "Funk You Up" by the Sequence. The rapping is too nice, and the first minute is just chanting over the music. The track gets annoying quickly. Overall, this cd is great. If it was cut down to 13 tracks, it would be even better. Better yet, it could add some different material, such as some of Spoonie Gee's nice work. If you want a cd set that covers it all, get the 5 cd Sugar Hill Records Story. Another, better set is a 2 cd set I found in Spain (I've never seen it in America. Good luck finding it.)The 2 cd set has full versions of 20 Sugar Hill Records songs. (Including the 15 minute version of Rappers Delight.) This cd condences the Sugar Hill legacy quite nicely, however."

Caution!

thedevilscoachman | Vienna, Virginia | 05/02/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"I bought this CD with very high expectations. Many were met, but I feel compelled to warn the consumer - the songs may not be in the versions you remember. "Rapper's Delight", for example, completely cuts out Master Gee's contribution - and still leaves in Hank's line about the Gang being 3 MCs. What gives? In my opinion, "Rapper's Delight" is an historic document from the beginning of hip-hop, and carving it up to fit it on an album is not an option, any more than chopping out a verse from an early Elvis song is not on option, or taking out a "boring" part of a Bach fugue. If it was part of the original, it should stay in. While not nearly as significant, the same is true with "Disco Dream" by the Mean Machine, the original of which I still have on (a badly decaying) tape. Many lines of this are chopped out - including one inviting all listeners, straight "or even gay," to party to their music. I remember as a teen being shocked (and then later, having grown a little wiser, impressed) by this line. Especially in terms of the later development of hip-hop, the rap is historically significant, and it shouldn't get chopped up randomly. I don't know all of the songs on this record perfectly - but I strongly suspect other songs may have been altered, too. This is just not right.All that said, this CD has some great songs on it, including the above-mentioned two, plus "The Message", "White Lines", "That's the Joint" (sampled billions of times), "8th Wonder" - all guaranteed to rock the house. Its worth buying for these songs, and several others. But the Sugar Hill Gang without Master Gee? What's next, the Fab Three?"

Superb..but with a couple of flaws...

Robby Raeford | Greensboro, NC United States | 07/21/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I love old school rap because of the fact that they are rapping for fun, not because they want to insult each other, not because they want to be considered killers, and not to get on the charts. This music was all about fun, and that is what makes this collection so appealing. Any of the tracks on this album are great for dancing, making it an EXCELLENT party jam. Even people who aren't fans of rap will no doubt enjoy this CD.Songs like Rappers Delight, while groundbreaking, are quite overrated compared to some of the other excellent tracks on this alubm. There is a good assortment of 'must have' classics, such as Rappers Delight, The Message, 8th Wonder, and Apache, but there are also less heard songs such as Beat Street, and On The Radio. My personal favorite song is Whip It, by The Treacherous Three. It uses a sample of the guitar from that song that goes "Do it to me baby, do it to me right". It also features a guest appearance by P-Funk member, Phillipe Wynne, who Funkadelic fans will recongnize as the voice of "Uncle Jam". I had no idea that he was on that song, and I was very pleasently surprised. You wouldn't believe by his P-Funk performances at what a great singing voice he has!There are a couple of things that bother me. One being what someone already pointed out, that the song Scorpio drags on a little too long. Also, I would have preferred a longer version of Rappers Delight. One other thing, that hasn't been mentioned, is the fact that this album is edited. There are very few times when it is used, but whenever a swear or slang word comes up in a rap, it is annoyingly 'bleeped' out. I don't mind that it is edited, but they could have come up with a less interuptive way of doing it. All in all, this is an excellent collection of some of the best old school rap, for those people who don't want to shell out for the more complete box set."