Search - Various Artists :: Def Jam 1985-2001: History of Hip Hop, Vol. 1

As Chuck D. put it, "most of my heroes don't appear on no stamps." But quite a few of them have been signed to Def Jam records. Aside from a brief period in the early '90s (anyone remember Downtown Science?), rap's premier label has remained ahead of the game for the past 15 years. Proof positive is this collection. Starting with LL Cool J's classic "Radio," it gathers many of the label's early hits--singles that were wildly successful at a time when hip-hop didn't have many commercially viable outlets--along with several of its new generation platinum-plus selections. Besides the well-chosen inclusion of Domino's sadly overlooked "Getto Jam" and Oran "Juice" Jones's classic "The Rain," there aren't many surprises in the lineup, which is a good thing. From EPMD to Jay-Z, all the songs you wanna hear are right here. On the minus side, 3rd Bass and Nice and Smooth could have been better represented, and we could have done without the Foxy Brown and Ja Rule tracks. All told, however, this is a bit of History worth owning. --Rebecca Levine