Twenty-five years after 1979’s “Rapper’s Delight” broke open the floodgates, hip hop’s influence is everywhere–from music to movies, fashion to vocabulary. Now, honoring the past, celebrating the present and anticipating the future, the four-CD The Hip Hop Box (Hip-O Records/UMe), released April 20, 2004, brings together 51 of the genre’s greatest turning points, highlights, landmarks and breakthroughs, each digitally remastered. Starring most of hip hop’s greatest artists, from the Sugarhill Gang of 1979 to the 50 Cent of 2003, the tracks were culled from dozens of record labels.

For the first time, as journalist Tom Terrell writes in the liner notes, The Hip Hop Box allows fans to “follow the drumbeat from Genesis to Revelation, innocence to hedonism, playfulness to violence, happiness to bitterness, self-hate to self-love.” Along with Terrell’s historical essay, the box set features notes by Public Enemy’s Chuck D and Michael A. Gonzales (co-author of the classic text on rap Bring The Noise), plus an essay by one of the set’s compilers, paying tribute to hip hop’s reggae heritage. The Hip Hop Box continues the Hip-O Records tradition of genre box sets, including The Funk Box (2000) and The Reggae Box(2001). 

Chronologically arranged and so kicking off with hip hop’s Big Bang, “Rapper’s Delight,” Disc One of The Hip Hop Box also offers the first real B-Boy record to sell a million copies, “The Breaks” (Kurtis Blow); the song that drew the line in the sand, “Sucker M.C.’s” (Run-D.M.C.); hip hop’s women’s emancipation with “Push It” (Salt-n-Pepa) and the birth of XXX hip hop with “Freaky Tales” (Too $hort). Other classics include “The Body Rock” (Treacherous Three), “Planet Rock” (Afrika Bambaataa & The Soul Sonic Force), “The Message” (Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five), “Wild Wild West” (Kool Moe Dee), “Roxanne Roxanne” (UTFO) and “Roxanne’s Revenge” (Roxanne Shante). 

Disc Two picks up with the incomparable “Follow The Leader” from Eric B. & Rakim; “My Philosophy,” one of the first great socially conscious raps, from the Boogie Down Productions of KRS-One; “I’m Your Pusher” from Ice-T, the first L.A. rapper to win national respect; the anthem “Fight The Power” from Public Enemy that punctuated Spike Lee’s film Do The Right Thing, and “The Gas Face” from 3rd Bass, the first white rappers to crack the rap Top 5. Also heard are M.C. Hammer, 2 Live Crew, De La Soul, Biz Markie, A Tribe Called Quest, Main Source, and Chubb Rock. 

Disc Three busts it with “O.P.P.,” one of hip hop’s most enduring party starters, from Naughty By Nature; the crossover killer “Summertime” (#1 Rap/R&B/Pop) from DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince; “Tennessee” from Arrested Development, the fountainhead of today’s Dirty South; “Slam” from Onyx, the pioneers of black punk-rap; “C.R.E.A.M.” from the Wu-Tang Clan, the Parliament-Funkadelic of hip hop; “Regulate,” the quintessential G-Funk track, from Warren G & Nate Dogg, and “Flava In Ya Ear,” the beginning of the Bad Boy dynasty from Craig Mack. Tracks from Queen Latifah, Digable Planets, Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth, and The Pharcyde join those from DJ Quik, Black Sheep, and Method Man (featuring Mary J. Blige on the “I’ll Be There For You/You’re All I Need To Get By” Puff Daddy mix). 

Disc Four brings home the thug life with hardcore Ruff Ryder DMX and his street version of “Get At Me Dog”; the dirty version of “Gettin’ Money (The Get Money Remix)” from Junior M.A.F.I.A. featuring Little Caesar, Little Kim and The Notorious B.I.G.; Noreaga’s “Superthug (What, What),” and the RP remix of “Until The End Of Time” from 2Pac. On the soul tip is “Tha Crossroads,” the #1 Rap/R&B/Pop smash from Bone Thugs-n-Harmony. Others heard are Scarface, Redman with Method Man, Busta Rhymes, Timbaland & Magoo, Gang Starr and the only self-contained band in hip hop, The Roots, featuring Jill Scott on the live “You Got Me.” The Hip Hop Box enters the new millennium with the love song “The Light” from Common and “21 Questions” from 50 Cent featuring Nate Dogg. Wrapping up the box are two artists who are as responsible for the explosive success of hip hop as any, Dr. Dre and Snoop Dogg, with “The Next Episode.” 

check the site: http://www.hiphopboxset.com

disc One 

01 Sugarhill Gang Rapper’s Delight short 12› version 
02 Kurtis Blow The Breaks extended version 
03 Treacherous Three The Body Rock 
04 Afrika Bambaataa & The Soul Sonic Force Planet Rock 
05 Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five featuring Melle Mel & Duke Bootee The Message 
06 Run-D.M.C. Sucker M.C.’s (Krush-Groove 1) 
07 UTFO Roxanne Roxanne 
08 Roxanne Shante Roxanne’s Revenge 
09 Salt-n-Pepa Push It 
10 Too $hort Freaky Tales 
11 Kool Moe Dee Wild Wild West 

disc Two 

01 Eric B. & Rakim Follow The Leader 
02 Boogie Down Productions My Philosophy 12› version 
03 Ice-T I’m Your Pusher 
04 M.C. Hammer Turn This Mutha Out 
05 Public Enemy Fight The Power soundtrack version 
06 The 2 Live Crew Me So Horny 
07 Biz Markie Just A Friend 
08 De La Soul (Featuring Jungle Brothers, Q-Tip, Phife, Queen Latifah & Monie Love) 
Buddy native tongue decision version 
09 3rd Bass The Gas Face 
10 A Tribe Called Quest I Left My Wallet In El Segundo 
11 Main Source Looking At The Front Door 
12 Chubb Rock Treat ‘Em Right 

disc Three 

01 Naughty By Nature O.P.P. 
02 DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince Summertime 
03 DJ Quik Tonite 
04 Black Sheep The Choice Is Yours (Revisited) 
05 Arrested Development Tennessee 
06 Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.) 
07 Digable Planets Rebirth Of Slick (Cool Like Dat) 
08 The Pharcyde Passin’ Me By 
09 Onyx Slam 
10 Queen Latifah U.N.I.T.Y. 
11 Wu-Tang Clan C.R.E.A.M. 

disc Four 

01 Redman/Method Man How High remix 
02 Junior M.A.F.I.A. featuring Little Caesar, Little Kim And The Notorious B.I.G. 
Gettin’ Money (The Get Money Remix) dirty version 
03 Bone Thugs-n-Harmony Tha Crossroads 
04 Scarface featuring 2Pac & Johnny P Smile 
05 Busta Rhymes Put Your Hands Where My Eyes Could See 
06 Timbaland & Magoo Luv 2 Luv U remix 
07 Gang Starr You Know My Steez 
08 DMX (featuring Sheek of The Lox) Get At Me Dog street version 
09 Noreaga Superthug (What, What) 
10 The Roots featuring Jill Scott You Got Me live 
11 Common The Light 
12 2Pac Until The End Of Time rp remix 
13 50 Cent featuring Nate Dogg 21 Questions 
14 Dr. Dre featuring Snoop Dogg The Next Episode 
15 Warren G & Nate Dogg Regulate 
16 Craig Mack Flava In Ya Ear 
17 Method Man featuring Mary J. Blige I’ll Be There For You / You’re All I Need To Get By puff daddy mix

Submitted by: admin