The Best of Sugar Hill Records

Amazon.com
Hip-hop's sense of history has never been its strong point; while everyone samples drum breaks from James Brown, they're paying tribute to the first guy to use the sample, not Brown's funky drummers. No, hip-hop's always been about what's new, what's next, what's about to break. So tributes to the genre's early greats always feel a little weird, even when the tribute is to as venerable an institution as the Sugar Hill label--the early home of Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, the Sugarhill Gang, the Funky 4+1, and many others. But Sugar Hill's legacy isn't all great; the label started strong with "Rapper's Delight" (1979) and continued on strong through "The Message" (1982) but had started to falter by the time of "White Lines (Don't Do It)" in 1983, and was done by 1986. This collection has all the hits that appear on the extensive The Sugar Hill Records Story box set and even pops in a couple of tracks not found in the box; while some of the songs now sound dated ("Scorpio," "Funk You Up"), others are still referenced to this day ("Rapper's Delight," "That's the Joint," "Break Dance-Electric Boogie"). Though it's occasionally uneven, Best of Sugar Hill Records is ultimately a great look back at the pre-gangsta, pre-electronica, post-disco early days of a nascent sound.--Randy Silver

The Best of Sugar Hill Records,Various Artists,Rhino / Wea,Electro,Hip-Hop,Old School Rap,Pop,Rap & Hip-Hop,Soul/R & B Collections,Soul/Reggae/Rhythm & Blues

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Average customer rating: Some classic cuts. Caution! Superb..but with a couple of flaws... Blast from the funky past :-) Most of Sugar Hill's best

The Best of Sugar Hill Records Various Artists Manufacturer: Rhino / Wea ProductGroup: Music Binding: Audio CD General | R&B | Styles | Music General | Soul | R&B | Styles | Music General | Compilations | R&B | Styles | Music Funk | Compilations | R&B | Styles | Music Soul | Compilations | R&B | Styles | Music General | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music Old School | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music General | Compilations | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music Pop Rap | Rap & Hip-Hop | Styles | Music Electronica | Dance & DJ | Styles | Music Rhino Records | Amazon.com Label Stores | Stores | Music Similar Items: The Best of Enjoy Records Run-D.M.C. - Greatest Hits All World: Greatest Hits Old School Jams, Vol. 4 The Best Of SugarHill Gang: Rapper's Delight ASIN: B00000C41I Release Date: 1998-10-06

Tracks:

1. Rapper's Delight - Sugarhill Gang
2. 8th Wonder - The Sugarhill Gang
3. The Message - Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five
4. That's The Joint - Funky 4 + 1
5. Funk You Up - The Sequence
6. Scorpio - Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five
7. Break Dance-Electric Boogie - West Street Mob
8. White Lines (Don't Don't Do It) - Grandmaster & Melle Mel
9. Disco Dream - The Mean Machine
10. On The Radio - Cash Crew
11. All Night Long (Waterbed) - Kevie Kev (Waterbed Kev)
12. New York New York - Grand Master Flash & The Furious Five
13. Beat Street - Grand Master Melle Mel & The Furious Five
14. Apache - Sugar Hill Gang
15. Whip It - Treacherous Three

Amazon.com

Hip-hop's sense of history has never been its strong point; while everyone samples drum breaks from James Brown, they're paying tribute to the first guy to use the sample, not Brown's funky drummers. No, hip-hop's always been about what's new, what's next, what's about to break. So tributes to the genre's early greats always feel a little weird, even when the tribute is to as venerable an institution as the Sugar Hill label--the early home of Grandmaster Flash & the Furious Five, the Sugarhill Gang, the Funky 4+1, and many others. But Sugar Hill's legacy isn't all great; the label started strong with "Rapper's Delight" (1979) and continued on strong through "The Message" (1982) but had started to falter by the time of "White Lines (Don't Do It)" in 1983, and was done by 1986. This collection has all the hits that appear on the extensive The Sugar Hill Records Story box set and even pops in a couple of tracks not found in the box; while some of the songs now sound dated ("Scorpio," "Funk You Up"), others are still referenced to this day ("Rapper's Delight," "That's the Joint," "Break Dance-Electric Boogie"). Though it's occasionally uneven, Best of Sugar Hill Records is ultimately a great look back at the pre-gangsta, pre-electronica, post-disco early days of a nascent sound.--Randy Silver

Customer Reviews:

Some classic cuts........2003-05-05

All these "old school" compilations always have a handfull of great tracks, and then a good chunk of filler. This is no different. You can decide what the filler is, but there are 5 great cuts. Other than the obvious classic "Rapper's Delight", there's also "The Message", "That's the Joint", "White Lines", and the excellent "New York, New York". Now if somebody could ever get these hits on a single CD with Whodini, Newcleus, and The Fat Boys, we'd have a 5 star collection. This is good enough to get out the cardboard though.

Caution!.......2002-05-02

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..........2000-07-21

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.

Blast from the funky past :-).......2000-03-19

This is rap before it got way too filthy to hear it without a XXX rating! Today it sounds like a few groups are going back to the old school style and bring back the old beats with a techno mix. Grand Master Flash brought a lot of style and rap hits to the airwaves as did the Sugar Hill Gang. These tunes on this cd is worthy of playing at your next party or popping in the car stereo for a nice trek to and from work. This one is another fine gem. Get it!

Most of Sugar Hill's best.......1999-06-19

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.

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