West Coast Connection Forum
Elements => Tha Vault => Album Review => Topic started by: On The Edge of Insanity on June 18, 2002, 07:45:41 AM
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Death Row Greatest Hits CD 2
Released in 1996 this album was a collection of Death Row’s Greatest Hits, mainly from Doggystyle and Tha Chronic, and new tracks amongst some remixes of classic tracks. CD 1 was basically all of hits everybody knew and loved and therefore it is pretty pointless reviewing that CD because you probably know all of the songs already anyway. However could CD2 match up to the quality of the first disc and could the remixes do justice to the classics which they were based on?
Let Me Ride Remix (Dr Dre) – the original was a classic and this remix by Daz Dillinger keeps this high quality up. It takes a while to get used to this version compared to the original mainly because of the major change of the chorus and the more up tempo elaborate beat. Daz adds in a verse of his own into this track, which fits in really well and does sound slightly more suited to the beat than Dre’s verses. This version really just changes the original hard gangsta track into a party track, and this works really well, producing a great track. 4.5/5
Gin & Juice Remix (Snoop Dogg) – this second remix on the cd is also produced by Daz, and is once again an excellent remix of a classic track. The beat is only really changed slightly from the original, but the hook is changed considerably with Daz rapping along with vocal samples of “it’s rolling”. This track is pretty dope once more, with Daz bringing a more Dogg Pound feel to the track than the original. 4.5/5
Daydreaming (Michelle) – this is a cover of the Aretha Franklin song of the same name, and although Michelle is a pretty good singer she cannot really do justice to the track which really needs a better singer. This track is too slow for my liking and isn’t really my type of thing so to me this is a pretty weak track. 2/5
Who Am I (What’s My Name?) Remix (Snoop Dogg) – another Daz remix, and this track really does sound like something that would have sounded right in place on the Dogg Pound’s Dogg Food album. The beat is definitely much different than the original but Snoop still sounds the bomb over this beat, and the new hook, whilst not being up to the standard of the original is still a good one. Overall this track is another dope remix. 4.5/5
Nuthin But A G Thang Remix (Dr Dre) – the first remix on the album not produced by Daz, comes in the shape of this DJ Jam & Tommy D production. The track is vastly different to the original, with a more RnB type beat than the G Funk of the original. Both Snoop and Dre still sound great over this beat however and the hook stays the same as the original. 4/5
I Get Around Remix (2 Pac) – this Cavi Lewis production is a remix of a track which first appeared on Pac’s Strictly For My Niggaz album. The new beat for the track maintains the same kind of rhythm that the original had but adds in a great Jazz solo over the top of the beat which really fits into the song perfectly. Pac stills sounds really dope over the beat, and although the hook is changed slightly with more pauses it is still really good as is the whole track. 4.5/5
Lil Ghetto Boy Remix (Dr Dre) – this Julio G and Tony G remix features a beat which is really very different than the original beat. It has more of a dark feel to it than the original beat, and is in tempo perfectly with the raps of Snoop, Dre and the others. The track is changed slightly with Nate’s chorus cut short and a new bridge added between the verses and the hook. This is probably the remix that I am feeling the least on this CD, but it is still a decent track which you certainly won’t be skipping past. 3.5/5
Hit Em Up (2 Pac feat Tha Outlawz) – this track has to be considered as a classic west coast dissing track. Johnny J just laid down a beat and let Pac and Tha Outlawz do their thing. On this track you can really see all the pent up aggression that Pac had inside him as he disses Biggie, Badboy, Mobb Deep, Chino XL and basically everybody in the industry that he had beef with. He is backed up brilliantly by Tha Outlawz who all put in great performances although I just wish that Kadafi’s verse wasn’t mixed in so quietly compared to the others because it is sometimes quite hard to hear him rap over the beat. This may not be the best dissing track lyrically, but for sheer aggression not many can beat Pac’s performance on this track. Pure gangsta brilliance. 5/5
Who Been There, Who Done That? (J-Flex) – the second diss track in a row and this time it is long time producer and writer J-Flex who lets his feelings out towards former Row inmate Dr Dre, who he feels cheated him out of money and fame which should have come his way, when Dre took credit for some of his beats and rhymes. This track is basically a parody of Dre’s track off of his Aftermath compilation of the same title. J-Flex does a good job in telling the story of what Dre has done to him, and at times this track is actually very good lyrically. However the fact that J-Flex does have a tendency to sound like Will Smith means that sometimes this track is more amusing than it is a hard diss track. However it is still a dope track, for which Flex does really deserve some credit for. 4/5
Fuck Wit Dre Day Remix (Jewell) – another Cavi Lewis remix again puts a more Jazzy feel onto the beat of the track, over the top of the original beat loop. Jewell sings over this beat pretty well and certainly did surprise me to an extent with her performance on this track. However, after a while she does start to get a bit boring and with this type of dope production you really want to here one of the verses from the original song in there somewhere. 3/5
Pour Out A Lil Liquor (Thug Life) – this really is a classic track which also appeared on Thug Life’s, Thug Life Volume 1 album. This is a Pac solo, despite the listing saying that it’s Thug Life, and this is really the sort of track that sets him apart from other rappers, in that this song is really deep, showing his emotions following the death of a close homie. This is one of my favourite Pac songs ever and is a definite classic. 5/5
What Would You Do? (Tha Dogg Pound) – this is really one of those brilliant party tracks by the Dogg Pound which you only wish they did more often. Daz provides a very up tempo, funky beat and they both drop brilliant verses, which combined with an excellent hook make this a very dope track. 5/5
Come Up To My Room (Jodeci feat Tha Dogg Pound) – this is basically an Rnb track by Jodeci which happens to feature verses from both of Tha Dogg Pound. Kurupt and Daz both put in very good performances, and Jodeci provide a great hook and singing on this sex song. Basically a lot of rapping and singing about bitches and sex over a nice beat by Daz makes a great mix of RnB and Rap. 4/5
Come When I Call (Danny Boy) – this track is produced by DJ Quik and features a great laid back beat for Danny Boy to sing over. He really shows his obvious singing talent on this track, and although the track does drag a little bit, the hook is good and the quality vocals of Danny Boy keep you interested and make this a great track. 4/5
Me In Your World (Daz Dillinger) – this is another one of the new tracks on the album which is actually a Dogg Pound collaboration. The beat is pretty good and quite up tempo which gives the track a bit of a party feel to it. Both Daz and Kurupt put in good performances on the mic, especially Kurupt and although this track isn’t great it is still a solid track. 3.5/5
Smile For Me Now (2 Pac & Scarface) – this track is different to the Smile track found on Scarface’s Untouchable album, because the beat is much more funky and the hook is different featuring 816 instead of Jon B as on the Scarface version. The track is still as deep as ever with both Pac and Scarface dropping great deep and thoughtful verses. Even though I do prefer the version from Scarface’s album this track is still absolutely brilliant and therefore deserves classic status. 5/5
Overall, the second disc of the Death Row Greatest Hits compilation didn’t disappoint. Although it would have obviously been better if some other great Death Row hits had been included instead of the remixes on this CD, all of the remixes definitely do justice to the originals and therefore it is still a joy to listen to this CD. It is great to see Pac’s Hit Em Up on this CD and along with the dope remixes of classics and a few new tracks this really is a great CD. The only real problem with it is the two female RnB cuts which really don’t do anything special and don’t really fit in with the rest of the CD as a whole. But anyway this album is definitely worth buying because the first CD is full with classic Death Row material and this second CD really is mostly excellent as well.
Overall: CD2 – 8.5/10
Overall Full Double Album: 9.5/10
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the remix of let me ride iz from the let me ride single it wuz originally produced by warren g (i think) but yeah overall the album(cd 1 &2) gets a 10/10 but i didnt really like cd 2 az much becuz of all the remixs.... i could have thought of songz 2 put on instead of the remixes
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i think this disc gets like a 9.5/10...the whole cd 10/10...def a classic
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9 out of 10
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good review, 9.5/10
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good review, 9.5/10
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dope review props!