The Greatest 50 Hip-hop Albums Ever - #16

[Twentytwofifty]

Snoop Doggy Dogg - Doggystyle (1993) 


    When this CD was released in 1993, Snoop was already a household name thanks to his infamous "Deep Cover" debut and ofcourse his staring role on Dr. Dre's seminal classic The Chronic.  So this "debut" isn't like a typical debut from a solo artist like Illmatic or Whut? Thee Album were we got our first real taste of what they had to offer the hip-hop world.  Snoop had already done that a year earlier.  Going into the album he was argurably the biggest star in hip-hop, with legions of fans anxiously awaiting new material, and they were the ones who snapped up the album, making it the first debut album to enter the Billboard charts at number one.  It wasn't like they were buying an unknown quantity.  They knew that the album would essentially be the de facto sequel to The Chronic, providing another round of P-Funk-inspired grooves and languid gangsta and ganja tales, just like Dre's album. A wise decision was made here by Snoop and Dre, "if it ain't broke don't fix it."  The spartan liner notes say "Produced By: Dr. Dre" and that's it.  Thankfully the music on this album is hard, yet smooth at times, and overall it really flows together nicely. With a censored version of this album, a radio DJ could hardly go wrong by just selecting any track at random and pressing "play".  The hits are well known and still bump to this day: "Who Am I", "Gin & Juice", and "Doggy Dogg World" among them.  The non-crossover tracks deserve just as much recognition though, such as the pimped out cut "Tha Shiznit".  Built on a trademark heavy Dre bassline, this track has the mother of all flute samples.  It wouldn't be near as gangsta though without the S-N-double-O-P, whose laconic flow puts you right in the mix as he talks king pimp shit:

I lay back in the cut retain myself
Think about the shit, and I'm thinkin wealth
How can I makes my grip
And how should I make that nigga straight slip
Set trip, gotta get him for his grip
as i dip around the corner, now I'm on a-nother
mission, wishin, upon a star
Snoop Doggy Dogg with the caviar
In the back of the limo no demo, this is the real
Breakin niggaz down like Evander Holyfield, chill
to the next Episode
I make money, and I really don't love hoes
Tell ya the truth, I swoop in the Coupe
I used to sell loot, I used to shoot hoops
But now I, make, hits, every single day
With, that nigga, the diggy Dr. Dre
So lay back in the cut, motherfucker 'fore you get shot
It's 1-8-7 on a motherfuckin cop

    Not surprisingly, a rapper this smooth is the ideal choice to do a cover version of the MC Ricky D (Slick Rick) and Doug E. Fresh classic "La-Di-Da-Di." At the time rappers doing cover versions of hits by other MC's was very rare at the time.  Whatever sensation a Slick Rick cover song made though, it was nothing compared to the firestorm over "Murder Was the Case" given the fact Snoop really was on trial for murder when a remix of the song blew up on the soundtrack of the same name.  Personally I think the original version has the darker, more ominous beat that captures the mood Snoop intended for this song's lyrics perfectly.  Those who know this song already know how this story turns out, but suffice it to say if you don't that Snoop learns you never win when you make deals with the devil.  Perhaps that's why they chose to follow this song with the all-star Death Row song "Serial Killa" where Kurupt, Daz and RBX all rip another sick Dr. Dre beat to pieces.  With so many good songs on this album it's almost hard to pick ones to talk about. 

    There are two keys to its success, one belonging to Dre, the other to Snoop. Dre realized that it wasn't time to push the limits of G-funk, and instead decided to deepen it musically, creating easy-rolling productions that have more layers than they appear. They're laid-back funky, continuing to resonate after many listens, but their greatest strength is that they never overshadow the laconic drawl of Snoop, who confirms that he's one of hip-hop's greatest vocal stylists with this record.  If Doggystyle doesn't surprise or offer anything that wasn't already on The Chronic, it nevertheless is the best showcase for Snoop's prodigious talents, not just because he's given the room to run wild, but because he knows what to do with that freedom and Dre presents it all with imagination and a narrative thrust.  If it doesn't have the shock of the new, the way that The Chronic did, so be it: Over the years, the pervasive influence of that record and its countless ripoffs has dulled its innovations, so it doesn't have the shock of the new either.


50. Dr. Dre - 2001 (1999)
49. Outkast - Southernplayalisticaddicmuzik (1994)
48. Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt (1996)
47. Kool G Rap & DJ Polo - Wanted: Dead Or Alive (1990)
46. Redman - Whut? Thee Album (1992)
45. De La Soul - De La Soul Is Dead (1991)
44. Fugees - The Score (1996)
43. The D.O.C. - No One Can Do It Better (1989)
42. Common Sense - Resurrection (1994)
41. Makaveli - The Don Kiluminati: The 7 Day Theory (1996)
40. Public Enemy - Fear Of A Black Planet (1990)
39. Ice Cube - Death Certificate (1992)
38. Gza/Genius - Liquid Swords (1995)
37. N.W.A - Efil4zaggin (1991)
36. Main Source - Breaking Atoms (1991)
35. Geto Boys - Grip It! On That Other Level (1989)
34. Brand Nubian - One For All (1990)
33. Scarface - The Diary (1994)
32. Kool G Rap & DJ Polo - Road To The Riches (1989)
31. Beastie Boys - Licensed To Ill (1986)
30. Ultramagnetic MC's - Critical Beatdown (1988)
29. LL Cool J - Radio (1985)
28. 2Pac - All Eyez On Me (1996)
27. Mobb Deep - The Infamous... (1995)
26. Eric B. & Rakim - Follow The Leader (1988)
25. Big Daddy Kane - It's A Big Daddy (1989)
24. Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth - Mecca And The Soul Brother (1992)
23. Black Moon - Enta Da Stage (1993)
22. Outkast - Aquemini (1998)
21. A Tribe Called Quest - People's Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm (1990)
20. Run-D.M.C. - Run-D.M.C. (1984)
19. Boogie Down Productions - By All Means Necessary (1988)
18. Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... (1995)
17. De La Soul - 3 Feet High And Rising (1989)
16. Snoop Doggy Dogg - Doggystyle (1993)

[UKnowWhatItIs: welcome to my traps....game over]

You know people are going to bitch about this,right???lol

[eS El Duque]

great album...serious...this could be top 10..but i ain't complaining..

[Sikotic™]

Nobody shjould complain until the list is complete.

[Conan]

I'm not complaining, as this list has made for a great read. However, this album is up there in my top five of all time.

[Sikotic™]

No doubt. Mine too.

[Twentytwofifty]

Complaining is always welcome.  Reading the responses with everyone agreeing all the time would be boring.

[Wicked977]

classic in my top 5 hopefully snoop can one day go back to this style

[PLANT]

great album...serious...this could be top 10..but i ain't complaining..

[[sepehr]]

great album...serious...this could be top 10..but i ain't complaining..

[LyRiCaL_G]

15 albums better than this, no chance...... in the top 4 albums off all time in my opinion, i dont think their are harldy any albums better than this, no chance, the deleivery, lyrics, beats, joints,rhythms....naaaaaaaaa nigga, u aint fuckin with this album

peace!

[Larrabee]

Despite the fact that this is probably my favorite album of all-time, I can understand why Knuckles would place this at 16. This list is covering damn near all the classics. Much props.

[white Boy]

awesome album, and for now, i think its the perfect place for it.. i dont think it should be  top 10...

[Kill]

lyrics

nevertheless, it could be top 10 for me too, but still, whereas I think Chronic has to be top 10 (cause of its great influence and its plain dopeness combined), this one might as well be no. 16...it´s amazing G-Funk, but you can indeed find 15 albums that classify as ´greater´...just take EPMD, Rakim & Eric B, BDP, Nas & RUN-DMC´s most important albums and you´ve already got a good point not making it top 5. Props again, however.

[Capo Di Tutti I Capi]

amazing album, should be nr 1 IMO, but let him finish the list