Berkeley Place

I’m looking back at my favorite rap albums from the dawn of the entire genre in 1979.  To make the list, the albums have to still be great, i.e., not just “good at the time,” and h...

1991 is, overall, rap’s best year yet.  Lots of GOATs and classic albums that aren’t just the best of the year but are among the greatest albums ever made.  Also, some of rap’s best creators put out their best works as well–like the top 4 artists on this list.

Notably, there were some damn fine soundtracks that really aren’t truly great and aren’t...

15. The Geto Boys by Geto Boys (1990).  When Rick Rubin decided to remix previously released Geto Boys songs (mostly from their 1989 classic Grip It!), Def American was ready to distribute.  But when the album was done, they got cold feet. What the hell did they think they were signing up for? Anyway, yeah, this is all older stuff so I’m no...

And so we come to the end of the ’80s.  In 1989, rap continued to expand and brace itself for the ’90s, which for most is it’s greatest decade.

This year’s list, like 1988, has some great rap albums on it–but unlike 1988’s list, 1989 has a plethora of bona-fide, no-skip, beginning-to-end classics.  The top 3 albums on this list are still influencing artists to ...

With 1988, for the first time in the history of rap, we have tight competition for the top 10 albums of the year. In fact, there’s more than 10 albums that are worth noting as truly great albums–and albums that aren’t just moments in time.  Every album on this list will be rewarding to modern fans of hip hop.  That’s a good sign of how the genre is evolving to have more varie...