Hawking back to the shitty radio trend of announcers asking their guests to name the music they’d want to have on hand should they happen to be marooned somewhere with a portable stereo and a power supply. Straight Bangin’ put out the call, and although I initially just dug up my list from last year, the request was for twenty-five long-players, plus a lot can change in a year as far as what’s rockin’. The Godfather Don piece is almost finished (check back tomorrow Illest) but since DP called me out on this I might as well have a swing.
Here’s the Unkut Dot Com affishul 25 picks at this exact moment of time. Not necessarily “the best” rap albums ever but the one’s that I’d need to maintain my sanity in a Lost-type scenario:
Critical Beatdown – Ultramagnetic MC’s
If you don’t own this in some shape or form you suck until further notice.
Criminal Minded – Boogie Down Productions
The Beatles have never sounded this good.
Long Live The Kane – Big Daddy Kane
The reason I keep my fresh cameo cut every day.
Saturday Night – The Album – Schoolly D
Aqua Teen Hunger Force!
The Beatnuts – The Beatnuts
Drink, fuck and smoke some shit.
Return of the Funkyman – Lord Finesse
The one and only Lord of the Underground.
Stunts, Blunts & Hip-Hop – Diamond D
Holy Mackerel!
Runaway Slave – Showbiz & AG
45 King would’ve been proud.
Kool & Deadly – Just-Ice
The gulliest rapper ever.
Goin’ Off – Biz Markie
Nobody beats the Biz.
The Infamous – Mobb Deep
Punch you in your face just for living.
The War Report – Capone-N-Noreaga
Tragedy‘s greatest album.
All For One – Brand Nubian
Talk of New York.
Low End Theory – A Tribe Called Quest
Sorry De La, ATCQ won.
Vagina Diner – Akinyele
I luh this fuckin’ record.
Breakin’ Atoms – Main Source
Watch Paul Juice do his thing.
Operation: Doomsday – MF Doom
Anyone that can flip a New Edition loop into something dope is alright in my book.
Ride The Rhythm – Chill Rob G
Still ahead of it’s time.
Kill At Will – Ice Cube
The extended version of “Get Off My Dick and Tell Yo Bitch To Come Here” and “The Product” are Cube’s two finest moments.
Geto Boys – Geto Boys
Church organs, harmonicas and cussin’. All Houston rap should be this good.
Mr. Scarface Is Back – Scarface
The hardest album ever.
Controversy – Willie Dee
Wille D for prez.
Act A Fool – King Tee
I used to wear silver, ’till I was told you aren’t a real b-boy without real gold.
Only Built For Cuban Linx – Raekwon The Chef
Pass the RAGU.
Y2k – Screwball
They shot Rudy. What more do you want?
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Some other opinions:
Know what I’d put in there? An album that alot of cats slept on, but it’s a true classic for those that know: CAMP LO, UPTOWN SATURDAY NIGHT!
nice selection! i’d probably have to add at least one Digable Planets album and i’d go for..BLOUWOUT COMB. also i would swap show&ag’s runaway slave for their much slept-on GOODFELLAS. Screwball would have to make room for a UK album like CAVEMAN or HIJACK…nah it would have to be KATCH 22’s Dark Tales of two cities.
Dope list, Robbie…personally I would have thrown in at least one Public Enemy record…and probably some gay sad shit like “Sea Change” by Beck so I could listen to it and cry about being stranded on a desert island.
Where’s De La and Gangstarr.
I d have Organized Konfusion – Organized Konfusion, Nas – Illmatic and O.C. – Word Life included…maybe jsut too obvious…
peace
great blog
very dope list. The Don vinyl special. Cant wait? Does anyone on here use torrents like themixingbowl.org.
ATCQ won!?!
Dilla’s dead dick >>> ATCQ (nhjic)
Eff you Robbie, eff youuuuuuuuuuuu!
Nice choice…but where is KOOL G RAP AND DJ POLO-WANTED DEAD OR ALIVE in this list??? brilliant production and the most memorable Kool.G.Rap verses. Id personally put it in my top 5. Talk like Sex could’nt be played at my local jam without groups of true-heads reciting the lyrics at the top of their voices. Every track is dope i never reach for the pause button if i got this album on.
Glad to see some uncut Houston Dope in the list. But where is the DEF IV Album?
he doesn’t have illmatic! everybody get him! haha just kidding. I’d ditch some crap like the doom. But overall these lists can never be right. Good job. Glad to see you sober enough to post something. :)
“Sorry De La, ATCQ won.”
Um, fuck that.
illmatic, Nation of Millions, I cant pick just one De la Album… Robbie you sure you can deal with this soundtrack to live out the rest of your days to on an island?
PE and De La might have made more “important” albums but I’d rather listen to these 25 right now. Next week might be a different story.
man these dudes up here miss the point. It’s not about ‘too obvious’ this n that. Surely the point of this was purely to showcase personal taste in the event of being in a Lost-type scenario? And I would personally put Kool G. Rap WDOA in my top 10 list and O.C Word life is ‘obviously’ a brilliant album.
You would be stuck with these..no going back. Im willing to bet at least half those albums end up in the ocean within the first year.
Which brings up a good idea-I would actually pay money to watch a survival type reallity show featuring the artists on this list. Lets see how tough they really are stranded on an island..
one left off was the highly classic SlaughtaHouse by INC.Very good stuff on there.
Beatnuts. Yep.
Dope list, these lists are so fuckin hard to make I could spend the whole day at work putting one together. Yours is dope.
I agree with PMES. It’s about personal taste. I mean, Robbie put Willie D’s solo album is on the list, and not one single Eric B. and Rakim album. That right there proves that it’s not a “Greatest albums of all time” list.”
That’s why I named CAMP LO’s first album Uptown Saturday Night as one I’d need on an island. Personally, it’s one of my favorites of all time.
second to that would be the “Doctor Octagon.” album by Kool Keith and Dan the Automator.
Nice choices. I could probably get by with this selection, though I’d probably ditch the Brand Nubian for Smif ‘N’ Wessun’s Dah Shinin’. Are we allowed to bring a big bag of boom with us too?
And thats why this is a “PERSONAL” 25…blah blah..dope list tho Robbie…I agree with 90% of this.
I, of course, would’ve included Word…Life, or Once Upon A Time In America, Live And Let Die, etc…
but word
when the fuck is Legend: Official dropping?
Good choices, I would add Da lench Mob and CMW though
Oh yeah I wanted to say step in the arena is the best gangstarr album ever and thats on my top 25 oh yeah and to the east blackwards is one of the best rap tapes of all times peep brother js allegories.both can be on my island
gotta have Illmatic on there
Thank god you listed the first King T album, “Act A Fool”
I think you missed just a few. Namely Mecca and the SoulBrother. Can’t forget about Pete Rock and CL Smooth. Big up Mount Vernon everytime
My Top 25 list
i cant believe soulja boy isnt on this list…soulja boy is real hiphop all the way …lol