Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt
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Music CD Cover
Artist: Jay-ZBrand: JAY-Z
Edition: Music CD
Format: Explicit Lyrics, Extra tracks, Original recording reissued
CD Release Date: 2006-11-14
Music Label: Roc-A-Fella
Soundtracks:
- Can't Knock the Hustle
- Politics as Usual
- Brooklyn's Finest
- Dead Presidents II [New Lyrics]
- Feelin' It
- D'evils
- 22 Two's
- Can I Live
- Ain't No *****
- Friend or Foe
- Coming of Age
- Cashmere Thoughts
- Bring It On
- Regrets
- Can I Live II [*]
Free Music Notes for Reasonable Doubt
Free Music Review: Almost Ready To Die
Hit: 5 Stars
Jay-Z released his 1st (and best) album in 1996, two years after the classic "Ready To Die" by The Notorious B.I.G. "Reasonable Doubt" is one of my favorite rap albums and it is filled with 14 outstanding tracks (and 1 bonus track). This album is Jay-Z before he became commercial (although he still had skills later on, he just became more of an image). With "Reasonable Doubt", Jay-Z released a classic album filled with exceptional rhymes and stories. This was when he was a hustler from the streets who rapped about what he knew - and did it very well. You can tell how hungry we was at this time and his detailed experiences on the streets are great due to his brutal honesty and some very creative rhymes. So before you trash Jay-Z's legacy due to some of his later albums, go back and listen to this because it alone, cements his legacy as one of the best MC's.
1. Can't Knock The Hustle - Great song to start off the album featuring Mary J. Blige. Great beat, great hook, and as usual, Jay-Z lays out some great lyrics and his flow on this song is as good as it gets. "Through my peripheral I see you scheming. Stop dreaming, I leave your body steaming." 10/10
2. Politics as Usual - I don't know what it is but I really like this beat. It's really simple but it compliments Jay's especially tight rhymes in this song. This song really shows Jay-Z cocky, cool, and laid-back rhymer that he is. "You ain't seen money in your life, when it comes to this cheese y'all like Three Blind Mice." 10/10
3. Brooklyn's Finest - Classic song. My favorite song on the album. It's great to hear these two amazing MC's together and since Biggie is my favorite rapper, I especially like it. Both of them tear up their verses and it's great. "You're holding more drugs than a pharmacy, you ain't harmin me. So pardon me, pass the safe, before I blaze the place." 10/10
4. Dead Presidents II - Great song with the Nas sample. Jay makes it into a really hot song with some great lyrics. Just as good as Part I, maybe better. "Crime Family, well connected Jay-Z and you fake thugs is Unplugged like MTV." 10/10
5. Feelin' It - Nice feel good track with a slow and laid back beat. Jay's lyrics are tight as usual and he's got some standout rhymes in here that keeps this album moving along. "Even if it ain't sunny hey I ain't complaining. I'm in the rain doing a buck forty hydroplaning." 9/10
6. D'Evils - 2nd best song on this album in my opinion. Jay-Z made a classic right here that doesn't really seem to get it's respect. It's often overlooked. It's basically about having to be willing to anything to get what you want and it's also about how friends can change when money and success enter the picture. "And even if Jehova Witness bet he'll never testify." 10/10
7. 22 Two's - Really nice track in which Jay-Z lays out a freestyle in which he says either two, to, or too 22 times throughout the 1st verse. Simple concept but he manages to lace some very creative rhymes in the midst of his count. "No question, Jay got too many answers. I been around this block, too many times. Rocked, too many rhymes; Cocked too many nines." 10/10
8. Can I Live - Pretty decent song with a good beat and some nice rhymes. Not really a standout track but it's still a great song and Jay sounds hungry in his rhymes. "Dreams of getting cheese. It gets te-di-ous. So I keep one eye open like CBS." 8/10
9. Ain't No N**** - Probably the weakest of the 14 original tracks. Jay's verses are pretty good but not outstanding. Foxy Brown is featured but once she starts to spit, you really wish she wasn't. The beat isn't really that great and overall, it's not up to par with the rest of the album. 6/10
10. Friend or Foe - Outstanding song. This song really shows Jay-Z the hustler step out and make himself known. The lyrics are blazing but the song is too short. Still, a great song. "Your draw better be Picasso, you know the best. Cause if this is not so, ah, God bless." 10/10
11. Coming Of Age - Really tight song that introduces Jay's supposed successor and protege Memphis Bleek. Bleek is pretty nice on here but he's never managed to really make a standout solo album. Still, good song about a hustler and a kid who wants to make it big as well. "I'm out here serving, disturbing the peace but life could be better like my man reclined in plush leather seats." 9/10
12. Cashmere Thoughts - A pretty good song but it doesn't have a very good beat. Jay's got some good rhymes but not a standout, just a pretty good song. "The proper ettiquette when I drop the subject verb, then the predicate." 7/10
13. Bring It On - Good song featuring Jay's mentor Big Jaz. Good beat, good lyrics, all you can ask for in a good song. "Liason for days on in. Money make the world go around so I made songs to spin." 9/10
14. Regrets - Great song to end the album (not including the bonus track). Jay-Z tells about having to live with regrets in order to live the life he's lived and he tells his story over a great, light beat and with some very nice, slow lyrics. "I miss him, as long as I'm living he's living through memories. He's there to kill all my suicidal tendencies. In heaven looking over me, or in hell, keepin it cozy." 10/10
15. Can I Live II - I hate to include this as a song on this album but if I were to, it would definately be the worst. There's not much to say. It has a pretty weak beat and some disappointing lyrics from Jay and Bleek. Just unnecessary. 5/10
Overall, a classic album by Jay-Z and this is the best East Coast album in my opinion following the work of the The Notorious B.I.G.
Reasonable Doubt Poster
European 15-track pressing. Same tracks and reamstering as the US edition. BMG.Jay-Z's classic debut is a compelling reflection on his life as a hustler. It's invested with an uncommon complexity and candor that has noticeably faded in his later material. Armed with clever phrasing and sly deadpan wit, Jay-Z navigates indulgent romps ("Can't Knock the Hustle"), thought-provoking introspection ("Regrets"), and devastating street-corner soliloquies ("Friend or Foe") with savvy composure. The beats on Reasonable Doubt, provided by the likes of DJ Premier & Ski, are as irresistibly slick as his persona. "Brooklyn's Finest," his mic-passing session with his friend Notorious B.I.G., takes on a torch-passing significance in the wake of Biggie's death. That song, and the entire album, foreshadows Jay-Z's subsequent ascension to kingpin status. --Del. F. Cowie
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