I have decided to get all of the great rap albums. I especially want East Coast gangsta rap. What am I missing? (Not including grime or trip hop.)
This is what I already have:
A Tribe Called Quest - The Low End Theory
Aesop Rock - Labor Days
Common - Be
Common - Like Water For Chocolate
Dr. Dre - The Chronic
Dr. Dre - 2001
Eric B. And Rakim - Paid In Full
The Fugees - The Score
Jay-Z - Reasonable Doubt
Jay-Z - The Black Album
Jay-Z - The Blueprint
Lauryn Hill - The Miseducation Of Lauryn Hill
Madvillain - Madvillainy
Mobb Deep - The Infamous
Mos Def - Black On Both Sides
Nas - Illmatic
Notorious BIG - Ready To Die
Public Enemy - It Takes A Nation Of Millions To Hold Us Back
Raekwon - Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
Wu-Tang Clan - Enter The Wu-Tang (36 Chambers)
The new Ghostface Killah for starters. Or how about Public Enemy's "Fear of a Black Planet"? You can't go wrong with either "Aquemini" or "Stankonia" by OutKast. And those are just a few albums.
A rap album can be good, even though recently they're not consistently released as in the 90s. I have around 25-50 rap albums in my top 500 and only 1 in my top 100.
Most great rap albums contain too many samples to be taken seriously compared to the fresh classics of the 60s & 70s.
My Top Rap Albums
Madvillainy - Madvillain
Supreme Clientele - Ghostface Killah
Cypress Hill - Cypress Hill
Reasonable Doubt - Jay-Z
All Eyez On Me - 2Pac
Uptown Saturday Night - Camp Lo
Livin' Proof - Group Home
It Takes a Nation... - Public Enemy
Doggystyle - Snoop Dogg
Illmatic - Nas
Ghostface's "Ironman" goes well with the Raekwon album you already have, and Quasimoto's "Further Adventures of Lord Quas" is recommended if you like "Madvillainy".
Some of my favorite east coast gangsta rappers are Kool G. Rap & Big L, but I wouldn't recommend their albums. The Roots & The Hieroglyphics are among the few rap artists that haven't fallen off since over 10 years.
Not sure what trip hop/grime is or if this is what your looking for but I would recommend as great albums:
Beastie Boys - Paul's Boutique (in my all-time top 20)
Big Daddy Kane - Long Live the Kane
Boogie Down Productions - Criminal Mind
EPMD - Strictly Business
NWA - Straight Outa Compton
Wu-Tang Clan - The W
