180g.

Ebullient Troutman business, great throughout, with exemplary Zapped funk, fine ballads and a couple of irresistible rare grooves. CD from Expansion.

This is the sublime, eleven-minute version, featuring vocalist Gavin Christopher.
Big Theo Parrish record.
Backed with the promo-only disco mix of Saturday Night, lavished with percussion by Sheila E.
Murders.

Illmatic cultists mithered about this 1996 follow-up, but it’s aged magnificently (and they were wrong).
‘Amidst production from heavy hitters like Dr. Dre, Havoc of Mobb Deep and DJ Premier, Nas weaves evocative narratives of gang warfare, downtrodden neighborhoods, drug deals gone awry, and gangsta triumph, against a backdrop of samples from Sam Cooke, Etta James, the Isley Brothers, and even Chuck Mangione. With guest turns from Lauryn Hill, AZ, Foxy Brown, and Mobb Deep; classics like Street Dreams and If I Ruled The World.’

Nas lost his way a bit in the nineties.
Out in 2001 Stillmatic was a triumphant attempt to regain the ground charted by his debut LP Illmatic, seven years earlier. Radio friendliness went out the window: the sound of the underground was back, with songs about politics and ghetto life.
Producers like Large Professor, DJ Premier, L.E.S., and Trackmasters stepped up; AZ, Mary J. Blige and Amerie put in strong shifts.
Premier re-organizes Peabo Bryson and Roberta Flack to deadly effect on 2nd Childhood. Both Large Profs are killers. Ether disses Jay-Z in fine style.