Last year was the 50th anniversary of hip hop, And in honor of this anniversary, the idea bloomed in my mind that I should review the top 50 albums of that 50 years. As I crunched together a list from various sources, 50 proved to be too restrictive- many of the classics were getting squeezed out. So, to make a little more room, I opted for 100 albums, two for each of hip hop’s 50 years.

For its formative years, hip hop was a live entertainment form, with the first recorded songs not emerging until 1979, and the first albums in 1980. So my review will cover 1980-2023, with 50 posts of two albums each. The only ground rule I made for myself (besides looking for 2×50, aka 100, albums that were widely well-regarded) was that I had to have at least one from each year. As you’ll see by and by, some years get multiple albums, but since we have 100 spots for 43 years, it tends to all work out.

And with that, let’s embark on our next installment!

Whodini, Escape (1984)– This is the second album from the Brooklyn trio of Jalil Hutchins, Ecstasy, and Grandmaster Dee. Coming off of a European tour that convinced them there was widespread appeal to rap music, they headed back into the studio with pioneering producer Larry Smith. The original plan was to go for a more rock-based sound, but hearing Smith’s work in that vein on Run-D.M.C.’s debut, the group decided for something different, working in live bass tracks and R&B-oriented syntheiszer work. The radio friendly sound that resulted was both successful (it was the first rap album to debut in the top 40) and influential- the album helped launch the “new jack swing” style of the 80s that bridged R&B and rap. It also contains One of the linchpins of the obsession with “freak” songs I formed in junior high dances, “Freaks Come Out At Night”. Talk about influential! (Note: The version linked here is a 2011 expanded edition, but if you take just the first eight tracks, that’s the original 1984 album.)

The Treacherous Three, The Treacherous Three (1984)- This album is something of a throwback (to the extent that hip hop had enough history at that point to allow for throwbacks) in that half the songs on it had originally been released in 1980/81 as singles, and had even been previously compiled in a 1983 release. When Sugarhill Records brought this Harlem-based crew of DJ Easy Lee, Kool Moe Dee, L.A. Sunshine, Special K and Spoonie Gee on board, producer/President Sylvia Robinson took the earlier singles, added three new songs from 1983 and produced what you find here. If you can find it. You can get all the songs individually and listen to them in order, which is what I did for these purposes, but despite being well-regarded and considered influential, I couldn’t find the album as a whole on any streaming service. I think it’s worth the effort to track these songs down, though, because what you’ll hear on songs like “The Body Rock”, “Turning You On”, and “U.F.O.” is the sound of transition from early hip hop party jams to the electro style that led to so much else. Miami bass, house, techno, and on and on…

If you’re curious about the sources I used to compile my list, you can check them out here:

• Beats, Rhymes & Lists- The 50 Best Hip Hop Albums of the 1980s
• Beats, Rhymes & Lists- 250 Best Rap Albums of All Time
• Complex- The Best Rap Albums of the 80s
• GQ UK- The 28 best hip-hop albums that you should listen to immediately 
• Hip Hop Golden Age- Top 100 Hip Hop Albums of the 1980s
• Music Grotto- 51 Best Hip Hop Albums of All Time
• ONE37pm- The 62 Best Hip Hop Albums of All Time
• Pitchfork- Highest Rated Hip Hop Albums of All Time
• Rolling Stone- The 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time
• The Source- Hip Hop Albums Rated 5 Mics Out of 5 (as of January 2011)
  

P.S., as of this posting, we’re 10% through! If you want to catch up on the previous installments, here they are…

1. Sugarhill Gang (1980)/Kurtis Blow (1980)
2. 8th Wonder (1981)/The Message (1982)
3. Wild Style Original Soundtrack (1983)/Fat Boys (1984)
4. Ego Trip (1984)/Run-D.M.C. (1984)