Cold Chillin'
Cold Chillin' records was pretty much synonymous with Marley Marl's Juice Crew a collective of artists who are represented by the discs above but most quintessentially by Big Daddy Kane, Biz Markie and Roxanne Shante. Very often, especially on the earlier records, production was handled by Marley Marl- though later on (like for instance on the Kool G Rap & DJ Polo record) he seems to take a back-seat.
Cold Chillin' had a five year deal with Warner Brother Records, a label which throughout the seventies and eighties seemed to effortlessly combine solid business with the highest artistic values (see Reprise etc). The problem with Hip-Hop is that, after what I keep referring to as its "Golden" Mid-Period, it split into two halves. On the one hand there is the Platinum-fixated R'n'B-tinged, Gangster-inflected vein comfortably-ensconced within the tawdry values of the mainstream record industry and on the other a militantly bohemian Undie scene dedicated to preserving the values of "Real" Hip-Hop. Something like the Cold Chillin' label represented the absolute best of both worlds. This was a label whose output was neither in bed with the man nor drippily marginal, at once glamorous and refreshingly of-the-streets.
Of the Kane LPs, the first "Long Live the Kane" is clearly the greatest, but the other two are also very strong. Biz Markie's debut is utterly indispensable. Both the Marley Marl production Samplers are excellent, though the second is extremely rare on vinyl. Roxanne Shante's "Have A Nice Day" is a personal favorite. I've had Kool G Rap & DJ Polo's "Streets of New York" for fifteen years now, but thanks to Luke Heronbone for encouraging me to check out the LP, which is excellent.