Eric B and Rakim
Eric B and Rakim's first three LPs were really remarkable. At the time I picked up the Coldcut mix of "Paid In Full" which was a balearic staple and is credited with kick-starting all manner of things, as well as the second and third LPs. You could take a purist approach to that remix, but have you heard the original recently? It's a work of genius but does have the feeling of an idea sketched, but not fully fleshed-out. A lot of the "Paid In Full" LP is turned over to Eric B, and perhaps "Eric B is On the Cut" and "Extended Play" are a little dry. There's a pervasive influence of Marley Marl's crashing breaks across the disc, but on the bass-heavy flow of "As The Rhyme Goes On" and innovative JB-sampling "I Know You Got Soul" the future and Eric's signature style really emerge. Rakim's rhyme for "Paid in Full" is one of the only raps I can perform from start to finish- a party trick waiting for a suitable audience.
"Follow The Leader" is probably the more consistent disc. I first heard the title track having broken out of school, booming out of a sound-system at the legendary Acid-House club Heaven under the arches at Charing Cross in 1988. It was mind-glowingly cosmic, maybe the first Hip-Hop track which really embraced the palate of modern audio production (rather than working against it and striving for rawer sonix). The third LP is excellent too. I used to dig "Mahogany" but have recently rediscovered "In The Ghetto". Apparently Eric B is worth a fortune these days. He owns a chain of restaurants and was invited to the White House (in Chocolate City) to meet George Bush.