From the hip-hop documentary "The Show" comes a CD featuring a boomable selection of tracks from the top groups and rappers in the scene, with a couple of tracks by newer voices.
Here's a warning, though; hip-hop fans who haven't seen the movie and notice all the big names on the back may be fooled into believing the 27-track, 76-minute disc actually contains new material by Dr. Dre and Snoop Doggy Dogg, among others. These tracks, as well as tracks credited to Kid Creole, Treach (of Naughty by Nature), and Def Jam founder Russell Simmons, are actually soundbites taken from interviews in the movie.
That said, the CD features many of the hottest names in rap today (Method Man of the Wu-Tang Clan, 2Pac, Warren G) along with a few of the newer voices (Jayo Felony, the Notorious B.I.G.), complimented by tracks from a few of who can now be considered the Old Masters (A Tribe Called Quest, LL Cool J).
Highlights include Onyx's "Live!!!!", an even catchier version of "Slam," and Warren G Productions' refining of his mellow sound on "Still Can't Fade It." However, Mary J Blige seems a tad out of place on a collection brimming with so much street cred.
The Show is a worthwhile sampler of the sounds of 1995, representing the East Coast as well as the West Coast, with a couple of R&B and Dancehall tracks to mix it up.
