Recorded at Audio Achievements, Torrance, California. Includes liner notes by Phyllis Pollack.
All tracks have been digitally remastered.
Recording information: Audio Achievements, Torrance, CA.
Photographer: Eric Poppleton.
The year 2008 marks the 20th anniversary of N.W.A's landmark album STRAIGHT OUTTA COMPTON, one of the two most important gangsta rap albums ever (the other being N.W.A. founding member Dr. Dre's THE CHRONIC). The album sounds as ferocious and frightening as ever, as it continues to voice the "power of street knowledge" to the masses. Like the similarly themed 10th Anniversary edition, this version of S.O.C. contains a handful of reworked versions of songs by some of the biggest names in post-N.W.A. rap, including Snoop Dogg ("Gangsta Gangsta") and Ice Cube protege Mack 10 ("Dopeman"). The collective force and power of Ren, Eazy-E, Dre, Cube, and Yella can not be underestimated, and this 20th-anniversary disc is evidence why.
Professional Reviews
Rolling Stone (10/02, p.75) - 5 stars out of 5 - "...One of hip-hop's crucial albums..."
Rolling Stone (12/11/03, p.128) - Ranked #144 in Rolling Stone's "500 Greatest Albums Of All Time" - "This was the start of gangsta rap, as well as the launching pad for the careers of Ice Cube, Eazy-E and Dr. Dre."
Q - voted one of the 'Top 50 Titles Of 1989.'
Uncut (11/02, p.141) - 5 stars out of 5 - "...Their landmark blend of pop, rage and skilful self-marketing conitnues to reverberate...."
Alternative Press (7/95, p.88) - Ranked #45 in AP's list of the 'Top 99 Of '85-'95' - "...Recorded in a garage, this record integrate[s] sensational violence and sexist bravado with cheesy house-party music, staying charming all the way....this record eventually sent rap to the gallows as imitators took the gospel to heart: 'Life ain't nothing but bitches and money'..."
Vibe (12/99, p.164) - Included in Vibe's 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century
Q (Magazine) (p.118) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[W]ith Dr. DRe pulling the strings and ramping up the beats, its significance remains undeniable."
Mojo (Publisher) (p.118) - 4 stars out of 5 -- "[I]t still sounds magnificent. Made before using samples became too expensive, there's a riot of them here, selected with funk-aware good taste."
Record Collector (magazine) (p.93) - 3 stars out of 5 -- "[E]ssential. It is, after all, a hip-hop foundation block from the sampledelic days, pointing the way to gangsta rap's 90s rule."
