Xzibit - At the Speed of Life: The Archives ('94-'97)

Daily Operation 10.15.2021.
Xzibit - At the Speed of Life: The Archives ('94-'97) a.k.a. The Tape Deck #480.
All music, no frills. I had the idea of doing something like this back in 2009 and finally(!) got around to it. In honor of the 25-year anniversary of the release of the Detroit/L.A. emcee's debut album, this is a collection of Xzibit tracks from 1994 to 1997. Guest spots, mixtape and freestyle recordings; plenty of music with the Liks, of course. Hopefully lots of s**t you never heard of. (Not to mention, some samples thrown in there, too...) Shout out to ALL the baby bubbas out there... 🥴 Turn It Up! © J Dilla 🔥💨

SIDE A:
1. Freda Payne - Prelude
2. King Tee - Free Style Ghetto (feat. Xzibit, Breeze & Tha Alkaholiks)
3. Tha Alkaholiks - Hit and Run (feat. Xzibit)
4. Tha Alkaholiks - Flashback (feat. The Baby Bubbas)
5. Mr. Brown - Respect the Tech (feat. Xzibit & Colony)
6. L.A. Nash - Do or Die (feat. Tha Alkaholiks & Xzibit)
7. Grover Washington Jr. - Until It's Time for You to Go
8. Xzibit - Eyes May Shine (Remix) (feat. Mobb Deep)
9. Tha Alkaholiks - No Hand Outs (feat. Phil Da Agony, Xzibit & Snaggle Puss)
10. Dilated Peoples - Goin' for Broke (feat. Xzibit)
11. Xzibit - Mad Scientist Freestyle

SIDE B:
12. Barbra Streisand - Pavane (Vocalise)
13. Tha Mexakinz - The Wake Up Show (feat. Xzibit & Chino XL)
14. Tha Alkaholiks & Xzibit - Wake Up Show Freestyle
15. Xzibit & Ras Kass - Freestyle, Pt. 2
16. The Mystic Moods Orchestra - Universal Mind
17. Tha Alkaholiks - Killin' It (feat. Xzibit)
18. Little Boy Blues - Dream Weaver / Seed of Love
19. Trevor Jones - Love Theme
20. Stanley Clarke - Slow Dance
21. Xzibit - Freestyle
22. Xzibit - E Lucevan Le Stelle
23. Patrick Williams & Earl Klugh - Out.... Then Back
24. Davina - So Good (feat. Xzibit)
25. Adriana Evans - Reality (Thayod Remix) (feat. Xzibit & K-Borne)
26. Kool DJ EQ - Three Emcees (feat. Xzibit, Del The Funky Homosapien & Casual)
27. Ras Kass - Arch Angels (feat. Xzibit)
28. Robert De Niro - Taxi Driver (1976)

LAXD








Only 3 Mics? Damb, Riggs... 😬😅

Album of the Day: 25-Year Anniversary Edition.
Xzibit - At the Speed of Life (Released: 10.15.1996)



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Method Man: The Tical Archives

At the time of Wu-Tang's ascension, Method Man was arguably the best and most visible member of the pioneer rap group. He was only one of two Wu artists - the other being GZA/Genius - to have a solo track on the group's debut album, Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). And like AZ's feature on Nas' opus Illmatic, Method Man was similarly the only guest emcee on The Notorious B.I.G.'s landmark debut Ready to Die. Go figure, Method Man was the first amongst the Clan to release a solo LP, the platinum-selling Tical, with Def Jam Recordings in '94. The Tical Archives serve as a companion to Mr. Mef's debut album, including his pre-Tical work, album singles (and b-sides, remixes, etc.), and post-Tical contributions and collaborations. I've also added a selection of rare freestyles ranging from '93 to '96 as a bookend of sorts. As always, enjoy... and turn it up!! Now can I get a suuuuuuuuu?!?!?

Jay-Z: The Reasonable Doubt Archives

"N****s want my old shit, buy my old album/"
- Jay-Z; "On to the Next One"

The Jay-Z line I've quoted above gave me the inspiration to put this new compilation together. Reasonable Doubt is and always will be my favorite Jay-Z album. Call it elitist, American golden era exceptionalism. Whatever. And since we've already got the album, I figured I could dig some more. I'm "stuck on stupid", you see. Now if you thought The Illmatic Archives or The Purple Archives were a goldmine, you ain't seen nothin' yet! Over the years I've seen some early Jay-Z compilations that were poorly assembled and boasted some pretty hilarious titles (does Prehistoric Hov ring a bell for anyone?). Not to toot my own horn [||], but none of them compare to this right here. I've got rarities, I've got b-sides, remixes, collaborations, acapellas, instrumentals, clean versions. Shit, I've even got a song performed by Bugs Bunny off the Space Jam OST (in case you're wondering, it's because Jay-Z wrote the lyrics - I kid you not).


One previously-released compilation which I must give credit to is DJ Rhude's B.C. (Before the roC) mixtape which I've included here as Disc Three in this eight disc set. I believe he dropped that tape in 2002. Rhude's mix contains a gang of exclusive Jay joints you literally will not find anywhere else. So props to him on that. On a side note, I'm saddened to say that I didn't manage to get every instrumental from Reasonable Doubt. Trust me, I looked. You can blame DJ Scratch if you'd like (ha!). But you can't stop the music. What we have right here is a collection of 110 tracks from early on in Mr. S. Carter's career, ranging from 1986 to 1997. Everything from Jaz to Kane to Biggie. This took me about a week or so to organize and set into full gear, but it's really been something of a decade-long labor of love (and bootlegging). "Keeping it moving" is a great thing. But reminiscing can be fun, too. So enjoy! And as always... TURN IT UP!!

Raekwon: The Purple Archives

Considerably shorter than The Illmatic Archives, this Rae compilation has still got plenty of rarities that you may have never heard. Disc one features remixes and b-sides from OB4CL singles, including an acapella for "Criminology" and a rare freestyle over Channel Live and KRS-One's ill "Mad Izm" beat (this freestyle was only featured on the Only Built 4 Cuban Linx... album sampler - nowhere else). Disc two features the instrumentals for OB4CL. Easy, right? Like Sunday morning... Enjoy... and turn it up!!

Below is a clipped scan from the September '95 issue of The Source Magazine,
featuring a review for Only Built 4 Cuban Linx...
(courtesy of Press Rewind...):

Nas: The Illmatic Archives

In Memory of William "Ill Will" Graham

Whenever someone asks me what the greatest rap record of all time is, I throw ‘em three titles: Paid in Full, It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back, and of course… Illmatic. That, to me, is the holy grail – the trinity if you will – of the golden era’s finest albums. And Illmatic, in my opinion, is absolutely flawless, thus earning the top spot amongst the trio. Each track is densely filled with Nas’ clever poetry and wordplay, plus the production is handled by some of the greatest beatsmiths of our time. The short run time, however, always made me hungry for some more.


Over the years I’ve collected a whole bunch of singles, remixes, beats and acapellas by Nas. Of course, the alleged 1991 demo tape had been creeping around the internet for years as well, so I had to snatch that up too. And then last night, while I was wrapping up that Dr. Dre & Snoop Dogg Collaborations compilation, I figured I’d do something similar for Nas. What started as a one disc release – originally dubbed The Illmatic B-Sides – soon grew to two. Then three. Then four. And then I decided “what the heck, I’ll throw the demo tape at the end for kicks”. All in all, this compilation is a 5-disc set chock full of b-sides, remixes, instrumentals, acapellas and other rarities from the Illmatic-era. And thus we traverse from The Illmatic B-Sides to The Illmatic Archives.


Allow me to explain how the discs are divided. Disc one contains b-sides and remixes, mostly taken from Illmatic single releases. Disc two is the full Illmatic album in instrumental form. Not all of the beats were released commercially, so some of these versions are DIY versions. Still, they’re the best you’re gonna find anywhere else! Disc three features the instrumentals from most of the b-side remixes featured on disc one. Disc four contains a few acapellas from the Illmatic album, as well as a pair of instrumentals of tracks from Nas’ demo tape. Disc five is Nas’ 1991 demo tape, including two bonus tracks. Standing at forty-six tracks deep, with a run time of just under three hours, this set is a keepsake for every Nas fan out there. Enjoy… and turn it up!!

Below is a clipped scan from the April '94 issue of The Source Magazine,
featuring a review for Illmatic (courtesy of Philaflava; written by Shortie a.k.a. Miss Info):



Further reading: Illmatic by Matthew Gasteier