1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die- Music Banter Edition

~~James~~ · 02-19-2015, 07:21 AM

157. Prince Paul - A Prince Among Thieves (1999)
Prince Paul, of Gravediggaz fame, released one of the most ambitious hip-hop albums of all time. Also one of the most underrated. Paul is an incredible producer, one of the greatest of all time in my opinion. Here he successfully creates an album that in another medium could serve as a literary classic or a cinematic journey. The story this album tells is so fully realised. I kind of hate concept albums most of the time, but this is one that works seamlessly. I wouldn't be remotely surprised if Kendrick played this a lot when creating GKMC.
Even out with the thematic content this album works. The production is exceptional. The MCs are nothing special, but the strength of the content transcends their mediocre talents. The rapping can be genuinely great, but it's not especially consistent. The great thing about A Prince Among Thieves is that the listener barely even notices. A classic every hip hop head needs to hear.

02-19-2015, 07:21 AM	#1 (permalink)
~~James~~ Account Disabled Join Date: Oct 2009 Location: Scotland Posts: 4,483	157. Prince Paul - A Prince Among Thieves (1999) Prince Paul, of Gravediggaz fame, released one of the most ambitious hip-hop albums of all time. Also one of the most underrated. Paul is an incredible producer, one of the greatest of all time in my opinion. Here he successfully creates an album that in another medium could serve as a literary classic or a cinematic journey. The story this album tells is so fully realised. I kind of hate concept albums most of the time, but this is one that works seamlessly. I wouldn't be remotely surprised if Kendrick played this a lot when creating GKMC. Even out with the thematic content this album works. The production is exceptional. The MCs are nothing special, but the strength of the content transcends their mediocre talents. The rapping can be genuinely great, but it's not especially consistent. The great thing about A Prince Among Thieves is that the listener barely even notices. A classic every hip hop head needs to hear.