he’s very much in denial. “reasonable doubt” and “the blueprint”? no where near “illmatic”. i’ll take it a step further and say “only built for cuban linx” was far more superior than “reas. doubt” and “the blueprint”.

Doe or Die is arguably better than Reasonable Doubt too.

It was Written is on Reasonable Doubt’s level

Illmatic is far better than it

oh and Stillmatic = Blueprint and

Aziatic perhaps > than them both

Erik b and Rakim-Paid in Full,
The Geto Boys-We can’t be stopped

The best CD’S period, inside and outside of hip-hop.

Sooch: How do Ready to die or Only built for Cuban Linx fare in your mind against Illmatic?

Also, I know rap heads always defer to the emcees of NY when it comes to talking about greatness but where do you place west coast classics like All eyes on me, the Chronic, or Doggystle?

Basically, I know its not one of Jay’s albums but i’m not ready to give it to Nas

Illmatic = King of hip-hop albums, bar none.

Eh Blueprint > Stillmatic…

Stillmatic for all the rave of Nas’s comeback that it got was not a classic album, God’s Son was a more cohesive thought out piece than Stillmatic which was all over the place. only reason Stillmatic got the classic title was ‘cos folk didn’t want it to seem like Nas the “underdog” at the time wasn’t getting a fair shot, that and the presence of ether on the track.

and no Doe or die is NOT better than RD. RD is a classic and not ‘cos Jay said so…there is no track on there that isn’t great..even “Ain’t No” beats were on point, each track full of quotables..

I think ppl just get ancy ‘cos saying RD is a classic is like stating the obvious. Don’t hate…rocafella y’all!

and too many ppl give Illmatic the best hip hop album title…when really that is up for grabs imo.

Reasonable Doubt was a classic album. Blueprint was almost there, but still a solid album. I think Jay should of said those were his best albums instead of saying they were the best Hip Hop albums. Illmatic, OB4CL, 36 Chambers…are. Reasonable Doubt they is atleast in the top 10.

Jay though has one of the longest resumes of good albums though..Black Album, Hard Knock, Blueprint 2 were very good albums. Jay never dropped a wack album besides what he did with R Kelly. Kingdom Come is not a wack album, but not a good enough album to come back to the game. He had the 45 jersey on that album

Rizoh, was it only 12 minutes? I feel like there was more coming and it cut off

Cosign all that, BigHomie.

Ready to Die wasn’t as good as Cuban Linx imo, they are both great, classic albusm but Cuban Linx is better.

Personally I might argue that Liquid Swords is better than Cuban too.

I personally don’t rate The Chronic, Doggystyle that high, and as far as I’m concerned, Me Against the World is Pac’s opus magnus and not All Eyez on Me.

And Blueprint was a more cohesive album than Stillmatic, but it was less gritty, and less lyrical

and Doe or Die shits all over Reasonable Doubt, they are both classic, but no one can touch A.Z.’s flow and lyrically he peaked back in 95.

And yes Paid in Full might be better than Illmatic, and I actually JUST listened to that Geto Boys album for the first time in full around 2-3 days ago, i know its shameful

Oh btw, some of the worldplay on Reasonable Doubt like “D’Evils > anything Nas has ever done” but thats it, Nas is a lyrical, narrative dude, Jay-Z is more on the punchline, swagger side of the tracks

Actually the best album of all time is either OB4CL or ATliens.

Matter of fact I’ll say it:

ATliens > Illmatic

DSuper, you’re reaching

ATliens is a great album, i think it might beat The Fix as the greatest southern album of all time

^So where does that leave The Diary.

Crap thats a great one too, I havent heard it in a while, I think i like “The Fix” the best, but theres a debate to be had there

“All I Need” beats a ton of albums on its own, imo

And I think Jay has said before that he’s done it consistently better than any other rapper. That doesn’t really say anything about the individual albums, though…

IMO Illmatic > RD > OB4CL

It Was Written lyrically > Illmatic, doesnt mean its better but that was Nas’ true peak, it just wasnt as focused as Illmatic.

Feel free to flame me

So nobody thinks Reasonable Doubts formula was based on Illmatic/OB4CL? C’mon, I mean it was a good album but Illmatic was better. So Rizoh, where do you rank 3000 in your all time lyricist? If he’s less than top 5 your tripping.

I like 3000 but he doesn’t have enough body of work (where he’s actually rapping and not that faux-Prince nonsense) for me to consider him Top 10 of all time.

That said, he’s No.23 in my book.

Nahshon, Illmatic is the illest, hands down. I liked Ready To Die, I do think it was a little long winded. And also, it came at a different time when radio friendly singles started being ushered in. I never liked “Juicy”, “Big Poppa” or “One More Chance” although, lyrically, BIG was on point. The tracks were just way too syrupy for my taste. Had EasyMoBee and Primo produced the whole album, I’d hold the album in higher regard. But that’s just my personal taste.

OB4CL is my second all time favorite. But it just doesn’t measure up to Illmatic. Illmatic is just THAT album. Short, concise, unmatched storytelling, imagery (”niggas be runnin’ thru the blocks shootin’/time to start the revolution/catch a body/head for houston), the illest intro, no cameo’s but one, velvety smooth flow with ridiculously amazing beats from the best of that era.

Jay knows…Of course he’s got to ride with the home team. He knows in his gut that Illmatic is at the top of the HipHop pantheon.

And with regards to the other albums mentioned? It’s all a matter of personal taste. I’m probably one of few who think OutKast kind of sucks balls.

OB4CL is obviously one of my personal favorites, but Illmatic is the undisputed king of hip-hop albums. I can write an entire book on why Illmatic is a masterwork, but I won’t.

man, i can dedicate an entire blog to illmatic and start a whole new culture with it, but i won’t…or will I??

Doe or Die, Doe or Die, Doe or Die.

And Andre is personally in my top 20, AZ is in my top 10 and so is Talib Kweli, so dont give much creedance to my list, and hov is only like 9-11ish on my list

BTW my favorite album of all time isnt even Illmatic or Doe or Die anymore, I’ve always loved but now Im thinking that Long Hot Summer by Masta Ace might be my favorite album of all time.

Tell me that im tripping.

I dare you.

and scooch i agree with you about ready to die, but juicy is an amazing track. we should really use a therapup forum, since we overuse these comment boxes

I feel ya’ll from a technical stand point yeah Illmatic was the greatest in terms of “pure” hip hop. Great producers, ill lyrics and what not. I didn’t even get Illmatic when it dropped, I found out about Nas by way of AZ and Mobb Deep in 95. I heard Illmatic after everyone had incorporated it into everyday hip hop so it didn’t shock and startle me. So I guess I’m a retroactive Nas fan at best. I was strictly a Wu-head. So there is a OB4CL bias that I openly admit. Aye, you should write that blog, Riz.

the strength of “juicy” is Big’s lyrics, but that doesn’t necessarily make it an amazing song. personally, i just can’t stand the R&B hook on it. i mean, the vocals are aweful. if he’s gonna ride with the hook, why not MJ blige, or someone who could actually carry a note? plus, that mtume sample was kind of weak sauce. but “super nintendo, sega genesis/when i was dead broke man i couldn’t picture this”? priceless…

and i probably wouldn’t put Doe or Die on any list, really. AZ is ill but that album wasn’t better than, say, “The Infamous” or “Word…Life” or “Liquid Swords” or “The Low End Theory” or “De La Soul Is Dead” or “Death Certificate” or “muddy waters” or “Return of the Boom Bap”, I can go on and on…

You think 3 feet high and rising is the best De La Soul album or is it De La Soul is Dead.

Oh and AZ needs some more respect; check out Eminem’s style on Infinite and all his early shit, he bit a ton from AZ, a bit from Nas and a bit from Big L, and bit is a nice way to say it

Reasonable Doubt maybe the greatest album of all time. But Y’all need to check your history. PE ” It takes a nation of millions to hold us back” Slick Rick’s first joint: “The great adventure of Slick Rick” and Dr Dre’s “The Chronic” also rate up there.

Im sorry, i’ve listened to every great rap album. trust me. From Paid in Full, to illmatic. Ready to Die. Reasonable doubt. the Blueprint. Criminal Minded. 36 Chambers by wu-tang. So i know what im saying when i say, “A Long Hot Summer” by Masta ace is by far the best hip-hop album of all time. This is like a movie. the album cover is amazing. It fits so good with the story of the album. It almost reminds me of “Do the Right thing” by Spike Lee. you know this is an amazing album that gives a very good mental mind movie if its being compared to and actual movie. Get this.