All World - Greatest Hits

iTunes Review

Few rappers can boast a catalogue as consistent as LL Cool J’s. The Queens-bred MC’s 1985 debut redefined the sound of Hip-Hop with a single crushing blow, replacing the slick, dance floor oriented sounds of Old School Hip-Hop with the spare trunk shaking roar of the Roland 808 drum machine. In the years that followed LL Cool J became one of the few rappers who was able to court mainstream success while remaining true to his hardcore roots. In 1996 Def Jam released this greatest hits package offering a good summary of Cool J’s career, from the relentless minimalism of early hits like “Rock The Bells” to the smooth talking braggadocio that followed. Though Cool J’s rhythmically uncomplicated delivery and simple but effective lyrical put-downs could never compare with the labyrinthine flows of MC’s like Rakim and Big Daddy Kane, his gritty, authoritative baritone lent gravitas to even his airiest verses. Classic albums like Bigger and Deffer and Mama Said Knock You Out are well represented here, while only a few tracks from critical disappointments like Walk Like a Panther make the cut, making for a concise and flattering portrait of one of Hip-Hop’s greatest MCs.