REVIEW

“NY’s Finest” – Pete Rock

Rating: 9/10

Hip-hop royalty Pete Rock has gone crate digging again and has recruited an all-star cast to breathe life into the feel-good vibe of “NY’s Finest,” an album that does its job and doesn’t overstay its welcome one bit.

Employing the likes of the Wu-Tang Clan’s Raekwon and Masta Killa, Slum Village, Papoose and Little Brother, amongst others, Rock manages to construct a moving piece of work, worthy of an hour or so of head nodding. The samples are beautiful and the emcees bring their A-game to make this an exceptional collection of hits.

Though Rock himself only raps in 5 songs, when he does grace the listener with his flow, it’s as engaging as any of the album‘s guest stars. On “Till I Retire,” Rock says, “I wrote this thesis with pieces of the puzzle missin’ / Make sure you choose wisely, it’s your decision / Got a rendition and rhetoric ya’ never heard / Spit it with clarity, my words are never slurred.”

In “Best Believe,” the always colorful Redman steals the show with his funky style of witty, yet street smart dialogue with such lines as, “Get at me / The Doctor is fine / Cadillac transform into Optimus Prime.”

In “The PJ’s,” an ode to life in the project housing system, Rock works with a David Matthews (not to be confused with Dave Matthews) sample, which Erick Sermon also used for “Maaad Crew” from Method Man and Redman’s collaborative 1999 album “Blackout.”

On this version, Masta Killa rhymes, “Degrees of experience qualifies me to speak in certain areas where many can’t reach.” Such a statement defines the role of an emcee: an individual who expresses an idea through a medium that otherwise may not be fully comprehended by the masses. With such expression, this album doesn’t miss a beat, giving loyal hip-hop heads not only what they want, but what they need.

Though a rift in their partnership is most definitely what has kept long time Rock collaborator CL Smooth from making an appearance, Rock keeps alive the memory of what the two accomplished together for hip-hop when it was thriving. At various points throughout the album, we hear references of “reminiscing.” Anyone familiar with Pete Rock will know exactly what all the reminiscing is about.