Hip Hop Underground Soul Classics: Lost And Found

Very pleased, and arrived on time

Great CD!

Brilliant album , can't stop listening to it , true hiphop love all the tracks Great production agzhdjdkzbdnenJbzbsnsbdbsnkjsdjsjsjsjxndn ejjedjsjdb. Skdjsns

These two albums were made in the mid-90s but didn't see a proper release until 2003. The InI had apparently been floating around in various bootleg forms for ages, but I'm pretty sure the Deda one was completely locked away in a basement somewhere until this 2XCD set came out. The style of beats Pete Rock was making at this time could be described as like an exact cross between the raw, darker stuff on Mecca & The Soul Brother, and the more accessable stuff on Main Ingredient. The InI group was based around Pete Rock, his brother Grap Luva, Rob O, and a couple of others. The album "Center Of Attention" is quality from start to finish with deep 4/4 beats, soul samples, and really laid back, understated rapping. Most of the tracks are very mellow, except Pete Rock laces them all with crisp sounding beats as you would expect if you already heard his earlier stuff. On the other CD is Deda's album. I don't know anything about Deda except he did a verse on the track "Escape From New York" (which Pete Rock produced) on Sadat X's debut solo album, where he is incorrectly credited as 'Dedi' in the liner notes. At first I didn't like his voice at all because he has a very unusual flow, kind of half shouting and half slurring at the same time, but eventually it grows on you (some of his lyrics are quirky and vaguely amusing as well) and then when you get used to it - which took me about 5 or 6 listens - they don't detract from Pete Rock's beats, which are a lot more sinister than on the InI album. (except there is one blatant r'n'b type beat, "How I'm Livin", but that's still a heavy track). Overall I'd rate the InI album just over the Deda one in terms of accessability but they are both prime examples of mid 90s hip hop at its finest.For anyone new to Pete Rock and looking to get some albums I would say get the 2 albums he made with CL Smooth first, then get this, then get everything else.

This album is something else. I bought without ever really hearing of pete rock too much, but artists I like always had thankyous to him in the sleeve notes so I figured I'd test him out. How happy am I now? I put this on for the first time with a friend when I got back from work and we had a smoke and a chat and by the first track (not the intro) had ended I already knew I'd found a gem of a record. The rest of it is all good. If I have to give you a rough idea what to expect, I'd say mellow, yet upbeat tunes with slick rips and sampling all laced with soul grooves and to finish it some of the smoothest voices speaking true words of wisdom. This is real hip hop, and even my pop music-loving buddy was feeling it to the point of bopping around the room. -And for just over a tenner you can have this record for the rest of your existence? Now that's a steal if ever I heard one, wurd.

I like Pete Rock. Return to the mecca and all the mixed up public enemy stuff but this is pretty dreary stuff.One or two tracks are good and I thought i was getting a good deal with it being a double CD but its just more of the same. Dull.

Beste musik für lange Auto fahrten oder abende auf der terrasse. Ich liebe das Album . Brauche noch eins zur Sicherheit

le 1er disque est une tuerie INI avec grap luva(petit frère de pete rock), rob o, pete rock lui même au son et au mic de temps à autre. Comment ne pas écouter en boucle cet album sue lequel toutes les tracks sont des perles. Je vous le conseil, les amateurs de real hip hop prenez le les yeux fermés

I've been a big fan of underground Producer Pet Rock's work since the early '90's (of Pete Rock and CL Smooth fame).When I heard a hip hop group called INI's "single" "FAKIN' JAX" on a local underground Hip hop radio program recently, I HAD to find out who did this song-INI was a short-lived hop hop group that included PETE ROCK as both a member an producer of the group's music. Well, having loved hearing the song I intensely sought them out over the web. Found out that the group no longer exists and that their original mid-90's set, "Center of Attention", is now very hard to find...a REAL collector's item. Unbeknownst to me until now, Pete Rock decides to re-release this disk, with another disk, Deda's "The Original Baby Pa" as this double CD. This double CD, released in 2003, has appeared with several names-"Center of Attention", "The Original Baby Pa" and "Lost and Found: Underground Hip hop Classics". Whatever the record companies wanna call it, this CD's production work by Pete Rock is simply stunning throughout!!! Some of his best production work is on this CD. INI's entire disk DOES NOT DISSAPPOINT-it is classic '90's hip hop to the highest degree. Deda's "The Original Baby Pa" 's set is almost as equally good (although the raps are not as good). Such a real shame these 2 disks almost never saw the light of day...if Pete Rock himself hadn't rescued them and found a british distibutor (BBE). If you are a TRUE HIP HOP fan,and you are not familiar with Pete Rock's work - this disk is ESSENTIAL for your collection.

しかも2枚組でのリリースですから聴き応え十分の大傑作と言ってもいいですね。INIの方は今回のリリース前に既にプロモやブートなどで出回っていたのですがそのどれもが曲順が違ったり、Life I LiveとSquare Oneのピッチが間違って速くなっていたりしたのですが、それがきちんと修正されてますし、音もブートより良くなってます。ただ曲順はブートCDと同じ曲順のままでピートがソロ契約でRCAからソロアルバム発売時にプロモで出していた物とは違いますね。タイトル曲Center Of Attentionを始めサンプリングネタのチョイスも絶妙でこんなにかっこいい作品は他にないといってもいいくらいですね。シングルで出ていたFakin Jaxが全てを物語っているというか色んな音がまるで万華鏡のように混ざり花開く、といった感じで見事な完成度です。Step Upはホテルの館内BGMみたいな曲使って、それがこんなにかっこよくなるかと脱帽です（笑）それから全く聴いたことがなかったのがDEDAのアルバムですが、1曲目だけはブートか何かで聞き覚えがあったのですが、Pete Rock & CL SmoothのSearchin’似のトラックでこれまた格好いい。(2)のみR&B色の濃い女性ボーカルの入った曲で他とちょっと雰囲気が異なる曲です。Ahmad Jamal Trio”Dolphin Dance”のピアノループが格好いい（5）、Beatnuts”Props Over Here”でも別の箇所が使用されていたDonald Byrd”Wee Tina”サンプリングの（6）のような古いジャズ主体のトラックやA Tribe Called Quest ”Jazz(Re-Recording)” に似た（9）(同じFreddie Hubbard”Suite Sioux”ネタ)などに顕著に表れているようにアルバムの作風としてはThe Main Ingredientと同じ路線で、94〜95年辺りにレコーディングされた物だと思われます。一番いい時期に録られた作品ですね。上記の説明にあるようにピートロックが自身の所属していたエレクトラレコードの傘下にソウルブラザーズレコードを設立して、そこからデビューさせる予定だったようですがINIはシングルFakin Jaxが96年に12”とCDシングルでリリースされていました。ところがレコード会社に売れないと判断されたのか、アルバムが出なかったという経緯があります。第2弾でDEDAも出す予定だったんでしょうね。時々色んなアーティストでお蔵入りになるアルバムってありますからこういう形で正式にリリースされたのは運がいいというか非常に嬉しい限りでいやホント無事に出て良かったなと思います。BBEよくやったと拍手喝采です。強いて言うならクレジットが詳しく書かれていないブートに近い仕様なのでジャケットも含めてその辺をもう一工夫してくれれば良かったんですけどね。いずれにせよヒップホップリスナーは必聴です。

これを聴かずしてヒップホップは語れません。このヒップホップ黄金期とも言われる1995年に正規リリースされていれば、間違いなく歴史は少し変わっていたと思います。ピートロックを知りたければ、真のヒップホップを知りたければ、是非これを聴いてみて下さい。ヒップホップというジャンルを超えて、芸術とも呼べる音楽がこの一枚に詰まっています。