Run-D.M.C. [Digipak] [Remaster]

Performer: Run-D.M.C.
Producer: Russell Simmons; Larry Smith
Distributor: BMG (distributor)

Notes: Run-DMC: Joseph "Run" Simmons, Darryl "DMC" McDaniels (rap vocals); Jason "Jam Master Jay" Mizell (scratches). Additional personnel: Eddie Martinez (guitar). Recorded at Greene Street Recording, Inc, New York, New York. Additional personnel: Davy DMX (guitar, drum programming); Eddie Martinez (guitar); Larry Smith (keyboards, bass guitar, drum programming); Steve Loeb (keyboards). Years after the release of Run-D.M.C.'s eponymous 1984 debut, the group generally was acknowledged to be hip-hop's Beatles -- a sentiment that makes a lot of sense, even if Run-D.M.C. isn't quite the equivalent of a rap Please Please Me. Run-D.M.C. were the Beatles of rap because they signaled a cultural and musical change for the music, ushering it into its accepted form; neither group originated the music, but they gave it the shape known today. But, no matter how true and useful the comparison is, it is also a little misleading, because it implies that Run-D.M.C. also were a melodic, accessible group, bringing in elements from all different strands of popular music. No, Run-D.M.C.'s expanded their music by making it tough and spare, primarily by adapting the sound and attitude of hard rock to hip-hop. Prior to this, rap felt like a block party -- the beats were funky and elastic, all about the groove. Run-D.M.C. hit hard. The production is tough and minimal, built on relentless drum machines and Jam Master Jay's furious scratching, mixing in a guitar riff or a keyboard hit on occasion. It is brutal urban music, and Run and D.M.C.'s forceful, muscular rhymes match the music. Where other MCs sounded cheerful, Run and D.M.C. prowl and taunt the listener, sounding as if they were a street gang. And while much of the record is devoted to braggadocio, boasting, and block parties, Run-D.M.C. also addressed grittier realities of urban life, giving this record both context and thematic weight. All of this -- the music, the attitude, the words, the themes -- marked a turning point for rap, and it's impossible to calculate Run-D.M.C.'s influence on all that came afterward. Years later, some of the production may sound a bit of its time, but the music itself does not because music this powerful and original always retains its impact and force as music. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine By marrying the emerging rap sound to a distorted electric guitar, "Rock Box" made the connection between rap and rock, and launched Run-DMC on the road to stardom. Their middle class backgrounds differed from the ghetto roots of rap, yet they took rap to the top of the charts within a few years. The sparse backing tracks made the declamatory vocal style of Run and DMC jump off the album, and their love of rock sounds gave them hooks that made the white audience notice. Joseph "Run" Simmons' effortless style brought much respect in the rap community, and the groups' "look" (matching Adidas sweatsuits and footwear) added to the impact of their arrival. RUN-DMC is a collection of the group's early singles, some of which were hits on the R&B charts ("It's Like That," "Hard Times" and "Rock Box").

Rolling Stone (11/89) - Ranked #51 in Rolling Stone's "100 Greatest Albums Of The 80s." Uncut (11/03, p.130) - 4 stars out of 5 - "...RUN-DMC made everything else in the Live Aid era sound lame and tame..."

Click Here for Shipping Options and Policies

Shipping or Dimension weight in pounds: 0.25