Da Derrty Versions: The Reinvention [Clean] [Edited]

Performer: Nelly
Artist: E-40; Kelly Rowland; Ali; P. Diddy; Eightball; Brian McKnight; The Clipse; Murphy Lee; Ronald Isley; David Banner; Justin Timberlake; City Spud; Chocolate Ty; King Jacob; The Professor; True; Postaboy
Engineer: Jake Robinson; Steve Eigner; Brian Garten; Carl Nappa
Distributor: Universal Distribution

Notes: Personnel includes: Nelly, E-40, Kelly Rowland, Ali, Brian McKnight, Eightball, City Spud, Murphy Lee, Ron Isley, Justin Timberlake, Chocolate Tai, King Jacob, Prentiss Church, Tru, Postaboy, The St. Lunatics. Producers include: Jason "Jay E" Epperson, David Banner, Jermaine Dupri, Lawell "City Spud" Webb, Scott Storch. Personnel includes: Nelly, E-40, Ali, P. Diddy, Eightball, Clipse, Murphy Lee, David Banner, Postaboy, CHocolate Ty, King jacob, The Professor, True, (rap vocals); Ron Isley, Justin Timberlake, Kelly Rowland (vocals); City Spud. Personnel: Dani Stevenson, Sky (vocals); Craig Love, Jeremy Von Nida, Thad DeBrock, Steve Eigner (guitar); Billy Hume (acoustic guitar); Jake Arnold (electric guitar); Young Sears (keyboards); Jason "Jay E" Epperson (drums, percussion); Bryan Loss (drums); Bashiri Johnson (percussion); Ali "The Big One" (background vocals). Audio Mixers: Chris Athens; Richard Travali. Photographer: Jonathan Mannion. While remix albums of all shades were in vogue during 2003, Nelly truly seems to be having fun on DA DERRTY VERSIONS, his addition to the genre. This release is unique in that the remixes are generally by the original producer. Also, the title is a bit of a misnomer, as it implies more stripped-down or crunked-out versions, which are not really what this record is about. However, that's not a bad thing; DA DERRTY VERSIONS is a consistently entertaining record featuring many clever twists, unforgettable guest shots, and one ultra-catchy, all-new track "Iz U." By far, the most ear-catching moment is the peculiarly inspired reworking of the smash "Ride wit Me" which begins a cappella before a jangly guitar kicks in and reimagines the rap to the tune of John Mayer's "No Such Thing." Nelly's first hit, "Country Grammar," is redone more traditionally as E-40 drops by to add some new verses to complement the slightly tweaked familiar chorus. Hits like the St. Lunatics "Batter Up" and the summer jam "Hot in Herre" are given small but welcome alterations and remain as engaging as ever. The whole album is threaded together by the affable Nelly as the interviewee/tour guide, offering insight into the making of the record itself. While remix albums of all shades were in vogue during 2003, Nelly truly seems to be having fun on DA DERRTY VERSIONS, his addition to the genre. This release is unique in that the remixes are generally by the original producer. Also, the title is a bit of a misnomer, as it implies more stripped-down or crunked-out versions, which are not really what this record is about. However, that's not a bad thing; DA DERRTY VERSIONS is a consistently entertaining record featuring many clever twists, unforgettable guest shots, and one ultra-catchy, all-new track "Iz U." By far, the most ear-catching moment is the peculiarly inspired reworking of the smash "Ride wit Me" which begins a cappella before a jangly guitar kicks in and reimagines the rap to the tune of John Mayer's "No Such Thing." Nelly's first hit, "Country Grammar," is redone more traditionally as E-40 drops by to add some new verses to complement the slightly tweaked familiar chorus. Hits like the St. Lunatics "Batter Up" and the summer jam "Hot in Herre" are given small but welcome alterations and remain as engaging as ever. The whole album is threaded together by the affable Nelly as the interviewee/tour guide, offering insight into the making of the record itself. Even considering the sudden proliferation of excellent rap remixes no doubt prompting its release, Nelly's Da Derrty Versions: The Reinvention was a questionable undertaking from a listener standpoint. After all, it's no secret that by and large there are two kinds of remix albums: those that are intended to showcase production genius, often expanding upon a given popular artist's work creatively, and those that are intended to cash in, often recycling a given popular artist's work commercially -- and while the former albums are generally interesting complements (think underground dance music), the latter ones are generally throwaway stopgappers (think Bobby Brown's Dance!...Ya Know It!). Nelly's venture into the remix arena aims to be an interesting complement to his canon -- an album that is intended to showcase the production genius of his right-hand man, Jason "Jay E" Epperson, and expand upon big hits like "Country Grammar (Hot Shit)," "Hot in Herre," and "Dilemma" with new beats and guest rappers. For instance, Nelly even narrates the album in an interviewer/interviewee format that is intended to shed light on his creative process (and also showcase his cooler-than-thou fronting). However, whether the overall intentions here are sincere or not, Da Derrty Versions ends up playing like a cash-in. The main problem is that Nelly seemingly put more effort into the album's narration than its actual music -- his raps and hooks are pasted as is, for the most part. Epperson ends up carrying most of the weight, producing pretty much everything here (the Jermaine Dupri remix of "Dilemma" and a pair of David Banner remixes being notable exceptions). Of course, when you let a producer remix his own songs, within a strictly commercial context with few liberties, the output isn't going to be vastly different from the input, and that's most certainly the case here. Thankfully, there's an ace new song, "Iz U," and a couple good third-party contributions: E-40's typically E-40 lacing of "Country Grammar (Hot Shit)," and David Banner's remix of "Air Force Ones," which also features Eightball. It's also a pleasure to hear Ron Isley's timeless crooning on the "Pimp Juice" remix. [Universal also released an edited version for those who take offense to profanity.] ~ Jason Birchmeier

St. Louis, Missouri rapper Nelly (of the St. Lunatics clique) dominated MTV and radio in late 2000 with his debut COUNTRY GRAMMAR, which featured irresistible hooks, a danceable tempo, newly styled bounce beats different from the New Orleans-based No Limit output, and, perhaps most importantly, Nelly's own photogenic, confident appeal. Pushing a party atmosphere is nothing new in commercial hip-hop, but Nelly delivered the product with country twang-inflected lyrics full of St. Louis regionalisms, hence "country grammar." The distinctive MC would prove no flash in the pan, notching top-selling albums and radio hits (most notably, the club banger "Hot in Herre") throughout the '00s.

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