''Ego Trip's The Big Playback'' is a 2000 compilation album released by the American record label

Rawkus Records Rawkus Records was an American hip hop record label known for starting the careers of many rappers. Rawkus started in 1995 with releases in hip-hop, drum and bass and fun-dustrial (Dystopia One). Label heads Brian Brater and Jarret Myer then s ...

on April 11, 2000. The album was released with the collaboration of the writers for '' Ego Trip'' magazine and made as a companion piece for ''Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists''. The album consists of rare and obscure tracks by hip hop artists and groups made between 1983 and 1989.

Composition and release

The album was released with the collaboration of the writers for '' Ego Trip'' magazine and made as a companion piece for ''Ego Trip's Book of Rap Lists''. The album consists of rare and obscure tracks from hip hop artists and groups originally released between 1983 and 1989 with many tracks that had previously not been released on compact disc. Many of the tracks have been described historically important with many tracks being sampled by more famous hip hop artists on tracks like "Holy War (Live)" by Divine Force (used by

DJ Premier Christopher Edward Martin (born March 21, 1966), known professionally as DJ Premier (also known as Preemo), is an American record producer and DJ. He is considered one of the greatest hip hop producers of all time. He was half of the hip hop duo ...

on a

Jeru the Damaja Kendrick Jeru Davis (born February 14, 1972), known as Jeru the Damaja, is an American rapper and record producer. He is known for his 1993 single " Come Clean" from his debut album, ''The Sun Rises in the East'', ranked as one of the 100 great ...

song) and "Get Retarded" by MC EZ & Troup (used by

Dr. Dre Andre Romelle Young (born February 18, 1965), known professionally as Dr. Dre, is an American rapper and record producer. He is the founder and CEO of Aftermath Entertainment and Beats Electronics, and previously co-founded, co-owned, and ...

on "

Zoom Zoom may refer to: Technology Computing * Zoom (software), videoconferencing application * Page zooming, the ability to magnify or shrink a portion of a page on a computer display * Zooming user interface, a graphical interface allowing for image ...

" from the ''Bulworth'' soundtrack). ''Ego Trip's The Big Playback'' was released by

on April 11, 2000. The album was released on vinyl, cassette and compact disc.

Reception

From contemporary reviews,

Nathan Rabin Nathan Rabin (; born April 24, 1976) is an American film and music critic. Rabin was the first head writer for '' The A.V. Club'', a position he held until he left the ''Onion'' organization in 2013.

of ''

The A.V. Club ''The A.V. Club'' is an American online newspaper and entertainment website featuring reviews, interviews, and other articles that examine films, music, television, books, games, and other elements of pop-culture media. ''The A.V. Club'' was cre ...

'' noted that the album "offers ample evidence that there's more to '80s hip-hop than you'll find on most old-school compilations. Perhaps the old school's greatest virtue was its artistic freedom: Unencumbered by convention, hip-hop's pioneers made up the rules as they went along, giving their music an unpredictable, exuberant, spontaneous quality that ''The Big Playback'' captures for posterity.

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databas ...

gave the album four and a half stars as "required listening for readers of the book" and "Even for fans who aren't interested in a book of rap lists, ''Ego Trip's The Big Playback'' is a stellar compilation".

Sasha Frere-Jones Alexander Roger Wallace "Sasha" Frere-Jones (né Jones; born 1967) is an American writer, music critic, and musician. He has written for ''Pretty Decorating'', '' ego trip'', ''Hit It And Quit It'', ''Mean'', '' Slant'', ''The New York Post'', '' ...

of ''

Spin Spin or spinning most often refers to: * Spinning (textiles), the creation of yarn or thread by twisting fibers together, traditionally by hand spinning * Spin, the rotation of an object around a central axis * Spin (propaganda), an intentionally b ...

'' noted that "as the organising principle is rarity, not quality" and the tracks by Lord Shafiyq and MC Mitchski will "only be manna for ageing B-boys." but that overall praised the album, stating that it was "proof that the current indie boom isn't the first time hip-hop was local, weird or free."

Track listing

Credits adapted from the liner notes of the album. # Divine Force – "Holy War (Live)" (Sir Ibu) # Lord Shaifiyq – "My Mic is on Fire" (G. Parks) #

Marley Marl Marlon Williams (born September 30, 1962), better known by his stage name Marley Marl, is an American DJ, record producer, rapper and record label founder, primarily operating in hip hop music. Marlon grew up in Queensbridge housing projects ...

featuring

MC Shan Shawn Moltke (born September 6, 1965) better known by his stage name MC Shan, is an American hip hop and R&B recording artist. He is best known for his song "The Bridge" produced by Marley Marl, and for collaborating with Snow on " Informe ...

– "Marley Marl Scratch" (M. Williams, S. Moltke) # MC EZ & Troup – "Get Retarded" ( C. Mack) # Grandmaster Caz – "Get Down Grandmaster" (C. Fisher, C. Miller) #

Positive K Positive K (sometimes stylized as +K) (born Darryl Gibson on August 9, 1967) is an American MC and songwriter from the Bronx, New York City, New York, and one of the original artists of the First Priority Music camp. He is best known for his hi ...

– Step Up Front (D. Gibson) # Latee – "This Cut's Got Flavor" (D. French, M. James) # The Bizzie Boyz – "Droppin' It" (D. Mitchell, A. Heard, D. Willis) # Ultimate Force – "I'm Not Playing" (J. Kirkland, R. Raymon) # The Alliance – "Do It! Do It!" (F. Byrd) # MC Mitchski – "Brooklyn Blew Up the Bridge" (M. Dudley, J. Dudley) # Rammelzee vs. K-Rob – "

Beat Bop "Beat Bop" is a song by American hip-hop artists Rammellzee and K-Rob. It was produced and arranged by Jean-Michel Basquiat. Initially, it was made as a test pressing by Tartown Inc. in 1983. In 1983, the song was released as a single by Profile ...

" (S. Bunch, A. Diaz, M. Johnson, S. Piccarello)

References

{{Rawkus Records 2000 compilation albums Rawkus Records compilation albums Hip hop compilation albums