You know, not so much very recently, but over the last 2 or 3 months, this album has been in and out of the car stereo regularly. The weather has been nice and sunny, and there aren't too many albums that are better used as a backdrop to cruise around in these conditions. So i already knew this album pretty well, but i still gave it a couple more listens through today, since i didn't have school and had a few hours to kill.
Death Certificate is one of the greatest, if not THE greatest, hip hop album/s ever. Ice Cube in 1990-92 was the dopest rapper on the planet, bar none, and this album fell right in the middle of this period. You can argue all day if this album is better than AmeriKKKa's Most Wanted or vice versa - from what i've heard and seen, people are generally equally divided in their opinion on which is better - but no-one can say that this album isn't one of the most powerful, most complete, most influential, most controversial, most well-known albums in hip hop history.
Death Certificate is a more personal album compared to his debut (solo). The beats were fresh and funky, and more west-coast oriented due to the lack of The Bomb Squad (PE's prod. crew) who were heavily present on AMW. It is also one of the last great west coast albums with production that WASN'T trying to be g-funk, because we all know what happened a year later - The Chronic dropped and rocked the hip hop world.
The lyrics, as i say, were slightly more personal. Cube was still as angry as ever, but he was making whole songs relating to particular issues which affected him daily. That's the other thing about this album. I mean, i see people all the time saying that one of the reasons why 2Pac was such a good rapper, and MATW was such a good album, was because he covered so many different issues. Shit, every single song on Death Certificate has a different concept or covers a different issue. It's not just Cube shit-talking anymore. He's still pissing everyone off, but he's also letting everyone know why he's angry, and what he thinks should be done about it. No doubt, you all would've heard rappers say before that they're "just telling it like it is" or that they're "like a news reporter for the streets" or something to that effect. That "news reporter" comparison has never applied more accurately to Cube on Death Certificate.
The concept album starts with the Death Side, a more hard hitting, "brutal" sound, while the second half of the album, the Life Side is (i guess) supposed to be slightly more uplifting. Cube explains this, though, in the intro track:
"Niggas are in a state of emergency.
The Death Side: a mirror image of where we are today.
The Life Side: a vision of where we need to go.
So sign your Death Certificate."
Dope intro.
I'm not gonna go through every song because this is already starting to sound like a review, which i don't want it to, but Cube does say some really dope shit throughout..
One of my favorite songs is "My Summer Vacation", where Cube talks about the LA gang expansion in to other major cities across the US..
"Police looking at niggaz through a microscope
In L.A. everybody and they momma sell dope
They trying to stop it
So what the fuck can I do to make a profit?
Catch a flight to St. Louis"
.. until others catch on to what's gong on..
"BOOM, my homie got shot he's a goner black
St. Louis niggaz want they corner back"
I like when on "Steady Mobbin'", he says this:
"Rather be judged by twelve than carried by six"
"A Bird in the Hand" is another of my favorites on the album.. the whole song is a quotable, but i especially like this part:
"I didn't have no money so now I have to hunch the
Back like a slave, thats what be happenin
but whitey says there's no room for the African
Always knew that I would boycott, jeez
but welcome to McDonalds can I take your order please
Gotta sell ya food that might give you cancer
cuz my baby doesn't take no for an answer
Now I pay taxes that you never give me back
what about diapers, bottles, and similac
Do I gotta go sell me a whole lotta crack
for decent shelter and clothes on my back?
Or should I just wait for help from Bush
or Jesse Jackson, and operation Push
If you ask me the whole thing needs a douche"
By far, though, my most favorite song on the album is "Doin' Dumb Shit". It's also probably the happiest song, with Cube reminiscing about his childhood. Each of the 3 verses is set at a different period in his childhood, in chronological order. The second verse is the best, when he's...
"Thirteen, that's how old I was
When my jimmy started getting a little peach fuzz
And I was looking at any butt and ass
Me and my homies started cutting class
Going up to the high school
Looking for any bitch I could lie to
Tell em I was older than I really was
Smoked my first joint and got really buzzed"
The next track, simply titled "Us", is the perfect end to the life side of the album. For the first time, Cube takes a different stance and basically says "a lot of the shit we go through is our own fault aswell" and goes on to list some of the reasons why, such as black on black violence, jealousy/envy within the black community, selling drugs to eachother, etc.
As i said, "No Vaseline" sounds out of place after the above finale, and in my opinon, it should've been either listed as a bonus cut or left off the album. It's still the most brutal and embarassing diss track ever, though.
Impact/influence:
I am convinced that this album is one of the most influential of all time and has also had one of the biggest impacts. I have seen it labelled as the soundtrack to the 1992 LA riots. I have also seen attempts to somewhat re-create this album and it's music many times. As roaches said with Eminem, early 2Pac albums, Kam, WC obviously, Coolio, Ahmad, Scarface, Above The Law, Kid Frost, CMW, etc.
Issues:
Racism:
I've seen so much written about the "racism" on this album. I can honestly say the only time i was even CLOSE to be offended was on "Horny Lil' Devil", and even then i see it as just music. Ice Cube is angry, yeah, but he's angry at everyone, even his own race (see: "Us"). Angry? without a doubt. Profanic(?)? yes. Loud? no doubt. Racist? hmmm.. there's a very, very slight possibility that he's truely racist. But at least he's not closet, at least he gives reasons, and at least he's not afraid to do a 180 and accuse his own race.
I'll leave it at this so other people can have a go, but i might be back with more shit.
. I cant remember why but it never made my collection (I do have Predator and Lethal Injection on CD and Kill At Will on tape and MP3).
