4. LL Cool J feat. Kandice Love

By now, this cat should call himself LLL Cool J: Legendary Ladies Love Cool James. As this James Todd Smith now enters the ninth round, and while spanning partners were gone as quickly as they came, Uncle L is still standing. It's as simple as that. Sure enough he caught some blows, sure enough the young dudes circled him, and L was stumbling around confused for a few moments, but in the end, he was the one laughing. So what the heck: call him the 'Greatest Of All Time'. Of course that's very arguable, but listening to this record right here, the greenhorns gotta step back for another minute and can't just yet take over the reign. It's as simple as that.

Check out the "Intro" to "G.O.A.T.". LL takes the "'97 Mentality" sample and flows over this in a straight spitting fashion. And while numbers don't always reflect the truth, they also often don't lie and as LL reminds us: "ten times platinum, your careers is looking critical". However, this short burst of straight ruggedness is neglected too fast, and so the haters get grip right from the second base. LL's second offering "Imagine That", that has him team up with the "Doin' It" Leshaun again, fails to recapture the magic of the first sexual offering by these two people. While LL still keeps it visual enough, the bubble gum beat will demand every backpacker to fast forward with a shiver racing down one's back, once reaching the button. But fortunately, this detour takes us back to what we can fully enjoy, as "Back Where I Belong" is building up slow, only to crush the contender with assembled force. This track has us listen to L meeting this young buck in the streets, and the buck asking him questions that L gladly answers. Most of those question center around the beef with Canibus, and L gives the 'Bus an extra lyrical beat down, as this is the officially released answer to the first round whup ass "The Rippers Strikes Back". Now of course the beat should have been as dope as on that other track, the Ja Rule hook could have been avoided, but LL's new disses come at a time when Canibus is still struggling to recreate anything continuos and as monstrous as his talent promised on so many freestyles, guest appearances and tracks. So this might even really hurt.

"LL Cool J" is hurting our ears though. The female on the hook is horrible, the beat is based around a drum hit, some horn, and all of that sounds warmed up and severely bad, and has to be one of DJ Scratch's worst offerings ever. On the lyrical tip, LL keeps it strictly bragging and boasting, and seasoned with his nowadays obligatory 'I'm a legend' claims. But LL is also the 'lip licking' Cool James, and he does that again on "Take It Off", that sounds like an amalgam of the "Jingling Baby Remix", "Phenomenon" and a third stereotypical club track. But these are the two faces of LL. We forget about that, as we laugh our ass off all the way through the "Skit", that gives us some 'yo mamma' snapping, with Meth having and providing the last laugh. Now, after "I Shot You", there had to be a track like that on every album. But maybe after the 'Bus disaster that "4, 3, 2, 1" started, LL thought it might be a good thing, stopping this tradition, as "Fuhgidabowdit" falls short or only comes close to be a posse cut like that: the beat is softy, and only Red, Meth, and DMX are contributing rhymes.

Okay, so after the album became somewhat suspicious, it's about time, that LL comes through again. And he does, as "Farmers" is a banger. Straight up, this is hot. It revisits the uptempo straight hard spitting flavor, that could have been featured on a "Walking With The Panther" or "Mama Said Knock You Out". This is just some vintage hip hop ish, that functions as a proof that L still remembers his roots. But as sudden as this album bursts of energy, the vulcano dies again with "This Is Us". With Carl Thomas providing the hook, this is a track for the females, that L sarcastically comments at the beginning of the track. And as a female mingling, cuddling cut, it works, with an okay hook, an interesting drum, and rhymes about the strife, trouble and tribulations of romance and love. But again this is followed by a track that takes this away from the mushy. This time it's the by Ty Fife tightly produced "Can't Think". And LL adds another level to "G.O.A.T.", with social comments and commentary, about the angst that too many people nowadays face. And this is told bold and right in your face, not even considering to be watered down by political correctness. This is dope.

However, the vibe switches again for a "Imagine That" Part 2, now called "Hello", as Amil plays the Leshaun part, with LL talking freakish. The beat on this is better though, as it got a certain musicality to it, and the hook got this 'summer' appeal. What leads up to the Kelly Price collaboration "You And Me", that's topic wise again circling around the chemical reaction between men and women. The beat on this goes the Disco route, what will please the club goers, but not the backpacker. "Homicide" should appeal to anyone with a brain though. LL spits a surprising chorus, when he goes "I don't mean this in a disrespectful way / but Colombine happens in the ghetto everyday / when the shit goes down / y'all got nothing to say". Again the social commentary is surprising for an entertainer that has a status to lose. Stepping further, another "I Shot Ya" contestant follows, and it features Xzibit, Snoop, Jayo Felony on "U Can't F**k With Me". And it's on this track that LL calls out Jamie Foxx. And so we progress to "Queens Is", a collaboration with Prodigy of Mobb Deep. The piano on this gives it a paranoid feel, while LL elaborates on a murderous foot, that does not suit him well. A technoid effect slices through "The G.O.A.T.", that bursts of energy during the chorus, as it contains some horde of people screaming and yelling. Unfortunately, this rowdiness is not featured throughout the whole song, what makes this a head nod through the verse, slam through the hook type track. "Ill Bomb" does work, with it's 70's Soul sample, with LL claiming that neither Def Jam nor Fubu would be where they are now. The next cut "M.I.S.S. I" should get some body parts of yours in motion, as this is some hum along tune, without being cheesy and finally "Shut 'Em Down" has LL spit with remarkable quickness, while this flow as well as the chorus style taste rather bitter, because of a 'heard before' resemblance, even though LL kicks it rather confident and appealing.

LL tried to cater to every possible audience with this album. And that has to piss each listener off on at least one third of the album. But there are tracks on here, that will appeal to a wide range of people, because some of this is straight up dope. And while L should get some slack for the 'Carlton Dance' on some tracks, he gets props for his honesty, and almost courage, being an artist, that still wants to remain in the mainstream, and still want to get invited to chill with the US president. For the old geezer he is now, he does still come mighty fresh, and unlike so many other veterans, LL does seem to again have found the old fire and hunger within him, and that makes this release another 'don't call it a comeback'.

the review has been written about the advanced tape. the tracklisting is according to the official european release. that's why there are differences between the one and the other.