After being taken under the wing of the legendary DJ Jazzy Jay, Diamond D's talent for deejaying and incredible ear for rhythms and melody quickly made him a highly sought after producer. Although his formal debut "I'm Not Playin'" with MC partner Master Rob as part of the group Ultimate Force was completed (and was a dope LP at that) it was as a solo artist and producer for hire that Diamond D would make waves in the hip-hop world from 1990 and onward. Although he does get his due props, I still think he's a bit underrated compared to those I consider his musical peers like DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Large Professor, Marley Marl, RZA, etc. I'm not saying that he's neccesarily better than those legends, but to me he is on the same level, hence the title of this compilation. He has often dared venturing out to experiment with sounds and styles, and was one of the first producers to cross the borders and produce popular cats from the East, the West and the South. Due to his versatility not every production of his hits the bullseye but his deep catalouge packs enough heat to forever give him a place amongst the true greats.
As you should know Joseph Kirkland (a.k.a. Diamond D) just released his fifth album under his own name - "The Diam Piece", a true return to form after the somewhat lackluster "Huge Hefner Chronicles" (2008) and "Grown Man Talk" (2003). He recently revealed that he took about two years to complete the album, really putting in some hard work, but at the same time he also produced the entirety of Southern monster spitter BIGREC's "DoomsDay" album and laced several loose joints. With two Diamond produced albums hitting stores this year I figured it was the perfect to drop a new compilation on y'all. "Still Top 5" bridges the gap between "The Huge Hefner Chronicles" and "The Diam Piece" as it features the majority of Diamond's productions between 2009 and 2014. 60 minutes of pure Diggin' in the Crates funk with emcees like Sadat X, AG, Pharoahe Monch, RA The Rugged Man, Beneficence, J-Live, Dilated Peoples, Raekwon, Torae, Fat Joe, and many more. This is not something you want to sleep on, rather press play and TURN IT UP!! Also be sure to support Diamond D and D.I.T.C.'s movement by copping "The Diam Piece", BIGREC's "DoomsDay" and D.I.T.C.'s "The Remix Project".
01. "Time is Now" (w. AG & Sadat X)
02. I Get Down" (w. Collective Efforts)
02. "Changes" (w. Torae)
04. "Heavyhitters" (w. Beneficence)
05. "Boyz II Men" [Remix] (w. Blu Ft. Nitty Scott MC)
06. "Think About It" (w. Freestyle Professors)
07. "Magic (Like That)" (w. Kurious & AG)
08. "Take Japan" (w. Dillon)
09. "Deflate Cha" (performed by Diamond D)
10. "The Cypher" (w. Fat Joe)
11. "Shine" (w. Pharoahe Monch & Mela Machinko)
12. "No Time to Waste" (w. J-Live)
13. "The Heater" (w. Raekwon, Kaimbr & Hasaan Mackey)
14. "In Da Jungle" (w. Sadat X, AG & Twan)
15. "Treasures Untold" (w. Beneficence & Diamond D)
16. "Internationally Known" [Remix] (w. OC, Fat Joe & Big L)
17. "The Dumb Out" (w. BIGREC & R.A. The Diamond Mine)
18. "Let Your Thoughts Fly Away" (w. Dilated Peoples)
19. "A Moment of Silence For Big L"
20. "Snakeman Flow" (w. Rhyme Boya, Hunger, Gooci & 晋平太) [*]
No comments:
Post a Comment