Large Professor - The LP

Save for the mighty Lord Finesse and Joell Ortiz, there are few, save for Sean Price that can do no wrong as JS-NYC HQ. Large Professor is another of the lucky few that make the cut. He's maintained a steady profile, if unobtrusive profile in contemporary hip-hop. Coming up in the classic Main Source, he was the main MC and significant production player on the seminal Breaking Atoms, a record that also introduced Nas, Akinyele and Joe Fatal to the world via Live At The Barbecue. Large Pro made a big enough impression that it was more Main Source's loss than anyone when he bailed over money and creative issues soon after the albums release.

Production dollars kept the lights on, but Xtra P's solo career was somewhat less auspicious. Despite producing any number of hits for heavyweights like Nas and Busta Rhymes, neither Matador nor Geffen could do much with Large Professor solo records. The LP was initially recorded for Geffen, but shelved after the lead singles Mad Scientist and IJUSTWANNACHILL didn't perform to suit Geffen suit standards. When he eventually dropped 1st Class on Matador a bit later, promo copies were allegedly given away when ordered through the Matador web engine. I got a copy through less than legal means and really enjoyed it, despite the fact that I couldn't really see the radio of the early 2000s playing anything, save for perhaps the Nas collabo. Not that 1st Class terrorized the airwaves or the charts, but in neither incarnation was the product anything less than Grade A hip-hop. Now that The LP is finally seeing an official release via Xtra P's Paul Sea records, new jacks should do the stanky leg over to the nearest purveyor and snap this up stat. Most, if not all of The LP is better than anything I've heard on Hot 97 or public access recently (that isn't the new Boot Camp roster, the aforementioned MCs and/or Slaughterhouse) . The aforementioned Nas collabo, One Plus One is straight fire and even the non LP helmed tracks like Large Pro:Verbs are strong as hell. Trust me, if you like real hip-hop, you want The LP.

R