Various Artists - Wild Style

Seminal hip-hop soundtrack!

Animal Records — founded by Chris Stein of Blondie fame — only ever released two albums in its brief early-'80s history. Wild Style remains the most seminal soundtrack in hip-hop history, a snapshot of the scene as it evolved from the streets to the recording studio. But it's not just a vital document, it's also a damn good listen.

The lineup is a who's who of those who stood out from hip-hop's nascent block party days. The Double Trouble pairing of Rodney Cee and KK Rockwell, The Chief Rocker himself, Busy Bee, the mighty line-ups of both The Cold Crush Brothers and The Fantastic Freaks. The music captures the free-form, roaming nature of the film — it's rough at the edges, it's occasionally amateurish, but it's completely, utterly glorious.

The original Animal tracklisting, of which this is a reissue, is full of recurring sounds and motifs, all of them co-produced by Chris Stein and Fab Five Freddy, stepping away from breakbeats to produce a sound that reminds you of them, while being totally unique. The epic drums are courtesy of Lenny "Ferrari" Ferraro, a Vietnam vet and punk drummer whose career spanned stints backing Aretha Franklin and Lou Reed.

Over time, those sounds — the Charlie Chase and Grand Wizard Theodore scratches, the indelible lyrics — have become hip-hop touchstones, endlessly sampled and referenced, the bedrock of so much music to follow. That's because the soundtrack perfectly encapsulated the essence of the film, the scene and hip-hop's emergence from The Bronx to the attention of the wider world. Presented in this reissue with the original artwork, it remains the blueprint.

 

Side A

1. Wild Style Theme Rap 1 - Grandmaster Caz & Chris Stein

2. MC Battle - Busy Bee vs Rodney Cee & Grand Wizard Theodore

3. Basketball Throwdown - Cold Crush Brothers vs Fantastic Freaks

4. Fantastic Freaks At The Dixie - Kevie Kev (Waterbed Kev), Master Rob, Prince Whipper Whip, Rubie Dee, Dota Rock, Grand Wizard Theodore & Kevie Kev Rockwell

5. Cut-Scratch Mix - Grand Wizard Theodore & Kevie Kev Rockwell

6. Crush Bros At The Dixie - Grandmaster Caz, JDL, Easy Ad, KG, Charlie Chase & DJ Toney Tone

Side B

1. Stoop Rap - Double Trouble, Rodney Cee & Kevie Kev Rockwell

2. Double Trouble At The Amphitheatre - Rodney Cee, Kevie Kev Rockwell, DJ Stevie Steve

3. Wild Style Subway Rap 2 - Grandmaster Caz & Chris Stein

4. At The Amphitheatre - Busy Bee & DJ AJ

5. Gangbusters Scratch Mix - Grand Wizard Theodore & Kevie Kev Rockwell

6. At The Amphitheatre - Rammellzee, Shockdell & The Grand Mixer DST

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