By shelz.

It’s been 10 years since Dr. Dre has released a studio album and five years since he started working on the urban legend known as Detox.  Some fans have started to give up on the much ballyhooed release, even displaying bouts of anger as they wonder why Dre has left them hanging for so long on a seemingly broken promise. However, if you follow Dre’s path backwards, you will realize this was to be expected.  He’s only released two albums of his own and there was close to a decade between the two.  Considering he just started working on Detox in 2004, he has years to finish it before we should start worrying.  And when you think about the gangsta perfection that was The Chronic and 2001, maybe it’s wise that we don’t rush the rap maestro.

The release of Dre’s The Chronic in 1992 was a benchmark in rap’s production history.  The album established the G-Funk sound that permeated almost every mainstream album that originated west of the Mississippi.  It pushed California’s sound East and made them the reigning champs of the Hip-Hop community while transforming Snoop Dogg from “Deep Cover” feature artist to a star in his own right.

The 1999 release of 2001, Dre’s sequel to the seminal The Chronic, saw the G-Funk sound fading.  The spotlight was spread out across the map with the rise of Cash Money, Mos Def and Dre’s new lyrical charge, Marshall Matthers. Not content to re-vamp the original, Dre took 2001’s listeners on a new rap odyssey, adding strings, taking it easy on the funk interpolations and cranking up the hardcore for an even grittier lyrical presentation. But which is Dre’s best?

It’s generally accepted that The Chronic is one of the best produced albums of all time.  The murky, bottom heavy tracks provided the perfect pedestal for both Dre’s slow, halting delivery and the new found satin melodic smoothness of Snoop.  It was the best of sinister party music and Dre and company rolled slowly over the beats with harsh urban narratives told in inventive ways.  They almost made you feel like it would be okay that someone got smoked at Bey-Bey’s party as long as the host didn’t run out of gin and juice. The sexuality was no-nonsense, the drug references were not hidden in metaphor and it was about as raw as raw could get. The Chronic put a stamp on the West Coast that many believed would stand the test of forever.  Well, that was until Dre arguably bested his own work seven years later.

The Chronic also introduced us to the Lady of Rage, one of the fiercest femcees of all time, and the Dogg Pound, featuring Kurupt as dynamic lyricist, Dat N***a Daz as wisecracking Long Beach representer, the aggressively spooky RBX, and their lead, the aforementioned Snoop.  The Pound was menacing, yet playful and the Chronic, with all of its enticing melodies allowed their tales of sex, weed, and murder to sound much more palatable to mainstream outlets.

2001 came at a time when fans were rolling their eyes at Dre for absconding with their California fresh.  Then there were the suggestions from the nay-sayers that his best had already passed him and he was about to drop a dud, especially in light of the Aftermath Presents flop. He silenced the critics by crafting an album that is seen by some as his best effort to date.

It built on his previous work to show his growth as a producer.  There was still a whisper of the G-Funk but it was joined by a new set of elements that again turned beat making on its ear and created new trends for the rest of the world to follow.  The album started with THX’s movie intro “Deep Note” that has been used by everyone ad nauseum since then. The intro was fitting as Dre’s new fondness for menacing strings added a gloomy cinematic ambiance to his production. Heavy soul influences on the album were accompanied by the heavy bass lines. The lyrics pushed the envelope further than The Chronic as the songs reinforced the image of the West Coast gangsta as a pussy whipping, cap peeling, chronic smoking super thug.  The exaggeration was obvious but elevated the fabled West Coast bad boy to iconic status.  The cast of characters were also much different, as both Hitman and Eminem’s lyricism were decidedly less about fun and more filled with malice. Snoop had matured from gangster to player and was more in control of his flow. Less lyrical but more musically balanced as a presence.

Dr. Dre has produced across many eras from the electro funk of the World Class Wrecking Cru, to the drive-by music of NWA, to the mania that typifies Eminem, but The Chronic and 2001 are still hailed as his best work.  His decision to keep his greatest for personal use has served him well as these albums are two of the best releases the Hip-Hop nation has had the pleasure of getting smoked out to.  The questions remains, which one deserves the blue ribbon?  Speak on it.

The Chronic

 
2001