The Pharcyde

An undisputed classic, the Pharcyde's '92 debut instantly established them as champions of off-center hip-hop. Loopy, neck-bending production backs their free-flowing, smart aleck rhyme attacks, mixed with smooth harmonies and Funk-filled beats. Jam-packed with timeless hits, including "Passin' Me By," "Otha Fish," and "Ya Mama."

Straight and bent, hard and squishy -- these are rap's polar opposites. Onyx want to jump
your mother; the Pharcyde want to break you up. Both succeed big time. "Bacdafucup"
and "Getdafucout" bookend Onyx's debut; the raps in between stalk that inch-wide
thematic turf of threat, bluster and strut. "Slam," "Blac Vagina Finda," "Da Mad Face Invasion"
-- you get the picture. Four baldheads from Queens, N.Y., with Jam Master Jay o... More >

Surrealism in African American life, middle-class cutup division ("Ya Mama," "If I Were President," "It's Jiggaboo Time") (Grade - ***)