In Full Gear
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Description
The "original hip-hop band," in business since 1981, Stetsasonic featured rappers, a human beatbox, a keyboardist, a drummer, and a young producer named Prince Paul. The contemporary of It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back and the blueprint for Three Feet High and Rising, In Full Gear was Stetsasonic's full-fledged classic. As summarized in the sublime "Talking All That Jazz," the album was meant to be a musical manifesto of all of the directions late-'80s hip-hop was expanding toward: revolutionary spoken word, JBs tributes, soul jazz, go-go, R&B, dancehall, turntablism, instrumental hip-hop, rap rock, even Miami bass. Yes, they did it all, and they did most of it really well. Throughout the album, a sense of light-hearted vibes prevails, like a giddy summer concert in the park. Check out "Sally," "DBC Let the Music Play," and "Music for the Stetfully Insane" to work up a sweat. If you want to know where De La Soul came from, this is a good place to start. --Jeff Chang
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2 out of 2 people found the following review helpful:
Stetsasonic - In Full GearSunday, October 24, 2004
Stet Troop '88 and We're the Band are my twin faves here. After months of happy listening, I have decided that the twin live drums Stetsa used give all the tunes real oomph in the beats. Obviously, you can always use drum machines and turn them up loud, but this album demonstrates on track after track that nothing substitutes for the earthy sound of live drumming.
It's a happy record, an old-school record. It will get you moving.
1 out of 1 people found the following review helpful:
a dope old school albumWednesday, October 20, 2004
stetsasonic in full gear is there best album and its real hiphop,dopeshit
1 out of 2 people found the following review helpful:
whoever said hiphop was drum machine based b4 88 is....Sunday, November 30, 2003
a huge fukin idiot....STOP TALKIN ALL THAT JAZZ!!!!!
hiphop started from sampling records but when the labels started signin the very first hiphop acts (see sugar hill gang), the labels realized it would be easier and cheaper to use a band already signed to the label rather then also pay the djs...notice how theres no cuts on rappers delight??
stesasonic is mad ill, tho....he got that right. if you havent heard this ish and you like non-thuggish hiphop peep this...u wont be dissapointed
2 out of 3 people found the following review helpful:
...oh yeah...hip-hop block party music!!...Friday, December 14, 2001
...one of my favorite rap groups, they had many different voices, styles and attitudes and set the template for posse' groups like wu-tang, cash money and the roots...prince paul was beginning to feel his own on here and the entire group made a national name for themselves with this. stetsa epitomized the b-boy philosophy...they were straight up hip-hop and i wish more emcees fashioned themselves after them than what passes for being a microphone fiend today....
1 out of 1 people found the following review helpful:
GroundbreakingTuesday, March 06, 2001
This album smashed all stereotypes about rap when it came out in 1988. Beofore then, hip-hop's sound was very 808 drum machine based, mastered only by a few groups (Run-DMC comes to mind). But when the "In Full Gear" LP dropped. Just listen to the first two tracks. The opening song uses a dope sample that Public Enemy fans will recognize, and "Let the Music Play" flips a JB's loop that soars through the song.
But Stetsasonic did not limit themselves to innovative sampling: they were called "The Hip-Hop Band" for a reason. Check out the all-out classic "Talking All That Jazz" with the great bassline ans keyboards done by Wise. (As a bonus, this reissue throws in the fantastic "Dominoes" remix of "Talking All That Jazz" .) And don't sleep on my all-time favorite: "Step Troop '88!"
Pick up this reissue while you can. Make Prince Paul proud.