Notes & Personnel Info |  | Personnel: E-40; Fabolous, Federation, K-CI, Lil' Mo, Mac Shon, Rankin' Scroo, Suga T, B-Legit, Too $hort, Cotton Mouf, Bone Crusher. | | E-40 is a rapper who was long overdue for a best-of collection, which finally came in 2004 when Jive released Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow. The Bay Area eccentric debuted his tongue-twisting style for Jive back in 1994 with the Mail Man EP, so this collection spans an entire decade -- and a busy one at that, given that E-40 put out roughly an album a year over that span. He didn't score many genuine hits over those years, as only a few of his singles broke into the Billboard Hot 100, but his fresh style did influence a legion of rappers who began to emulate his slangtastic rhyming style. So, given E-40's lack of hits, Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow is somewhat of a grab bag. Some of the tracks are clear career highlights: "Carlos Rossi," "Captain Save a Hoe," "Rapper's Ball," "Zoom," and "Automatic" in particular. Others are excellent and exemplary if somewhat unexceptional, likewise the few previously released inclusions that close the compilation. Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow unfortunately misses a number of seemingly obvious highlights, for example the Nate Dogg gem "Nah Nah" from Loyalty & Betrayal or his most-recent single, "Quarterbackin'." There's an emphasis on E-40's early, less-heard albums, which means some may quibble also about the lack of latter-day inclusions. That's all to be expected, of course, for the only way this best-of could be definitive would be if it were a double-disc collection (and even then it'd a bit short of definitive given E-40's especially deep canon and generally consistent level of quality, not to mention his innumerable guest appearances elsewhere). Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow is excellent for what it is, however: a single-disc sampler of E-40's long, influential decade with Jive that rounds up some of his most obvious highlights in the process and leaves others for later discovery. ~ Jason Birchmeier | | While he may never be a household name, Oakland, California's idiosyncratic E-40 has done more than many rappers to warrant a greatest-hits collection. He earned his reputation on the Southern California mixtape market prior to scoring a surprise minor hit in 1994 with "Captain Save a Hoe" off of his first major release. Although he never matched that success, E-40 released nearly an album a year after that, and garnered regional stardom in both California and the Dirty South. A master of slang with a truly unique vocal delivery (a sort of Southern drawl that reinvents words as he speaks them), E-40 is well represented on this 2004 compilation. | | THE BEST OF E-40: YESTERDAY, TODAY & TOMORROW expertly offers an overview of the underrated rapper's career. His greatest skill lies in laid-back, smooth-but-funky R&B made distinctive by his wandering voice, best evidenced on the singles "Rapper's Ball" and "Sprinkle Me." Other highlights include the funky "Da Bumble" and the fierce "Automatic" (with Fabolous). E-40 also adds to his legacy with a new track, the requisitely catchy and clever "Thick & Thin." |
Producer: Studio Ton; E-40; Sam Bostic; Rick Rock; Avery Johnson; Chaz Harper (Compilation) |
Musical Guests | | B-Legit | | Too Short | | K-CI | | Bonecrusher |
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