Beginning with his 1987 single, "It's A Demo," and continuing with "Streets Of New York" and the two "Symphonies," Kool G Rap has built a strong following as one of New York's most respected underground MC's. But as dope as he is, he has never gotten his props on a national level. To fix that, he mixes the best of both worlds on his new joint. Live And Let Die has Kool grabbing a trunkfull of that West Coast funk, slowing down his rapid delivery (so the rest of the country can understand him) and once again coming through with an all-out "you do me wrong, you'll get fucked up with a quickness" vocal assault. As always, his rhymes are top notch. Peep a couple lines from the anti-fist, pro-gat "Go For Your Guns:" "You punk n!@@as better stop or chill / 'Cause my Glock can kill 20 motherf#ckers with boxing skills / That's how I put a n!@@a's head out / The murder scene needs more than Visine to get the red out." ... The rawness of this album got to be a little hot for Warner Bros., who broke north, forcing Cold Chillin' to distribute it themselves. Sir Jinx from the Lench Mob produced all but three of the cuts (Trackmasterz handled the others which are only available on CD and cassette), and successfully found a way to bridge Kool G's N.Y. stylee with the West Coast flava. Big Daddy Kane trades off the mad swift verses on "#1 With A Bullet" and Mr. Scarface, Bushwick Bill and Ice Cube join in to play like the Afrikan Corleone family on the superior "Two To The Head." Even Jinx gets into the act, with a cameo on the hilarious "Operation C.B. (Cock Block)." Different from his previous works and not quite as ground breaking as Road To Riches, Live And Let Die is a ruffneck album that, despite its harsh content, should finally take Kool G Rap & DJ Polo "above ground." - The Source, 3.5 Mics (February, 1993). Oh, and Happy Born Day, Kool G Rap!
The original 3.5 mics-review in The Source, February 1993.
