FEATURE:
As the Rhymes Go On…
Paid in Full: Eric B. & Rakim’s Masterpiece at Thirty-Five
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I know there is great debate…
IN THIS PHOTO: Eric B. (front) and Rakim in November 1987./PHOTO CREDIT: David Corio/Redferns
debate when it comes to deciding when the golden age of Hip-Hop started. Some say that it was around 1987. I would argue in support of that. One reason why I say that is one of the most influential and important Hip-Hop albums ever was released in 1987. In fact, on 7th July, we mark thirty-five years of Eric B. & Rakim’s Paid in Full. Recording at producer Marley Marl's home studio and Power Play Studios in New York City, their masterpiece got to number fifty-eight on the Billboard 200 chart and number eight on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. Inspiring a legion of future rappers, Paid in Full is viewed as the ultimate album of Hip-Hop’s golden age. It is amazing to think that Paid in Full came was recorded in seven days! Eric B. & Rakim claim to have worked forty-eight-hour shifts and recorded in single takes in order to get the work completed within budget. An astonishing album considering the budget and time limits, we will be remembering and talking about Paid in Full decades from now! Featuring classics like Eric B. Is President, I Ain’t No Joke and Paid in Full, this essential and groundbreaking album is one that will continue to inspire artists. I want to finish with a couple of reviews. First, Classic Hip Hop Magazine wrote about the story behind Paid in Full back in 2018:
“Eric B. & Rakim's debut album was released (July 7) in the summer of 1987 about a year after the group was formed when Eric B., who was a DJ at WBLS in NYC, began looking for rappers to work with. He then met a promoter who suggested he work with a guy named Freddie Foxxx from the Paid In Full Posse. Freddie Foxxx was based in Long Island and soon they went out to see him, but when they arrived at his house, he wasn't there! So the promoter suggested they go see another Long Island MC named Rakim. As history goes, Rakim was home that day! They began their collaboration immediately, and Eric B. borrowed some records from Rakim's brother and they headed down to the basement to begin creating their first track. Rakim opened a beer and just kicked backed while Eric. B started the process setting up his equipment and finding the records to sample. After setting up his gear and listening to the records he borrowed from Rakim's brother he settled on Fonda Rae's 'Over Like A Fat Rat'. When he told Rakim "This is the bassline I'm going to use for the record", Rakim couldn't control his laughter and sprayed beer all over the wall when he burst out laughing! Rakim thought it was the funniest thing ever and Eric B. replied, "Just like you laughing now you going to be laughing all the way to the bank and be a millionaire one day because of this record."
After that initial meeting they decided to record together, then Eric B. took the Fonda Rae record over to Marley Marl's house and began work on their first single 'Eric B. Is President'. The reason Eric B. needed Marley Marl to help out was because Eric B. couldn't really use the equipment needed to record the record. After the release of the 'Eric B. Is President' single, they went into Power Play Studios in New York City to record their debut record which became the now legendary and classic record we all know as 'Paid In Full'. The album was done in a mad hurry and was entirely done in about one weeks time. The process was, go into the studio, lay down the beat and write the rhymes in about an hour, and then go into the booth and read the lyrics off the paper, and that would be one song in the box. This way of recording lead to Rakim's biggest critique of the album:
On my first album I was inexperienced. I used to write my rhymes in the studio and go right into the booth and read them. When I hear my first album today I hear myself reading my rhymes but I’m my worst critic.
One of the reasons that some of the raps on Paid In Full are so short, and that the album contains three instrumentals, is because the time for recording was so short. But still, when the record came out in the summer of 1987 it left a mushroom cloud over the rap scene. It was captivating, innovative and instantly influential. Rakim's flow was in stark contrast to most other MCs at the time who would grab the mic with reckless abandon and bring a high amount of energy to their performance. Rakim took a methodical approach which was slow, mesmerizing, yet very blunt with every line leaving a massive impact on the listener. And despite Eric B.'s lack of technical knowledge he had an ear for picking out loops and samples drenched in soul and turned out to be a trailblazer in the coming years”.
Before concluding with a review from AllMusic, Albumism told the story of Paid in Full on its thirtieth anniversary in 2017. It is clear, when reading what people have written about it, that Paid in Full has a fascinating story, wonderful tracks and a vital legacy:
“Paid in Full begins with “I Ain’t No Joke,” the album’s second single and the first song that Rakim wrote after he and Eric B. decided to record an album. It’s the sparsest song on the album, with Rakim delivering three verses over just Eric B.’s scratching of the opening horn riff from the JB’s “Pass the Peas” and a drum track programmed by their engineer Patrick Adams. Though the lyrics are viewed as “battle raps,” they flow and interconnect together to create their own unique narrative: “Write a rhyme in graffiti in every show you see me in / Deep concentration cause I’m no comedian / Jokers are wild if you wanna be tamed / I treat you like a child then you’re gonna be named / Another enemy, not even a friend of me / ‘Cause you’ll get fried in the end when you pretend to be / Competing cause I just put your mind on pause / And I can beat you when you compare my rhyme with yours / I wake you up and as I stare in your face you seem stunned / Remember me, the one you got your idea from?”
“I Know You Got Soul” is one of the best lyrical hip-hop tracks that’s easy to dance to. Rakim conducts a four-verse lyrical clinic on rocking the stage and keeping control of the crowd over one of the first James Brown-affiliated samples, Bobby Byrd’s song of the same name, and the drum break to Funkadelic’s “You’ll Like It Too.” The song contains some of Rakim’s best-known quotables, but the song really shines as he describes his process in getting ready to seize control of the live crowd, allowing the lesser-skilled to make their moves before he pounces into attack mode: “Picture a mic; the stage is empty / A beat like this might tempt me / To pose, show my rings and my fat gold chain / Grab the mic like I’m on Soul Train / But I wait cause I mastered this / Let the others go first so the brothers don't miss.”
“Move the Crowd,” the album’s fourth single, is a two-verse dissertation about the importance of connecting with the audience and honing your lyrical craft. The beat was created by Rakim’s brother Ronnie and Steve, with the two replaying the piano from Return to Forever’s “Flight of the Newborn” and the JB’s “Hot Pants Road.” During his first verse, Rakim details his own thought process in putting raps together, before conveying his disgust towards other MCs lackluster rhyme-writing abilities: “Some of you been trying to write rhymes for years/ But weak ideas irritate my ears/ Is this the best that you can make? / ’Cause if not and you got more, I’ll wait.” With his second verse, he marvels at the power of his lyrics and their ability to completely capture the imagination of the audience: “I'm the intelligent wise on the mic I will rise/ Right in front of your eyes cause I am a surprise.”
“As the Rhyme Goes On” is probably the least acknowledged track on Paid in Full, which is a shame, because it features one of Rakim’s best lyrical performances. He delivers one lengthy verse, maintaining a smooth flow while still delivering rhymes at high speed over a replaying of Barry White’s “I’m Going to Love You Just a Little More Baby.” Rakim was also one of the first emcees to really play with the tempo of his lyrics, rapping faster over slower tracks, packing in as many words and syllables into each measure as possible. Here, again, each bar interlocks with the one that preceded it, creating an intricate web of lyrics: “If you just keep kicking, listen to the mix and / Think you’ll sink into the rhyme like quicksand / Holds and controls you ’til I leave / You fall deeper in the style; it’s hard to breathe / The only time I stop is when somebody drop and then / Bring ’em to the front ‘cause my rhymes the oxygen / Then wave your hands, when you’re ready I’ll send you / Into your favorite dance so let the rhyme continue.”
The album’s weakest moments are the instrumental cuts. The album features two different DJ tracks, “Eric B. is on the Cut” and “Chinese Arithmetic.” Neither arrangement is particularly interesting, because, to put it bluntly, Eric B.’s scratches are not particularly that good. But these are just minor speed bumps on an album with seven flawless songs.
The album’s title track is another great achievement in hip-hop history. Over the bassline from Dennis Edwards’ “Don’t Look Any Further” and the drum break from The Soul Searchers’ “Ashley’s Roachclip,” Rakim delivers an absolutely perfect verse; arguably the best verse ever recorded in hip-hop history. In 24 bars, Rakim flawlessly describes his inner turmoil as he thinks of a master plan, trying to formulate the correct way to put money in his lint-filled pockets, knowing how easy it would be to go the illegal route: “I need money, I used to be a stick-up kid / So I think of all the devious things I did / I used to roll up, this is a hold-up / Ain’t nothing funny /Stop smiling, be still, don’t nothing move but the money / But now I learned to earn cause I’m righteous / I feel great so maybe I might just / Search for a 9 to 5 / If I strive, then maybe I’ll stay alive.” But in the end, he opts for the studio rather than the street corner, focusing his mind toward getting paid through music.
Rakim has said that he originally wanted to write a second verse for the song, but Eric B. dissuaded him, telling him, “You said it all right there.” And Eric B. was right: the one verse captured everything that needed to be said. Shortly after the album’s release, the song was remixed by British electronic duo Coldcut. The “7 Minutes of Madness” mix was released and became a sizable dancefloor hit in the U.S. and especially in Europe.
Albums like Paid in Full helped give birth to modern hip-hop lyricism. Even with all the rhymes Rakim devoted to moving crowds and keeping the dancefloor packed, Paid in Full helped create the “beats and lyrics” approach to hip-hop music. Rakim was one of the first hip-hop artists whose creations were not designed as singles or club hits, as his lyricism existed for its own sake.
In the 30 years since the release of Paid in Full, Rakim has become a hip-hop immortal. This album was the beginning of a legendary four-album run that saw him and Eric B. craft some of the strongest albums of all time, while solidifying a legacy carved in stone. The styles that Rakim exhibited on Paid in Full have been mimicked countless times and continue to influence emcees three decades later, with the songs continuing to serve as a reference point for every artist that creates hip-hop music. That’s a great legacy to own”.
As mentioned, I am going to finish with a review from AllMusic. They are among the masses who have provided the iconic and legendary Paid in Full with an incredibly positive review. Everyone needs to hear Eric B. & Rakim’s 1987 debut:
“One of the most influential rap albums of all time, Eric B. & Rakim's Paid in Full only continues to grow in stature as the record that ushered in hip-hop's modern era. The stripped-down production might seem a little bare to modern ears, but Rakim's technique on the mic still sounds utterly contemporary, even state-of-the-art -- and that from a record released in 1987, just one year after Run-D.M.C. hit the mainstream. Rakim basically invents modern lyrical technique over the course of Paid in Full, with his complex internal rhymes, literate imagery, velvet-smooth flow, and unpredictable, off-the-beat rhythms. The key cuts here are some of the most legendary rap singles ever released, starting with the duo's debut sides, "Eric B. Is President" and "My Melody." "I Know You Got Soul" single-handedly kicked off hip-hop's infatuation with James Brown samples, and Eric B. & Rakim topped it with the similarly inclined "I Ain't No Joke," a stunning display of lyrical virtuosity. The title cut, meanwhile, planted the seeds of hip-hop's material obsessions over a monumental beat. There are also three DJ showcases for Eric B., who like Rakim was among the technical leaders in his field. If sampling is the sincerest form of admiration in hip-hop, Paid in Full is positively worshipped. Just to name a few: Rakim's tossed-off "pump up the volume," from "I Know You Got Soul," became the basis for M/A/R/R/S' groundbreaking dance track; Eminem, a devoted Rakim student, lifted lines from "As the Rhyme Goes On" for the chorus of his own "The Way I Am"; and the percussion track of "Paid in Full" has been sampled so many times it's almost impossible to believe it had a point of origin. Paid in Full is essential listening for anyone even remotely interested in the basic musical foundations of hip-hop -- this is the form in its purest essence”.
Perhaps the first classic from the golden age of Hip-Hop, 7th July sees Eric B. & Rakim’s Paid in Full turning thirty-five. You can listen to it now and it seems so alive and fresh! It was pioneering back in 1987, yet it has not aged. It is such an important album, I know a lot of people will write about it this week. If you have not heard Paid in Full – or have not heard it in a while – then make sure that you…
CHECK it out.