Richard "Slick Rick" Walters was born in Mitcham, London, to Jamaican parents. As a child, he was blinded in his right eye due to a broken glass. In 1976, the family moved to the USA, settling in the Bronx. After graduating in visual arts, he met Dana Dane with whom he formed the Kangol Crew. In 1984, the young man met Doug E. Fresh who included him in his group, the Get Fresh Crew, and the following year the crew released "The Show / La-Di-Da-Di" for Reality Records: the single achieved enormous success, but the B-side, performed entirely by Slick Rick aka MC Ricky D, became even more popular, launching his artistic career.
In 1986, MC Ricky D was strongly desired within the roster of Russell Simmons' Rush Artist Management and signed with Def Jam, the third artist ever to snatch a contract with the label that at the time was a leader in hip-hop. The boy, having changed his moniker to Slick Rick, immediately got to work to release his debut album.
Storytelling rap at its finest from one of its best performers: Slick Rick, with his typical English accent, creates a classic album, full of brilliant gems thanks to a rapping delivers in a formidable and absolutely dope way and to one of the best productions of the decade. There are Slick Rick himself, Jam Master Jay and The Bomb Squad (Eric Sadler & Hank Shocklee) behind the keyboards.
"La Di Da Di" is three years away, the name of the MC may have cooled in the meantime, instead he uses his past better than the other rappers of the moment and uses that cut to support practically half the album. The production, divided between Bomb Squad and Slick Rick himself, is exceptionally fresh, crisp and beautiful, composed of minimal and simple jazzy and funky rhythms supported by spectacular and formidable samples that the beatmakers have the opportunity to take from everyone ("Nautilus" by Bob James, The Soul Seachers, Ennio Morricone, "Walk on By" by Dionne Warwick, George Clinton, Diana Ross, James Brown, BDP, Lyn Collins, Jackie Robinson, Manu Dibango) by raising production to a level that unfortunately doesn't will be more achieved after the Grand Upright v. Warner judgment in 1991.
His cuts go from misogyny to braggadocio, from soft ("Teenage Love" isn't excellent as R&B ballad, it's not entirely negative, which is surprising for a ballad) to hardcore, but is mainly focused on the pure phenomenal storytelling that allows him to create classics such as "Children's Story", "Mona Lisa", "Hey Young World", in addition to "The Ruler's Back", Jam Master Jay's unique rhythm.
Released by Def Jam/Columbia/CBS, the album was supported by three extraordinary singles ("Teenage Love", "Children's Story", "Hey Young World"), remained at number one among the R&B albums for five non-consecutive weeks, reached number 31 on the pop chart, became one of the best-selling albums of 1989 and was certified platinum less than a year after its release. It's an incredible, fantastic, dope album, where everything seems to go in the right direction, even when the artist plays the card of misogyny. Twice. Album that goes away smooth, clean, beautifully. A classic from the 80s and one of the best in the genre, which has had a huge impact on hip hop.
Highlights: "The Ruler's Back", "The Children's Story", "Mona Lisa", "Hey Young World".
Rating: 8.8/10.
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