Earlier than the phrase “Get you a man who can do both” was a meme, it was LL COOL J. Armed with boisterous machismo and heartthrob attraction, the Queens rapper penetrated the mainstream by combining playboy attraction with the aura of a badass. It’s a formulation he refined along with his 1987 sophomore album, Greater and Deffer. Like his debut album, Radio, Greater and Deffer was playful and highly effective, effervescent with a youngster’s sense of irreverence and invincibility. Ditching Michael Rubin’s minimalistic aesthetic, Greater and Deffer integrated prospers of melody to make songs extra anthemic than ever. Whereas he had broached the subject of ladies on Radio, he used Greater and Deffer to – a minimum of typically – get genuinely tender. The LP doubled-down on all of LL’s strengths whereas increasing his breadth of sounds and feelings, making him essentially the most dynamic rap star of his period.
Hearken to LL COOL J’s Greater and Deffer now.
Though the LP is praised for its comparatively elevated dynamism, its opener, “I’m Bad,” is a super-charged model of Radio. Embedded with a surrealistic pattern from the S.W.A.T. TV collection theme music, the monitor sees LL pulverize the bassline with wit and searing conviction. The hook itself is an simple assertion of goal, however its biggest accomplishment is likely to be making “I’ll crush you like a jelly bean” sound convincingly menacing. LL additionally leveled up his creativeness as a lot as his audio aesthetics. For “The Do Wop,” he rides a Nineteen Fifties R&B pattern to unspool a 19-year-old’s vivid fantasy. It performs out like a playboy’s model of “Today Was a Good Day.”
Greater and Deffer sees LL as openly assured as ever. But it surely’s additionally a malicious program for brand new pathos. As nakedly trustworthy as its title suggests, “I Need Love” is a forlorn lullaby for love. For the monitor, his aggressive shouts soften right into a tender bedside whisper, and his b-boy bluster recedes into sobering vulnerability. Whereas the monitor’s outright sweetness earned criticism, it turned a blueprint for rap superstars who wished credibility within the streets and the sheets.
A long time after its launch, LL sophomore album stands as one in all his greatest, having used a mixture of innovation and refinement to earn essential and business success. It bought over two million copies worldwide, and it peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 albums chart. However extra importantly, it demonstrated the ability of duality; an MC who may very well be robust or candy, relying on the beat. Radio made LL COOL J rap’s most promising rookie, however Greater and Deffer made him a pacesetter that generations of rappers would observe.
Hearken to LL COOL J’s Greater and Deffer now.
