The double disc: double the record sales but often forgotten due to clutter and an indigestible amount of music.
E-40′s contribution to 1998, The Element Of Surprise, is one of those infamous double discs that could have easily been broken down into a 14 song album and undoubtedly found itself in top of the years best. Coming off the light weight success of 1996′s The Hall Of Game, 40 was obviously looking to pull everyone in with The Element Of Surprise, enlisting a coastal trifecta with guest spots ranging from Busta Rhymes to Master P and an O’Shea-less Westside Connection. Production wise Element Of Surprise was varied, full of stuttering funk, slumping mob music and smooth crooning. Lyrically, 40 did what 40 always does and stitched each song up with his unconventional flow and impeccable lyrical styling’s. Boasting 24 tracks, The Element Of Surprise is an overlooked gem in 40 Wata’s catalog that only setback is in the “doing too much” category.
Financially, I understand what the addition of 10 more songs equates, but artistically speaking more is rarely better. In an effort to make The Element Of Surprise a more concise and memorable addition to 40′s nearly blemish free discography, I am going to trim the fat per se and do some reconstructive surgery.
1. “”Element Of Surprise”: Had to keep the original album introduction.
2. “”Doin Dirt Bad”: Our equivalent to In A Major Ways’ “”Sideways.”
3. “”Lieutenant Roast A Botch”: Another Stevens family slumper.
4. “”Jump My Bone”: Undeniable drums and a bugged out flow.
5. “”Hope I Don’t Go Back”: Albums first single and Hustler anthem.
6. “”From The Ground Up”: Back to back cool outs, only to bring back to boil.
7. “”All Tha Time”: 40 and Legit never make bullshit tracks.
8. “”Do It To Me”: Busta holds his own next to 40, and vice versa.
9. “”To Tha Beat”: Unfuckwitable.
10. “”Flashin”: Give anyone else this beat, and they’d be lost.
11. “”It’s On, On Sight”: Don’t sleep on the storytelling!
12: “”Trump Change”: “Me and my Mossie…Trump Change.”"
13. “”One More Gen”: Slowing things down, but still just as potent.
14. “”Zoom”: An appropriate way to wrap things up.
E-40 – The Element Of Surprise (The Corey Bloom Abridged Version Edition)
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Yes!
Music industry ‘should embrace illegal websites’
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/e72884f6-6175-11dd-af94-000077b07658.html?nclick_check=1
i HAAAAAAAAAATE e-40
dude is 1 of the wackest cats to eva do it.
mufucka tries to take credit for coining alotta slang…
an he would make up words to have rhymes….
straight basura.
fuck wit-e beats he’s a piece of shit….
^ Never thought of it that way. lol
I’m not a huge fan, not even a medium sized fan… but I’ve liked some of his songs.
Stop it Wit-E.
Nah, Wit-E’s alright, fam… everyone’s got their opinion, yeah? Doesn’t make someone a piece of shit.
wit-e is a wannabe journalist that post gossip from other sites….ayo wit-e whats up with that pic on your myspace?? THAT AINT HIPHOP!!!
E-40 is dope
Wit-E is my boy. 40 Water just isn’t trash.
Hmm. I’m not a fan, but I respect the fact that dude can sag his glasses that low down his nose and
a) not drop them
b) see thru them
Dog… People fear what they don’t understand. If you aren’t from the Yay, he’s a tough cat to comprehend because people are so used to ordinary, constructed verses and tempos of rhyme and shit. 40 is a legend and the dude above who said he takes credit for too much slang is naive as hell. 40 did. Somebody had to. And 40 credits Keak da Sneak too. He’s not selfish. This man is a legend. Period.
You did forget the banger after “Hope I Don’t Go Back.” That “$999,999 + $1″ is my SHIT! That’s my favorite one on there man!!! Go back and peep game… Fuckin ridiculous. I actually think 40 got worse when he leaned toward Lil Jon more. He’s better on those Ric Rock beats man… I mean before “Change The Game” and “Parking Lot Pimpin’” from Jay, 40 had Ric Rock beats slumpin… Do some research cavemen…
What up 40… We hold you down for the Yay. It’s nothin.
FLO
http://www.hiphopruckus.com
(Hi, haters!)
I was more of a fan of Suga T’s BODY of work… I’m lying
I was a fan of her BODY
LOL
Never liked E-40; but I can’t knock his fans for liking him.
40′s aight. Just can’t listen to any of his albums front to back without skipping more than a few joints. Dude is cool in small doses.
40 water a boss, can’t wait for The Ball Street Journal. Wit-E you must be listening too slow…
This was one of the few double CD’s that was worth buying
for it’s production alone
“If you aren’t from the Yay, he’s a tough cat to comprehend because people are so used to ordinary, constructed verses and tempos of rhyme and shit. 40 is a legend”
^^^ couldn’t agree more. bay area legend, always breaking the mold, rocking something new, unorthodox. it’s almost a given that east coast cats hate on dude, never seems to get the respect from over there. but southern cats love him. i dont know. Element is an overlooked album though.good post.
1- i suspect teepeezee is a myspace rapper who i refused to put on a mixtape
2- wannabe journalist? NEVA have i in anyway tried to come off as a journalist, which is why the interviews ive done on here were audio and not written.
3- pic on my myspace? the 1 where my face is PD’d on Em’s body from his Dave LaChapelle shoot? Em aint Hip Hop? and what were u doin lookin on my page? thats some ol peepin tom fruity ass homo type shit.
4- ive been hip to 40 since ‘nuttin ass nigga’, the dudes voice is wack, his flow is wack, his made up words are wack….any1 can make up a word and call it ‘slang’….dude just isnt smart enough to rhyme so he makes shit up.
5- just cuz somebody is considered a ‘legend’ in his hometown, doesnt mean he’s good….
too short…mac dre…andre nickatina…ant banks…
b-legit…etc. those are good cats from the bay.
40 is basuuuuuuuuuuuuuura.
6- i love how cats wanna say shit like ‘if ur not from the yay’…’its a given east coast cats hate on 40′….’listening too slow’…etc.
people dunno where im from and who or what i listen or have listened to.
yall E-$0 groupies should battle the Wayne groupies for title of the biggest dick riders. it’d be a close contest.
AAAAAAAAAAAJJAJAJAAAA
EDIT:
yall E-40 groupies should battle the Wayne groupies for title of the biggest dick riders. it’d be a close contest.
contra, those glasses are just window lenses…he doesn’t actually need glasses.
@ Wit E
I guess there won’t be a Street Bangers 35 hosted by E-40 anytime soon
LOL
How can you hate 40, and love GhostFace? To me there the same kind of rapper. To each its own I guess……
LOL @ Bigga.
it doesnt seem so.
^DAMN I smell a Hater!
^^ B-Rad
Damn, I used to ride for you Shit-E, but you had to open your mouth and now I will never support your movement again. Before I get into it I will say that I respect everybody to have their own tastes and opinions, but I will say as a DJ I would NEVER, EVER feel the need to voice the fact that there are rappers I don’t care for. You must really be feeling yourself or think that you have it like that were you can say I think a rapper is “basura”. Maybe you didn’t mean to come off as a dick, but guess what you did. So here it goes…
If anybody could “make up words to rhyme and call it slang”, why don’t more people do it and why aren’t there anymore rappers that are successful at it. Fact of the matter is 40 has coined words and terms that your favorite rappers use in their “fresh” takes on life.
mufucka tries to take credit for coining alotta slang…
WTF? I wanted to type more but I know I’m just wasting my time with a closed minded person.
Oh yeah I’m not from the Bay and you won’t ever cash another one of my checks.
word, i stay on that mac dre shit,
in the building and I’m feeling myself, feeling myself
used to ride for me? thats funny cuz i dunno who the fuck u are. and i wont cash anotha 1 of ur check, when the hell did i cash the 1st 1? internet groupies are so comical. thanks for the laughs, yall make my work day fly by.
C.Bloom – One More Gen is listed but not included
in the abridged version.
Ouch.
Careful Wit-E-
Wit-E… he’s getting all kinds of attention. Who’s a dick rider now? Sounds like he’s ridin all kinds of blog dick. Get a real job. Nobody cares where you’re from homie. It doesn’t matter. And just cuz you’re name droppin’ doesn’t mean shit. All those people you mentioned (God bless the dead- Mac DRE) would slap you silly if you disrespected 4-0, including his cousin, B-Legit. Quit using Google as a resource. “Uhhh, I need some Bay rappers real quick.” You forgot Messy Marv and San Quinn, RBL Posse and Mac Mall. You like them too, cornball? Shut up before I call Dru Down to come find you… (LOL. SMH til it hurts at this dude…)
In any case, good catch on that track listing joint, PB… There were a few typos on it. I am just loving the fact we’re talking about it. Normally, my dude gets overlooked. If it weren’t for E-40, that independent game would still be a struggle and everyone would be flockin to the majors. Better ask Tony Draper about E-40. Ask Biggie’s people too… They’ll tell you what almost happened… That’s not fiction. It’s a wrap. Yo, where’s my copy of “In a Major Way”? I need to hear that right now and go get a Fatburger for the big homie.
LOL @ herbs catchin feelins online.
get a real job? i prolly make 2wice as much as u while doin half the work pal.
messy marv…san quinn? not my stilo buddy. sorry.
i did used to bump the shit outta RBL posse’s ‘bammer weed’ tho.
the mac mall joint with pac was bangin…
an cuz 40 kept Big outta some trouble out West means he is nice on the mic? suuuuuuure.
like i said, Wayne groupies def have some comp now.
*checks to make sure im still in America*
jep, im entitled to my own opinion….
yeah…i copped this from Blockbuster music right before i headed off to my freshman year of college…it took a nigga staying across the hall from me in the dorm to make me revisit the album….my opinion didnt change much, although i did find that i like more songs than i originally thought….
great observation fellas…a definite doing too much album….perhaps the crown jewel of unecessary double albums….Da Last Don in a distant second.
i’m far from home where my file is stored, so i apologize for leaving out one more gen.
props to the person who made the comparison to ghost. definitely different, but they both got a lot in common. in terms of style, flow, creativity, wordplay, story telling (don’t sleep!!!) not many can fuck with 40 wata. dude is thoro all the way through.
flow slang and flow !
Dog, I never checked back to a blog entry so much as I have now to see what this dude will say. Just let it go. You lost. You’re responses are kindergarten, your comparisons are trash and your style is phony. Your job is non-existent and your name is straight off the Cash Money roster so why are you calling out Wayne? You’re not saying nothin’ new here. Ain’t nobody talkin’ bout Weezy’s trash rap. We’re talking bout you. Pay respect. Respect something different. You ain’t gotta like it. Shut your mouth when you’re talking to me and read a book. You’re like 16 over here… It’s Jay Z vs. Souljah Boy. Put your glasses back on and shut the fuck up.
And double true to the “Last Don” comment… Shit had me rollin. But even “Life After Death” wasn’t perfect. I would have preferred two separate albums… Same with “Blueprint 2.” Rappers in general should stick to 10-14 tracks and call it a day. Quality over quantity. You’re talking about my favorite era right now (minus Rakim) so forgive my emotional state. Holla at me directly if you want to pursue it.
But even “Life After Death” wasn’t perfect.
===============================
Like hell it wasn’t!
u ladies stay talkin to me like i give a shit what u have to say…i lost what? its not THAT serious. u might wanna step away from the computer and get out n2 the real world, u will see theres much bigga issues to cry about. its funny how u catch feelings online ova me insulting anotha man. an how u gonna try to clown MY name when theres 20+ wannabe MCs on myspace callin themselves Flo Montana…thats REAL original…ol ignant ass mufucka- ur not even smart enough to make a decent arguement. callin a grown man 16…LOL…
jay-z vs soulja boy? ur gay ass is prolly listenin to soulja boy right now. ur a funny lil sensitive ass bitch.
*misses the days when FEMALES were the groupies*
damn, what is this gang up on Wit-E cuz he doesn’t appreciate E-40? He doesn’t like Hyphy music?
“Wayne fans vs. E-40 fans” was a bad post, but I’m sayin. I don’t agree with his opinion, but let it be. Yall trippin, bringing irrelevant posts in other comments. Let it die. It’s ok. There’s one person that doesn’t like E-40, period.
-eh my 2 cents.
E-40 is far from hyphy.
Just clarifying.
All I have to say is “$999,999 + $1 = A Meal Ticket”!!!!