Special Ed-Legal

Special Ed-Legal (1990)
Profile

This was young Brooklyn-born Edward Archer’s second album and after the success of The Youngest In Charge (1989), Profile marketed him as some kind of rap heartthrob. Ignore the album cover and go straight to the music. Once again Ed hooked up with the great Hitman Howie Tee who laced Ed with hype tracks for him to get busy to.

Special Ed had one of the smoothest flows in Hip Hop history, check “Come On, Let’s Move It” where he goes to work over a loping Bobby Byrd track or the Salt and Pepa sampling “The Mission” which also sports the banging drums from Billy Squire’s “Big Beat." Ed had skills and could tell great stories -on "The Mission" he rhymes “Picked up the phone, yo who the hell is this? / Somebody said this is serious business."

Ed gets busy over the dope and sparse drums of “I’m Special Ed” and the early Gang Starr sampling “Ya Wish Ya Could," which also flips the infamous Honeydrippers-”Impeach The President” drums and samples Johhny “Guitar” Watson, with Ed boldly stating that all he needs is “just a mic and a track”.

“Ready 2 Attack” samples Rado & Company’s “Where Do I Go” three years before Pete Rock used it for Run DMC’s “Down With The King” and hard hitting Kool and The Gang drums allow Ed to wreck the mic, alongside a Big Daddy Kane vocal sample used for the hook.

“I’m The Magnificent” gets the remix treatment and “Living Like A Star” has Ed attacking a dope beat,while the posse cut "5 Men & A Mic" has Ed sharing mic duties with his brother, his DJ, Aksun, and Little Shawn. Legal was a great follow up album and still sounds dope a good 18 years later.


1. Come On, Let's Move It
2. The Mission
3. Ya Not So Hot
4. I'm The Magnificent (The Magnificent Remix)
5. I'm Special Ed
6. Ya Wish Ya Could
7. Ready 2 Attack
8. 5 Men And A Mic
9. Livin' Like A Star
10.See It Ya
11-Come On, Let's Move It (Remix) BONUS
12-The Mission (Remix) BONUS

Download Album Here

The Mission Video

Jaz