WOW !!!
Pete Rock & CL Smooth. One of the tightest duos out there even though they broke up. But THE MAIN INGREDIENT is one of the best albums I've ever heard. CL Smooths' slick rhymes and Pete Rocks' soulful production skills are amazing. Aside from the lyrics, Pete Rock created such an original mood with this album. Hard to describe but it's unlike anything I've ever heard. My favorite joints are : IN THE HOUSE, SUN WON'T COME OUT, I GOT A LOVE, ESCAPE, THE MAIN INGREDIENT, TAKE YOU THERE, GET ON THE MIC and the best joint on this album, IN THE FLESH ( hot intro beat ). This dropped in 1994, but I hear they are reuniting back. So look out for it. With MECCA AND THE SOUL BROTHER, the album had a lot of classic joints. But there is something about THE MAIN INGREDIENT that makes this album a little better. Check this one out !!!
Pete Rock
Pete Rock & C.L. Smooth's second album "The Main Ingredient" (1994) is an underated slept on gem. Pete Rock's amazing production matched with C.L.'s addictive and intelligent rhyming make an album to remember. Beats are excellent from start to finish on this sixteen track release, cd has great replay value and music sounds ahead of its time which it was. My favourite track is "It's On You" love the verses, beat and background chorus on this one. Love the way "I Get Physical" flows and the outstanding guitar & piano backed "All The Places" has C.L. talking about where he has been- a very memorable track. Relaxed tracks like "Carmel City" , "Searching" and lead single "Take You There" create a feel good album. Music on this is substantial and relaxed at the same time. Every track on this is nice to me, and "The Main Ingredient" flows concurrently throughout with the end result being a highly enjoyable and memorable album which I would recommend for any Hip Hop collection.
Hands down best Hip-Hop album of its era. Unfortunately, also the most overlooked and slept on as well. News flash! Real Hip-Hop is gone with the start of the Puffy Pop era and everybody doin it for the dollar and not for the cause. Biggie and 2Pac the world greatest rappers, please! You need to reach back further my friends, Tribe Called Quest, Gang Starr, Big Daddy Kane, Main Source, EPMD, Brand Nubian, true pioneers in the game.
This is and was probably one of the last real hip hop albums you will ever hear like its kind. I got 3 copies, house, car or shower I am still playing all cuts all the time, and it seems like yesterday. The raw samples combined with CL's energy and lyrical content cannot be matched. I got made fun of back in the day, cause I am from LA, and my boys were all listening to the West Coast Crap, I stayed true to what I liked, they just didn't know, real hip-hop was born in the east.
C.L. Smooth- The Main Ingredient
Amazing Production by pete rock and smooth lyrics by C.L . Buy any Pete Rock album and you won't be dissapointed. This and petestrumentals are probly my favs of pete.
Legalized Dope!!!
If you don't have this album then go and pick it up now. You won't be disappointed. This album came out during my favorite period in hip-hop 92-96. It's too bad that it was overlooked by most because Nas's Illmatic and Biggie's Ready to Die also came out in '94. The beats on this album are incredible. Of course that's expected from Pete Rock (one of the best hip-hop producers ever). CL Smooth's rhymes are great as well. My favorite songs are Carmel City and Worldwide. The horns used in Pete Rock's production just make you want to sit back and relax.
If you're a fan of good hip-hop and want to listen to some incredible music from the 90s then this is the album for you. A classic by all means. However, if you have a closed mind and will only listen to whoever is popular at the moment then this isn't for you.
In addition to this LP I also recommend
Pete Rock & CL Smooth - Mecca & The Soul Brother
Common Sense - Resurrection
Pete Rock - Soul Survivor
Gangstarr - Moment of Truth
Marley Marl disciple Pete Rock is rightly hailed as one of the greatest producers around. Jazzy and soulful, his productions are some of the smoothest, funkiest, most innovative, and listenable on record. Though he's produced a crate-full of hits, it's his work with front man C.L. Smooth that's most fondly remembered, and The Main Ingredient--the duo's second album, after Mecca and the Soul Brother--lives up to the hype. Smooth's proficiency on the mic doesn't match his partner's studio wizardry, but not many do, and Smooth's easygoing, free-flowing delivery complements the grooves to good effect (and more importantly, keeps Rock from taking on too many vocal duties). Great for parties or a lazy weekend afternoon, The Main Ingredient is fondly remembered for all the right reasons. --Randy Silver
