Big Shots (Reissue) (Vinyl 2LP)

One of hip hop's greatest tragedies was the murder of Bay Area MC Charizma, shot in his car in a random mugging at age 20. Paired with DJ and producer Peanut Butter Wolf, Charizma's star was rising fast, but while the pair had recorded a bunch of material, none of it saw the light of day until a decade after the rapper's death. Peanut Butter Wolf went on to start Stones Throw Records, home to the likes of J Dilla, Madlib, and many more, and the duo's only full-length album Big Shots was finally released posthumously in 2003. Now, this old school classic celebrates its 21st birthday, something Charizma never got to do, with a long-awaited vinyl reissue. - Flying Out

Bay Area MC Charizma and his crate-diggin' pal Peanut Butter Wolf entered the game in rap's blissful Golden Age. Due to label drama and Charizma's tragic 1993 passing, most of their work was vaulted - until now. Big Shots unveils classic one-two sonic jabs from a duo whose affinity for hip-hop should make Common proud. The tracks are unearthed in time-capsule fashion (nothing much altered) with 15 first-class jams serving as an ideal early-'90s hip-hop snapshot. Most of the innocent-sounding tunes like Devotion and Fair Weathered Friend boast Wolf's static-stamped production and Charizma's ligｭhthearted vocab. Sure, joints like the simplistic love letter Talk About a Girl and its familiar drum-machine thumps and piano loops might not make a peep if they were freshly recorded songs, but as reminiscing material goes, Big Shots is a golden ticket to when it was all so simple.

Tracklist:

1. Here's a Smirk
2. Methods
3. Jack the Mack
4. Talk About a Girl
5. Red Light Green Light
6. Tell You Something
7. Gatha Round
8. Devotion
9. Apple Juice Break
10. My World Premiere
11. Ice Cream Truck
12. Charizma What
13. Fair Weathered Friend
14. Soon to be Large
15. Pacin' the Floor