VERY BEST OF MC LYTE |

Personnel includes: M.C. Lyte, Missy "Misdemeanor" Elliot (rap vocals); Richard Wolf (arranger, guitar, keyboards); Bob Sheppard (saxophone);
Reggie McBride (bass); Bret Mazur (drums, programming); Audio Two (programming); Vanessa Townsell (background vocals).
Producers include: Audio Two, King Of Chill, Dee Jay Doc, Jermaine Dupri, Rashad Smith.
Compilation producer: Barry "Rockbarry" Benson.
Engineers include: Mario Rodriguez, Phil Tan, Franklin Grant.
Includes liner notes by Shannita Williams-Alleyne.
All tracks have been digitally remastered.
Rhino's 2001 collection The Very Best of MC Lyte is an excellent summary of MC Lyte's recordings for Atlantic records. The collection balances her career quite nimbly, with four tracks from her 1988 debut Lyte As a Rock, five from 1989's Eyes on This, three from 1991's Act Like You Know, two from Ain't No Other, and one from Bad As I Wanna B, with her guest appearance on Foster/McElroy's "Dr. Soul," and the Bad Boy remix "Cold Rock a Party" rounding out the compilation for good measure. The decreasing returns from each subsequent album signals that MC Lyte's material did dip as the '90s wore on, but this does contain credible highlights from those records, while her hardcore golden-age recordings -- "10% Dis," "I Cram to Understand U," "Kickin' 4 Brooklyn," "Cha Cha Cha," "I Am the Lyte," "Shut the Eff Up! (Hoe)" -- still stand as fresh, powerful hip-hop. The first two records still hold their own, but this is a very good sampler and introduction in its own right. ~ Stephen Thomas Erlewine

• Genre: Rap
• Released: 2009-07-28
• Format: CD