Big L is a 24-year-old emcee from Harlem, New York, known for his improvisational abilities and some of the greatest punchlines in hip-hop history. The Children of the Corn and DITC member made his Columbia Records debut with “Lifestylez ov da Poor & Dangerous” in the spring of 1995, after which he founded his own label, Flamboyant Entertainment, and was nearly signed to Roc-A-Fella Records until his murder in 1999. The following summer, Rawkus Records would release The Big Picture (1974-1999) for Flamboyant, which was equally beloved. The record of his life so far. 139 & Lenox released The Danger Zone independently, RBC Records released The Danger Zone, but Mass Appeal Records gave Royce da 5’9 a proper send-off with his fifth and officially final album produced by Royce da 5’9 and the fifth album in the Legend Has It series.
Produced by G Koop and featuring Herb McGruff, “Harlem Universal” opens with a soulful funk beat that represents their hometown, while the only single featuring Nas, “U Ain’t Gotta Chance” finds the two talking about how no one stands a chance against them in a lyrical battle. The first half of “RHN (Real Harlem N****s)” is taken from one of my favorite Children of the Corn songs, “Harlem Nights,” but then “Fred Samuel Playground” featuring Method Man shouts out the location of the L mural in conductor Williams’ instrumentals.
After the first 45 seconds of “Big Lee & Reg” we get a brief verse from Errol Holden, Lord Finesse’s beautifully crafted lush beat on “All Alone” stands out as one of my favorite songs on the entire LP, talking about finding a place to call your own, while “Forever” featuring Mac Miller bittersweetly unites two greats who left us too soon. There’s also JAY-Z’s “7 Minutes Freestyle,” which is still one of the greatest freestyles in hip-hop history.
Joe Budden only provides a spoken word intro to kick off “Doo-Wop ’99 Freestyle,” which lets L Corleone’s groove flow and give me a bit of a Halloween vibe, but after the “Don & Satcha” sketch, “Stretch & Bobbito ’98 Freestyle” angrily promises to put the competition out of their misery, while “Grants Tomb ’97 (JazzMobile)” features BVNGS and Joey Bada Starring$$ Historically, the trio would pair up to discuss the need to get back on their feet.
“Live @ Rock N Will ’92” opens with a final sampler, some piano being bent and a guy hiding in protective custody because he can’t be fucked, while “How Will Make It? (I Won’t)” is remixed from the Return of the Devil’s Son compilation. Following the “Don & Sacha @ Inwood Hill Park” outro, the bonus track “Put the Mic Down” featuring Fergie Baby and the late Party Arty concludes L on instrumentals from Showbiz and Ron Browz.
While I can’t say I wasn’t too surprised by certain moments in Harlem’s Finest: Return of the King since neither Big L or Biggie aka The Notorious BIG have the work ethic of 2Pac, I did enjoy this one more than I thought I would. Mainly because it preserves the memory and legacy of the Flamboyant Entertainment CEO better than some of these compilations, and we’ve been out of his camp for the past quarter century, and that’s all I could ask for and hope for.
Score: 7/10
