Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five - The Message - LP Vinyl

2017 reissue - In the whole history of hip-hop music, few groups can claim to have been as influential and important as Joseph Saddler's group Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five. Many of the genre's signature elements and trademarks can be traced back to the supergroup founded by the Grandmaster; their discography was among the first to feature recordings of scratching and turntablism, their's was the first to feature songs with political and social commentary, they were the first to refer to rappers as "MC's", some might even say they were the group that first coined the term "hip-hop."

Though Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five was considered the number one hip-hop group on their home turf of New York City, they only maintained a following on a local level, performing and releasing singles exclusively on the East Coast. It wasn't until the release of Sugar Hill Gang's "Rapper's Delight" that the group realized they could break into the mainstream. After signing with Sugar Hill Records, the group released their debut album The Message in 1982.

Bolstered by Flash's deft turntablism, rappers Melle Mel, Kidd Creole, and Keef Cowboy's vocals, and production which sampled everything from Chic to the Tom Tom Club to The Jimmy Castor Bunch, The Message was a revelation of sorts. More than simply being a Billboard hit for the group, the album helped cement hip-hop's credibility with mainstream audiences, and is considered a major achievement in hip-hop history. The album's title track was especially praised, and is considered one of the greatest rap tracks in music history.

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