Three years after the flawless Midnight Marauders album, Tribe drops their fourth LP, Beat, Rhymes & Life, with assist from Detroit newcomer Jay Dee (Dilla). The album is good and suffers because expectations were very high following two classic LPs (The Low End Theory and Midnight Marauders). This was Tip's best performance as an emcee IMO. Down south, Bun B and Pimp C stepped it up another notch dropping their classic third LP, Ridin' Dirty which followed the solid SuperTight LP from 1994. Most cats wouldn't recognize until the Jay co-sign three years later but Bun and Pimp been kings down south. This is the album Bun let it be known he was a problem on the mic and Pimp kept improving as a producer. Beat, Rhymes & Life and Ridin' Dirty were both released on July 30, 1996. Which album do you prefer and why? This is also a celebration of the greatness that was 1996. I miss new release days where you had multiple great rap albums to choose from.

Favorite track from BR&L
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=91kaFxBoTno

Favorite track from Ridin' Dirty
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0pztxn5-Pj0

Poll question: Beat, Rhymes & Life vs Ridin' Dirty: 20th Anniversary Edition

Poll result (20 votes) ATCQ (11 votes) Vote UGK (9 votes) Vote

nuff said

When it dropped it was really appreciated by fans of independent gangsta rap, mainly southern and bay area rap fans but the mainstream rap audience totally ignored it. It wasnt until after Big Pimpin that people started jocking UGK. After that everyone jumped on the bandwagon...

We weren't playing UGK up in CT at all when that dropped.

We loved Kast and Face. Even 8ball and MJG got more play than they did.

It is a dope album though and my favorite by them.

I just don't see it as a classic like many people do.

I have to give both these albums another spin to see which I feel is better in 2016.

I obviously played BR&L more in 96 and I'm more closely tied to that one

Jay has that effect on the east coast.

I don't even mind an album getting better over time but I've seen Reasonable Doubt listed as a legit top 5 album of all-time online.

Shit wasn't even top 5 of 96.

And I loved that album when it dropped.

Pac, Nas, and Fugees.

And of those, I'd say only It Was Written is better.

Pras hurt that album a lot. Dude is a terrible emcee.

Which is why I've still got The Score over RD (and I like RD quite a bit).

Lauryn's lyrical performance on that album was an all-timer. Pras could've spent the entire album reciting nursery rhymes (which he essentially did), and that album still would've been great.

With the exception of All Eyez On Me, The Score, IWW and Makaveli. What your top 5 of 96 looking like?

I was HEATED when I heard BR&L, a complete letdown and the formulaic first single with faith evans did it no favors

Then I heard RD and got stuck on Diamonds & Wood: Bun's classic verse, the beat, the hook, Pimp's emotion on the first verse, knowledge on his second, everything about it was a 5 mic classic.

In Miami we listened to everything. It wasn't until I started traveling later that I realized people were on some regional shit.

And I understand BR&L being a let down but there are some absolute gems on there, specifically Get A Hold and Jam which both hold up to anything on Ridin Dirty imo.