INTRODUCTION:

Call 2Pac a pioneer. With All Eyez On Me he released the first 2-CD set of original material in hip-hop history. Many other lyrical greats would follow suit – the Notorious B.I.G., Jay-Z and Nas. The 2-CD release in hip-hop became the epitome of the genre’s excess, nihilism and ostentation, and to this day, no one has ever done it better than ‘Pac.

Blame it partly on his new label. Marion "Suge" Knight, the notorious CEO of Death Row records, paid his bail and got him out of jail. Of course there was a catch – I mean, what, you think Suge was that generous to have paid 1.4 million dollars for nothing? Who are you kidding? ‘Pac ended up reportedly signing a three-album contract with him, and the outlook couldn’t have looked good. 2Pac was joining a label that was synonymous with the most nihilistic gangsta rap ever released – it was a far cry from the level of responsibility and discipline found in 2Pac’s previous album, the outstanding Me Against the World. However, this brand of gangsta rap was the most successful around, and it also helped that Death Row had Dr. Dre’s widely-successful G-Funk template. It was this formula that made Death Row the most successful rap label in the world at that time.

Bearing these things in mind, one can understand 2Pac’s dilemma…well, at least to an extent. Me Against the World was a sure sign that he was going in the right direction. So why regress to gangsta rap that shunned any moral repercussions or responsibility? Why did he even accept Suge Knight getting him out of prison? Didn’t he think such a gesture would come with strings attached? Perhaps he was a desperate man, he was broke, he needed the money. Besides, as a rapper who was increasingly getting as famous for his run-ins with the law than his music, maybe he could expand upon and exploit the thug persona he birthed in Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z., noting that it could take his sales sky-high. Heck, if you are on Death Row circa 1996, you better sell a buttload of records – you’re practically competing with Snoop Doggy Dogg, its biggest star, a guy who sold more than four million copies of his debut classic Doggystyle.

It’s just too bad 2Pac had to take this route. Whatever promise he had showed in his first three albums was about to be eradicated with his bloated fourth. To paraphrase speeddemon531, he sold his soul to the devil, and the devil was Suge Knight.

Well, 2Pac succeeded with the sales alright. All Eyez On Me is 2Pac’s best-selling album of original material, spawning a slew of hit singles and eventually selling over nine million copies (although being a double CD, it actually sold a little over 4.5 million). As a result it has become his most popular and most influential. If you ask any 2Pac fan to name their favorite songs, chances are most of them would come from All Eyez On Me. And countless rappers afterwards, most notably Ja Rule and DMX, have borrowed chunks of this album, reveling in the captivating thug persona and virtually being transformed into ‘Pac clones.

But the success of All Eyez On Me is nothing but a facade. Sure, it took a while to find out. Sometimes a record is so hot you can initially fail to detect its flaws. But once the heat of the record dissipates, you notice them. All Eyez On Me is such a record, and while some of 2Pac’s most devoted – albeit least discerning – fans would still like to argue that this is his best, I would rather contend otherwise.

In fact, it is one of his weakest.

DISC 1 (a.k.a. BOOK 1):

The first half of All Eyez On Me has a promising start. “Ambitionz Az a Ridah” has become one of ‘Pac’s most popular songs. Dogg Pound member Daz, who really does some excellent - albeit largely unheralded – work here by providing four other blazing tracks, provides the minimalist G-Funk to carry ‘Pac’s fiery lyrics of retaliation against his enemies, complete with an addictive sing-songy hook (“I won't deny it, I'm a straight ridah/You don't wanna f**k with me/Got the police busting at me/But they can't do nothing to a G”). This song is an almost-perfect beginning for the album. It is 2Pac, “back, reincarnated,” getting out of prison to face his adversaries, and he is not going to play nice:

I’ve been hesitant to reappear, been away for years
Now I'm back, my adversaries been reduced to tears
[…]
Blast me but they didn't finish
Didn't diminish my powers
So now I'm back to be a m***********g menace!

“No More Pain” is yet another song that addresses his rivals, only this time he is a little more specific. “Busters shot me five times, real n****s don't die!” he exclaims over an eerie backdrop provided by DeVante of Jodeci fame. Obviously he is referring to the unknown marksmen who failed to take his life, and he repeatedly makes threats to them throughout the song. “You n****s'll bleed, f*****g with me/You'll be deceased - Never resting in peace!” he declares at the end of the third verse. The song could have been edited, as ‘Pac just merely rains more threats in a spoken-word format for the last two minutes. But at least it was interesting to hear what he thought about the attempt on his life.

However, that does not stop ‘Pac from having a little fun. I mean, after all, he is a free man, no? This is where “All About U”, “Skandalouz”, “How Do You Want It” and “What’z Ya Phone #” come in. Backed by sunny and spirited funk provided by Johnny “J” and Daz, 2Pac just wants to have some freaky fun. The lyrics do not have much substance, yes, but it is a somewhat welcome respite from the turbulence surrounding ‘Pac’s life.

But therein lies one of the problems of the uniquely titled BOOK 1, and indeed the entire album – the lack of substance. What real man, incarcerated for a while, would not want to have sex with a woman as soon as possible? Well, does that excuse reducing women to nothing more than sex objects? Whatever happened to the sensitive fellow of “Can You Get Away”? I don’t know, but I certainly know this much - “What’z Ya Phone #” should have been left out. It is an absolute train wreck – in addition to the misogynistic lyrics, half the song features Tupac and a freak on the phone droning on about their sexual encounter. Johnny “J”, who is a terrific producer and co-produced it with ‘Pac, should be ashamed of himself for doing such an abysmal job with the Time sample. “Skandalouz” has a really catchy funk beat, but apart from that it is nothing special, and could have been left on the cutting floor as well. The thing that somewhat redeems “All About U” and “How Do You Want It” – which happens to be two of ‘Pac’s most popular songs – is that they have some really catchy choruses, splendid boardwork and fluid lyrical flows, most particularly with the latter.

In fact, “How Do You Want It” exemplifies the continued improvement in Tupac’s delivery and cadence. Yes, he was not the kind of emcee who could constantly hit you with witty punchlines or brilliant metaphors or similes, and he was not the most technically gifted rapper on the planet. But that was perhaps the most amazing thing about Tupac – he could still pack an awesome punch, knocking out most of the competition with couplets like these:

Tell me, is it cool to f**k? Did you think I come to talk –
Am I a fool or what? Positions on the floor
It's like erotic - ironic ‘cause I'm somewhat psychotic
I'm hitting switches on b*****s like I’ve been fixed with hydraulics

It’s just too bad that the female objectification and generic subject matter mars both songs. “Everywhere I go, it's all about the groupie hoes,” he raps in “All About U”. Nice, ‘Pac, nice.

And then there are other songs that are so bland that you wonder why they even made it to begin with. DJ Quik disappoints with “Heartz of Men” and ‘Pac spits hardly anything of note – just the usual “f**k-the-world” lyrics. The same blandness can be found in “Tradin’ War Stories” - insubstantial lyrics, below-average guest verses and a repetitive beat that never goes anywhere. And instead of the original “California Love” the album has a lifeless remix. A Dr. Dre disappointment, the lukewarm beat drains some considerable power from the otherwise spirited lyrics from Dre and ‘Pac.

This is not to say that BOOK 1 does not contain some really good songs. “Got My Mind Made Up” is simply amazing - it is a collaborative effort with the Dogg Pound, Method Man and Redman. Funny enough, for all his noise about the West Coast being the “best side” (“California Love [RMX]”) and all the media hype about Death Row’s animosity toward the East Coast, he apparently has no problem rapping alongside East Coast rappers. Daz provides a beat sparse enough to let the battle rhymes shine through. As good as the guests are, it is ‘Pac that steals the show, his voice and delivery hovering above everybody else’s:

So mandatory my elevation, my lyrics like orientation
So you can be more familiar with the n***a you facing
We must be based on nothing better than communication
Known to damage and highly flammable like gas stations
Sorry I left that a*s waiting
No more procrastination give up to fate, and get that a*s shaking
I'm busting and making m***********s panic
Don't take your life for granted, put that a*s in the dirt, you swear the b***h was planted

There’s also the duet with Death Row’s other big star, Snoop Doggy Dogg – the remarkable "2 Of Amerika’z Most Wanted". Again, nothing substantial about the content – rather it is the chemistry of the two trading bars and the chilly beat provided by Daz that makes it work. However, it is these two songs, “Life Goes On” and “I Ain’t Mad at ‘Cha”, that turn out to be the best songs in BOOK 1, and actually the entire album. It showcases the introspective ‘Pac of yesteryear. In the former, he solemnly reminisces about fallen comrades. It is a touching dedication, and in the third verse, surely with his deceased friends in mind, ‘Pac turns on himself and focuses his own life and mortality:

Bury me smiling with G's in my pocket
Have a party at my funeral, let every rapper rock it
Let the h**s that I used to know from way before
Kiss me from my head to my toe
Give me a paper and a pen so I can write about my life of sin
A couple bottles of gin, in case I don't get in

“I Ain’t Mad at ‘Cha” continues in the same vein as “Life Goes On”. Mainly driven by a soulful piano, he is concerned about his closest friends getting out of the ghetto, a place where he lost two of them in the previous song. The ironic thing about this song is that as he does so, he is also struggling to get out, too, and he achieves this by the end of the song. He has some choice words for those who try to draw him back:

So many questions, and they ask me if I'm still down
I moved up out of the ghetto, so I ain't real now?
They got so much to say, but I'm just laughing at ‘cha
You n****s just don't know, but I ain't mad at ‘cha

A special mention goes to “Only God Can Judge Me”, mainly because even in the midst of his paranoia (e.g. “Still I…can't breathe, something’s evil in my IV/’Cause every time I breathe, I think they’re killing me”) and distrust (“Perhaps I was blind to the facts, stabbed in the back/I couldn't trust my own homies - just a bunch a dirty rats”), he makes a poignant observance of black-on-black violence: “And they say it's the white man I should fear/But it's my own kind doing all the killing here.” This is the ‘Pac that could have dominated All Eyez On Me – conflicted but gallant, battle-worn but still an undeterred warrior, aware of his shortcomings but unwilling to back away from the light of truth.

And this makes his cheap shot at C. Delores Tucker (R.I.P.) all the more unwarranted and making him look like a hypocritical idiot. C. Delores Tucker had been known over the past few years to have rallied against gangsta rap’s most prominent figures for their violent and misogynistic music and its devastating stereotypes of black Americans, particularly black males. Obviously 2Pac was not pleased about that; he says in “How Do You Want It”: “Delores Tucker, you'se a m**********r!/Instead of trying to help a n***a you destroy a brother!” I mean, the nerve of the guy! And this in a song that denigrates women! “Help” him how, to get more sales out of this thug rap?

Failing for the most part to remember his past work, this is a guy who has succumbed to the thug lifestyle. He declares he’s a “thug n***a” in “All About U”. Indeed he is – most of what he does now is get drunk, smoke weed, sleep with w****s, hang out with his homies, gets into fits of vengeance and wallow in his uncontrollable paranoia. There is little of the moral resonance that was more prominent in his earlier work, and this fact strips his verbal attack of C. Delores Tucker of its credibility. Sadly ironic, because Tupac could have been the kind of civil rights leader she was throughout her life – even possibly surpassing her by miles. Too bad. When it comes down to it, half of the songs in BOOK 1 could have been jettisoned, and the original “California Love” could have been thrown in there. That would mean that the more pop-friendly songs would be gone - without them All Eyez On Me would not have been the colossal success it was.

…

Ah-hah! No wonder they were included. Hmph! Talk about sacrifice.

At least BOOK 1 beats the heck out of BOOK 2…

DISC 2 (a.k.a. BOOK 2):

Again, there is frustration galore. However, in BOOK 2, it is much worse.

‘Pac shows more flashes of brilliance with two songs here. Over a beat with an intermittent whining synthesizer, Tupac laments the waywardness of some black youth in "Shorty Wanna Be a Thug", and uses California’s Three Strikes law to warn them to change (“You only get three mistakes, then that’s life [in prison]…”). Then there’s “Wonder Why They Call U B***h” which has ‘Pac explaining why some women deserve that dreadful designation:

Got them legs wide open while you're sitting at the bar
Talking to some n***a ‘bout his car.
I guess he said he had a Lex-us, what's next?
You heading to his car for some sex
[…]
And all the other people on my block hate your guts
Then you wonder why they stare, and call you slut.
[…]
Keep your head up, legs closed, eyes open
[…]
And n****s wouldn't call you b***h, I betcha

But with “Wonder Why They Call U B***h” once again, he sounds like a hypocritical idiot. After all, it is the same kind of woman he has been sleeping with throughout the album. In fact, as a rich superstar rapper, he is practically interchangeable with the anonymous guy with the Lexus. So who is he to denounce this particular woman’s ways or offer her advice? It just makes his claim to C. Delores Tucker that he has explained why people like him call some women b*****s sound pretty silly. If he thought he exonerated himself with that song, he thought wrong. Without the presence of the misogynist songs in All Eyez On Me, at least his premise would have been plausible.

BOOK 2 is really mostly a feel-good disc, and there are a couple of good party tracks here. “Can’t C Me”, which is the other beat in All Eyez On Me produced by Dr. Dre, is directly inspired by P-Funk and George Clinton is recruited for the ride. ‘Pac drops some amusing lines here, like “My words like a penitentiary d**k - hitting b*****s where it's most needed.” It needed some editing, and Clinton is sorely underused here, but it’s a pretty nice song nonetheless. “Picture Me Rollin’” features Tupac yet again recounting his paranoia and distrust and cursing out his enemies, this time including the police and the courts. Much in the fashion of “It Ain’t Easy,” Johnny “J” provides a soothing beat to lend an aura of serenity to Tupac’s words. “Holla at Me” has Tupac spitting pure fire over a fast flute-driven beat produced by Bobcat. “Heaven Ain’t Hard 2 Find” is a lot tamer than the other sex songs, the misogyny is almost non-existent, 2Pac’s flow switches from time to time and is simply breathtaking, and the light G-Funk of QDIII helps to make it a winner.

But part of what makes BOOK 2 more frustrating than BOOK 1 is that there are less good songs, and the bright spots are more sporadic. The beats of “Thug Passion” (which samples Zapp’s “Computer Love”) and “Ain’t Hard to Find” have that beautiful breezy feel, and Tupac absolutely kills it with his flow in the former, even if the lyrical content – and the guest appearances – are hardly anything to write home about. In “Check Out Time” ‘Pac again blazes the vibrant track with his flow, but he, Kurupt and Big Syke rap, for the umpteenth time, about getting their freak on. ‘Pac impresses yet again with his flow in “All Eyez On Me” and the laid-back beat helps, but he’s not saying anything particularly new, and Big Syke just slows the momentum with his dull verse. And in “Run Tha Streetz” the best thing is the music – otherwise ‘Pac and Storm fail to impress with yet more sex talk. Think of such songs as mindless fun – great to dance to, or bump in the car, but nothing else.

Then there are songs that straight up suck. “Ratha Be Ya N***a” is the worst offender. Doug Rasheed simply jacks Bootsy Collins’ “I’ll Rather Be With You” and gives it to 2Pac and Richie Rich to talk about…yep, more sex! How repetitive is this getting? Okay, at least the chorus is catchy (“I'd rather be your N-I-G-G-A/So we can get drunk and smoke weed all day/It don't matter if you lonely, baby, you need a thug in your life/’Cause busters ain't loving you right”), but does that alone make a good song? I believe not. “When We Ride” is just mindless trash, with a beat so lightning-fast, you’d think it’s trying to get the whole affair over with as quickly as possible.

Speaking of “When We Ride”, it exemplifies perhaps the worst problem of BOOK 2 – it is full of unremarkable guest appearances. At least BOOK 1 had the superb performances the hook-singing Nate Dogg (“All About U” and “Skandalouz”); Daz, Kurupt, Method Man and Redman (“Got My Mind Made Up”); K-Ci and JoJo (“How Do You Want It”) and Snoop Doggy Dogg ("2 of Amerika’s Most Wanted"), even if the other guests did not contribute anything of distinction. In BOOK 2, none of the guest drop any memorable verses. None. Somebody should have dissuaded ‘Pac from including his proteges the Outlawz in the album. These guys are simply terrible. They can’t flow, their lyrics are riddled with gangsta rap cliches, and they lack even a modicum of charisma that their leader possesses. As mentioned before, George Clinton’s cameo is wasted in “Can’t C Me” – he is merely stuck with half-singing in between verses. Even a West Coast powerhouse collabo with rappers like E-40, B-Legit and C-Bo in “Ain’t Hard to Find” fails to generate much heat. There are about twenty-five guest spots (as opposed to twenty in BOOK 1), which makes you wonder – maybe Tupac recruited this horde just to fill up songs.

Just like BOOK 1, BOOK 2 could have been trimmed of the filler. It just so happens that there are more songs to get rid of this time around. But even the stronger songs feel so inferior to the ones on the other disc. Listening to BOOK 2 can give you that feeling…like…was an extra disc even necessary?

But then again, this is Death Row we are talking about – excess gunplay, excess carousing…and in the case of 2Pac’s fourth album, excess songs.

CONCLUSION:

All Eyez On Me could have done without the fat. Getting rid of about half the songs would have produced an album that could have been as good, if not better, than Me Against the World. Instead the listener is stuck with a 27-track album with a 132-minute running time. Yeah, it definitely could have been trimmed. Not that it mattered much to the buying public at that time, though, as they ate it up.

And that is the curse of 2Pac’s magnum opus. This is his most popular and influential album, so with the very mention of his name today, most people, if not all, would not immediately remember the brilliant and cautious ‘Pac of Me Against the World, or the socially-conscious militant of 2Pacalypse Now and Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. In fact, the memory of his first three releases pale in comparison to that of All Eyez On Me. Instead the first image that comes up might be the shirtless, tattooed, irresponsible, hypocritical and reprehensible thug. Not a good thing, especially considering that he was indeed capable of so much more. And unfortunately, this might be the image that might be associated with him forever.

But with all this said, I still recommend this 2-disc set. Why, may you ask? Well, forget the historical significance – that it is the first 2-disc rap album of original material in history, and that it is one of the most commercially successful rap albums of all time, and that it is the quintessential thug rap album. Beat-wise, it is as good as it ever got for ‘Pac – there is some high-quality and party-starting G-Funk in here, even with the minimal presence of Dr. Dre. You will find yourself nodding your head to the infectious beats of even the weaker songs, the weak lyrics becoming an afterthought. ‘Pac’s charisma and delivery is at its peak here, his powerful voice virtually booming with the beats. And yes, deep within the filler, are actually some of the best songs he ever recorded. Overall, All Eyez On Me is a good album.

Just don’t think it’s his best work. It isn’t. In fact, the only one of the records he did when he was alive that I may place below it is 2Pacalypse Now. Millions were initially fooled into believing that this is his best album, some still believe it, but I really think they are strongly influenced by the hot singles it generated and its explosive sales. My advice is to make like Public Enemy - don’t believe the hype.

TRACK LISTING:

Disc 1:

1. Ambitionz Az a Ridah
2. All About U
3. Skandalouz
4. Got My Mind Made Up
5. How Do You Want It
6. 2 of Amerika’z Most Wanted
7. No More Pain
8. Heartz of Men
9. Life Goes On
10. Only God Can Judge Me
11. Tradin’ War Stories
12. California Love (RMX)
13. I Ain’t Mad at ‘Cha
14. What’z Ya Phone #

Disc 2:

1. Can’t C Me
2. Shorty Wanna Be a Thug
3. Holla at Me
4. Wonda Why They Call U B***h
5. When We Ride
6. Thug Passion
7. Picture Me Rollin’
8. Check Out Time
9. Ratha Be Ya N***a
10. All Eyez On Me
11. Run Tha Streetz
12. Ain’t Hard 2 Find
13. Heaven Ain’t Hard 2 Find


REVIEWS IN MY 2PAC SERIES:

2Pacalypse Now (1991)
Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. (1993)
Thug Life, Vol. 1 (1994)
Me Against the World (1995)
All Eyez On Me (1996)
The Don Killuminati: The 7-Day Theory (1996)
R U Still Down? (Remember Me) (1997)
Greatest Hits (1998)
Still I Rise (1999)
Until the End of Time (2001)
Better Dayz (2002)
Tupac: Resurrection Soundtrack (2003)
Loyal to the Game (2004)
'Pac's Life (2006)

Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Hanging With Friends