Pitchfork: Rhino Compiles Tommy Boy Records, Larry Levan

Rhino Compiles Tommy Boy Records, Larry Levan

You've got to hand it to Rhino Records. Without them, we'd be living in a world in which MC Hammer, the Spin Doctors, and My Bloody Valentine never appeared on the same compilation, and where our expectations remained sadly unsubverted.

These guys are the masters of finding any excuse to cram any ten classic, or the very least old (see the aforementioned Spin Doctors) tracks together on one disc. But then again, aside from the obvious complaints regarding the "nostalgia vortex" (thanks Mr. Colbert!), the zillion Rhino comps and box sets range from utterly harmless to friggin' sweet, so even hopeless cynics like us are hesitant to turn our noses up at their efforts.

The most recent fruits of Rhino's labor are coming to bear this Tuesday, April 11. The first of these, The Tommy Boy Story, Vol. 1, chronicles the early days of the record label for which it was named. Over the span of two discs, it contains 22 early hip-hop tracks cut between 1980 and 1992. Represented on the compilation are the likes of Afrika Bambaataa, Planet Patrol, Information Society, 808 State, and a pre-glam Queen Latifah.

Meanwhile, Journey Into Paradise... The Larry Levan Story chronicles the work of the eponymous Paradise Garage DJ. The 22 tracks contained within include songs by the likes of the Talking Heads, Positive Force, and Yaz, with several mixes by Levan himself. As with the Tommy Boy compilation, all of the music present on this set was recorded prior to 1992, as that was the year Levan passed away.

If you were to pick up both sets, you'd have nearly 300 minutes of music spanning 12 years on four discs, all for around $45.00 (both comps will retail for $21.98). That's not bad for a history lesson. Here are the tracks, all 44 of them:

The Tommy Boy Story, Vol. 1:

Disc One:

01 Afrika Bambaataa & The Soul Sonic Force - "Planet Rock" (12" vocal version)
02 Planet Patrol - "Play at Your Own Risk" (12" vocal version)
03 Afrika Bambaataa & The Soul Sonic Force - "Looking for the Perfect Beat" (12" vocal version)
04 Planet Patrol - "Cheap Thrills" (12" vocal version)
05 Club Nouveau - "Why You Treat Me So Bad" (LP version)
06 G.L.O.B.E. & Whiz Kid - "Play That Beat Mr. D.J." (12" full length version)
07 Planet Patrol - "I Didn't Know I Loved You (Till I Saw You Rock & Roll)" (12" vocal version)
08 Afrika Bambaataa & The Soul Sonic Force - "Renegades of Funk" (12" vocal version)
09 Jonzun Crew - "Pack Jam" (12" remix)
10 Various Artists - "Tommy Boy Megamix" (12" Brooklyn Mix)
11 808 State - "Pacific 0101" (remix edit version)

Disc Two:

01 Afrika Bambaataa & The Jazzy 5 - "Jazzy Sensation" (12" Bronx version)
02 Special Request - "Salsa Smurph" (12" vocal version)
03 The Force M.D.'s - "Let Me Love You" (12" vocal version)
04 Pressure Drop - "Rock This House (You'll Never Be)" (12" vocal version)
05 The Latin Rascals - "Lisa's Coming"
06 Information Society - "Running" (12" vocal remix version)
07 Coldcut featuring Lisa Stansfield - "People Hold On" (12" New Jersey jazz mix)
08 Queen Latifah - "How Do I Love Thee" (extended club mix)
09 TKA - "Louder Than Love"
10 Information Society - "What's on Your Mind (Pure Energy)" (12" club mix)
11 K7 - "Come Baby Come" (extended version)

Journey Into Paradise... The Larry Levan Story:

Disc One:

01 Change - "Paradise"
02 Phreek - "Weekend" (12" extended version)
03 Chaka Khan - "Clouds"
04 Patrice Rushen - "Haven't You Heard"
05 Positive Force - "We Got the Funk" (12" U.S. re-edit version)
06 Janice McClain - "Smack Dab in the Middle" *
07 Dee Dee Bridgewater - "Bad for Me" (12" long version) *
08 Taana Gardner - "Heartbeat" (club version) *
09 David Joseph - "You Can't Hide (Your Love From Me)" *
10 Man Friday - "Love Honey, Love Heartache" (12" vocal version) *
11 Peech Boys - "Don't Make Me Wait" (12" extended version)

Disc Two:

01 Womack & Womack - "Baby I'm Scared of You"
02 Sister Sledge - "Lost in Music" (special 1984 Nile Rodgers remix)
03 Five Special - "Why Leave Us Alone" (12" long version)
04 Trussel - "Love Injection"
05 Lace - "Can't Play Around" (12" vocal version) *
06 Inner Life - "Ain't No Mountain High Enough" (The Garage version) *
07 Gwen Guthrie - "It Should Have Been You" (12" vocal version) *
08 Change - "A Lover's Holiday" (12" version)
09 Yaz - "Situation"
10 Talking Heads - "Once in a Lifetime"
11 Donald Byrd & 125th Street, N.Y.C. - "Love Has Come Around" (12" version)

* mixed by Larry Levan