Mar 24, 2020

2Pac -1998- Greatest Hits (Death Row / Interscope)

  • 1998, November the 24th.
  • Last 2Pac album on Death Row, released without Amaru entertainment. 
  • 2Pac had a first project of a Greatest Hits compilation in early 1995, when he was sentenced to 1.5 to 4.5. years to prison... cf. R U Still Down '95 first tracklist.


Discogs Page
Listen to it in Youtube

CD 1 :
  1. Keep Ya Head Up
  2. 2 Of Amerikaz Most Wanted feat. Snoop Doggy Dogg
  3. Temptations
  4. God Bless the Dead feat. Stretch / Stretch & 2Pac
    ==> original version
  5. Hail Mary feat. Outlawz & Prince Ital Joe
  6. Me Against the World feat. Dramacydal
  7. How Do U Want It (Uncensored) feat. K-Ci & Jojo  
    ==> vocals were censored in some original editions of the album
  8. So Many Tears
  9. Unconditional Love / Johnny J
    ==> original version
  10. Trapped (Uncensored)
    ==> vocals were censored in some original editions of the album
  11. Life Goes On
  12. Hit Em Up feat. Outlawz / Johnny J
    == > already available in How Do U Want It 12''.

CD 2 :
  1. Troublesome 96' / Johnny J
    ==> Slightly shorter mix than the second original version.
  2. Brenda's Got a Baby feat. Dave Hollister
  3. I Ain't Mad At Cha feat. Danny Boy
  4. I Get Around feat. Digital Underground
  5. Changes (Remix) feat. Talent / Deon Evans, 2Pac
    ==> Pac's voice has been slowed down to give the sound of his late voice.
  6. California Love feat. Dr. Dre & Roger Troutman / Dr. Dre
    ==> already available in     California Love (12'') and in most European editions of All Eyez on Me.
  7. Picture Me Rollin' feat. Danny Boy, CPO & Big Syke
  8. How Long Will They Mourn Me ? feat. Thug Life & Nate Dogg
  9. Toss It Up (Altered Mix with altered lyrics) feat. K-Ci & Jojo, Danny Boy & Aaron Hall
    ==> No diss introduction, altered singing takes
  10. Dear Mama
  11. All About U (Top Dogg Version) feat. Nate Dogg, Outlawz & Top Dogg
    ==> the main mistake of this edition, a posthumous remix with an unwelcome featuring of Top Dogg replacing Snoop Dogg... Wheras in video version, we could have the same different mix but with a new 2Pac verse !!
  12. To Live & Die in L.A. feat. Val Young
  13. Heartz of Men

Tracks 1.1, 1.10, 2.2 are taken from 2Pacalypse Now
Tracks 2.4 are taken from Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z.
Track 2.8 is taken from Thug Life : Volume 1
Tracks 1.3, 1.6, 1.8, 2.10 are taken from Me Against the World
Tracks 1.2, 1.7, 1.11, 2.3, 2.7, 2.13 are taken from All Eyez on Me
Tracks 1.5, 2.9, 2.12 are taken from Makaveli the Don Killuminati : The 7 Day Theory


A typical compilation leaning too much to All Eyez on Me

This compilation is a typical Greatest Hits album that compiles all singles released by the artist. But they omit singles "If My Homie Calls", "Holla If Ya Hear Me", "Papa'z Song", "Cradle 2 the Grave", "Pour Out A Little Liquor" and above all the underground superhit "Pain", played as the ending of the soundtrack Above The Rim.

They chose to not include posthumous songs from R U Still Down, nor from Gridlock'd OST and Gang Related OST. No songs from Soundtracks at all nor from compilation : no "Runnin'", no "My Block", no "High Til I Die", no "Definition of a Thug Nigga"... No featuring singles neither : no "Same Song", no "Call It What U Want", no "Gotta Get Mine", no "Smile"...

Some of them could have replaced some of the too numerous All Eyez on Me songs (two non-singles songs : "Heartz of Men", "Picture Me Rollin'"), or merely complete the short tracklists of these two CDs. 

Four exclusive songs

"Changes", "God Bless The Dead", "Unconditional Love" and "Troublesome '96" were totally unknown at that time (maybe in the Makaveli bootlegs, but not sure at all). These are great songs ! The two first from Pre-Death Row era, the two other from the last period. Of course, they could release a lot more but it wouldn't be a Greatest Hits anymore.
 
205. Changes (Remix) feat. Talent (chorus) / Big D The Impossible & 2Pac REMIXED by ?
  • 1991/12/25 - 1998 (~) (new mix). This is a remixed version of a Dec. '91 unreleased song, with a new chorus by the Kansas City trio Talent (replacing Poppi who was singing on "Part Time Mutha" and "Papa'z Song") and a slowed Pac voice for making him sound as old as in All Eyez on Me. The original song appears nowhere in Tupac's handwritten papers... Nobody knows why this song was recorded for, why 2Pac recycled part of his 3rd verse in "I Wonder If Heaven's Got A Ghetto" a few months later. At that time, 2Pac was considering a follow up to his first album. We lack info about this 2Pacalypse II, so "Changes" was maybe intended for that short-lived project. Unless it was recorded as a reference track for the side project Ghetto Gospel (songs written by him, rapped by a group of kids), and that the song disappeared as soon as he recorded "Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto". Who gave this new mix of the song ? Is it possible that 2Pac himself (credited as producer in Greatest Hits), worked at it during his time at Death Row...?
  • Samples: 
104. God Bless The Dead feat. Stretch / Stretch
  • 1994/03. Thug Life Volume One sessions. This is a tribute to Biggie Smalls aka Big Dric from Live Squad Posse, a graffiti artist close to Stretch, who died at that time (nothing to do with B.I.G. nor with Biggy Smallz, young white rapper from Los Angeles, produced by Johnny J). Christopher Wallace when he makes his first records under the name of "Biggie Smalls", had risks of being sued by the young Biggy Smallz (who has published some 12'' under this alias since 91) so he changed his name to The Notorious B.I.G.. The fact that this song starts by "Biggie Smalls rest in peace" in 1998, just a few months after Notorious B.I.G's death is for sure not a coincidence. Death Row kept on feeding the feud with Bad Boys records and the rumor of 2Pac being alive and speaking through death like a Black Jesus. Bomb 1st member Banned who owns a lot of lost material said the song was at a time a Live Squad's song intended for their second album titled Diary of a Poor Man / Ghetto Blues in 94, but maybe more likely in a different version with a Majesty verse... or after 2Pac dropped the song from Volume 1.
  • Samples : 
109. Unconditional Love feat. Nanci Fletcher (chorus) / Johnny J
  • 1996/02/02. Me Against The World pt. 2. This song is often mistakenly considered as a reference for MC Hammer because 2Pac finally sold the song to him for his album Too Tight, what he also wrote two songs for (eponymous song and a very probably unrecorded "Make It Rain On Em"). In fact, this song was one of his title track, probably considered for a single, appearing in many tracklists of that second Death Row solo album project, and having many mixes (you don't make 4 mixes just to give a reference track to somebody...). The song is almost untouched in comparison of the original.
  • Samples : 
201. Troublesome '96 / Johnny J 
  • 1996/04/08 - 06 (~) (chorus added, new mix). This mix is supposedly the second mix of the song with 2Pac singing a "lalala" chorus, strangely incorporating behind the first verse a hidden verse known as "Criminal Timez" (what is probably a first version of "Made Niggaz"). 2Pac recorded this song for Me Against The World pt. 2 aborted 2nd Death Row solo album project, then planned to release in a new mix in 2Pac+Outlawz project (cf. Immortalz). The song is the follow up of the 92 title track of the blocked Troublesome 21 album (song finally released the 5th of August 1997 in Def Jam's How to be a Player OST).  This mix is slightly shortened in comparison of the second Outlawz mix. In the released single, Death Row also gave a short alternate mix of the song probably made a bit later during the One Nation 1st sessions or in the beginning of July '96 (cf One Nation, Volume 1). 
  • Samples : 
    • Whodini - "Friends" (drums, bassline interpolation)
    • Louchie Lou & Michie One - "Rich Girl" (vocals interpolation)

B-sides and Alternate versions

They also chose to include two b-sides : "California Love (Original)" and "Hit 'Em Up". They could release in a CD quality a lot of other b-sides like "If Heaven's Got a Ghetto", "Flex", "Nothing But Love", "Loyal 2 The Game", original "Cradle 2 The Grave"... "Toss It Up (Alternate Version)" is interesting for itself but not necessary. The real mistake is to have included a posthumous remix version of "All About U" with Top Dogg instead of Snoop Dogg, whereas the video version has the same mix and a new 2Pac verse...
 
They could also release a lot of alternate radio or video versions of the known songs. Some of them have new verses (like "How Long Will They Mourn Me", "All About U"), remixed beat ("Brenda's Got A Baby", "2 of Amerikaz"), remade music ("I Ain't Mad at Cha", "Life Goes On") but some clean lyrics could have weaken the album (like video version of "Hit 'Em Up").

There were also remix versions of these hits that could have be very interesting for fans like "I Get Around (Battlecat Remix)", "Me Against The World (Soul Power Mix)", "Temptations (Batttlecat Remix)", "Dear Mama (Death Row Remix)"...

206. California Love feat. Dr. Dre & Roger Troutman / Dr. Dre
  • 1995/11/02. Released in California Love single and in European versions of All Eyez on Me. It was initially a full Dr. Dre's song featuring Roger Troutman, probably intended to be in Dr. Dre's Chronic II aborted project. When Suge Knight enrolled 2Pac, he kind of forced Dr. Dre to give the track to promote the new star of the label... The principle was that everybody had to give his best current things for the next project of the label... But Dr. Dre was the founder of the label with Suge...
  • Samples : 
112. Hit Em Up feat. Outlawz / Johnny J 
  • 1996/03/29 - 04/19 (final mix). Released as a B-side to How Do U Want It (12'') the 4th of June 1996. This is in fact the second version of a song initially recorded in late October 95 for 2Pac's leftover project Thug Life : Volume 2 with Outlaw Immortalz. He re-recorded the song with a new Johnny J beat for his Me Against The World pt. 2 aborted project, before giving the song to the Outlawz Immortalz first LP project, including the song in the B-side of his album 3rd single in order to promote this forthcoming album, unfortunately shelved because of a dispute between Johnny J and the label concerning the royalties.
  • Samples : 

 
 



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