== 1991 - 2PACALYPSE NOW ==

  • November the 12th, 1991 
  • Recorded between end of 1990 and August of 1991 with TNT Recordings

 

Tracklist :

1. Young Black Male
2. Trapped feat. Shock G (chorus)
3. Soulja's Story
4. I Don't Give A Fuck feat. Pee-Wee of Gold Money
5. Violent
6. Words of Wisdom
7. Something Wicked
8. Crooked Ass Nigga feat. Stretch
9. If My Homie Calls
10. Brenda's Got A Baby feat. Roniece & Dave Hollister (chorus)
11. Tha' Lunatic feat. Stretch
12. Rebel of the Underground
13. Part Time Mutha feat. Angelique & Poppi (chorus)

Produced by The Underground Railroad :
  • Big D The Impossible (1, 3, 9, 10, 13)
  • Shock G (6, 11, 12)
  • Pee-Wee (2, 4)
  • Jeremy JZ Poppi (7)
  • Raw Fusion (5)
  • Live Squad (8) 
 
Backing Vocals : Shock G, Money B, DJ Fuze, Mac Mone, Pee-Wee, Ray Luv, Yonni, Playa-Playa...

Vinyl LP back cover


An explosive title

The title of the album is of course inspired by the title of the famous movie Apocalypse Now from 1979, directed by Francis Ford Coppola. The movie itself was inspired by the novella Heart of Darkness, published by Joseph Conrad in 1899. Both tell a progressive entry in a world of darkness. So the title could be interpretated as if 2Pac was kind of guide to lead listeners into the heart of the american ghetto, into the darkness or the blackness of that ghetto.
 
That title was also an alias of 2Pac at that time but also a remain of an unreleased and unleaked (maybe even unrecorded) song of the same name supposed to begin the album in some early tracklists, eventually produced by Sir Jinx (Dr. Dre's cousin, rapper and well known producer for Ice Cube, Kool G Rap, WC & The Maad Circle, Yo-Yo...). But Sir Jinx denied to have ever produced for 2Pac. Another handwritten paper mentions Big D as a possible producer but it is not confirmed yet by anybody. 

Early works to a whole new thing : The Undergroud Railroad

"underground railroad" is a reference to the famous network of clandestine routes and safe houses for runaway slaves to escape towards free states or Canada.
 
You can see in the early tracklists (cf. Tales of The 90's N.I.G.G.A.) how the album turned from a collection of early years songs (especially from Jungle Posse and Strictly Dope sessions) to a whole new album. The Underground Railroad is credited as the people who produced the album. It is a kind of collective mainly formed around Shock G and Digital Underground. Raw Fusion is the side group by Money B & DJ Fuze. Pee-Wee of Gold Money and Stretch of Live Squad also appear in Digital Underground second album. Jeremy JZ and Big D will also produce for Pac's second album. Big D remains as the main sound identity for 2Pac in 1991-1992. 

We could also consider the Underground Railroad as the Atron Gregory's TNT Recording team. Because the label released the albums of Digital Underground, Pee-Wee's Gold Money and Funky Aztecs, and Julian Brook's The Mod Squad (reggae voice as Wicked J giving a verse in original "Static", backing in unreleased "Fade Away" and "Neva Surrender"). TNT will be the label for 2Pac's second album, MC Smooth in 94 or Big Syke when he left Death Row in 96.


DETAILED TRACKLIST
(Special thanks to Bomb1st members Filla and Dominator for samples credits)

01. Young Black Male / Big D The Impossible
02. Trapped feat. Shock G (chorus) / Pee-Wee
  • 1990/10 (~) - 1991/05 (~) (final mixdown). Appears in early tracklist for the album in Oct. 90 (cf. Tales of a 90's N.I.G.G.A.). Partially written by Ray "Luv" Tyson, Tupac's partner in Stricty Dope group (cf. The Lost Tapes) and at the backing vocals of "Rebel of the Underground". Banned of Bomb1st forum says there are various alternate mixes - not very different - and a very first take maybe with a Ray Luv's verse. As the first single taken from the album, it was supposed to have a remix version (by Shock G), maybe the same song than "Trapped '92" that was supposed to be included in Troublesome 21 (cf. Ghetto Gospel).
  • Samples : 
03. Soulja's Story / Big D The Impossible
  • 1991/08 (~) (final mixdown). First chapter of Pac's alter ego named "Soulja", a dark-criminal-minded young black male. Tupac recorded many follow-up for this song : "When I Get Free", "Revenge of a Souljah" and "Souljah's Revenge" in Strictly 4 My N.I.G.G.A.Z. This altered voice appeared again in many other songs recorded in 93 for Thug Life projects like in "Death Around Each Corner (TL Original)" (cf. Do U Love The Thug Life ?) or in "Where Do We Go From Here" (cf. Honor Among Thugz / Exodus). Tupac will lastly refer to his dark minded avatar in "Ballad of a Dead Soulja" (cf. All New Heat / 100% Black Gold).
  • Samples : 
04. I Don't Give A Fuck feat. Pee-Wee / Pee-Wee
  • 1991/08 (~) (final mixdown). Pee-Wee is there credited as Pogo but it is clearly his voice (can be compared to his album with Gold Money, A Day in The Life of a Player).
05. Violent / Raw Fusion
  • 1991/06 (~) (final mixdown). Considering early tracklists in late 90, the song was initially intended to feature Ray Luv and Treach of Naughty By Nature. 
  • Samples : 
06. Words of Wisdom / Shock G
07. Something Wicked / Jeremy "JZ" Jackson
  • 1991/08 (~) (final mixdown). Jeremy JZ Jackson appeared as an engineer in Digital Underground's second album Son of a P. He will also produce the famous "Troublesome" for Pac's shelved second album (cf. Troublesome 21). Then he will mainly produce Boxcar Sessions, the first album of Saafir (who was like 2Pac a side member of Digital Underground in 1991-1993).
  • Samples :
08. Crooked Ass Nigga feat. Stretch / Stretch
  • 1991/06 (~) (final mixdown). The song will have a part 2 as "Crooked Nigga Too" in Tupac's shelved second album (cf. Troublesome 21). But it is rumoured that it could also be an original or alternate version titled "Crooked Cop Killer"...
  • Samples : 
    • Idriss Muhammad - "Crab Apple" (melody, bassline, drumline)
    • N.W.A. - "Gangsta Gangsta" (gunshots, vocals : "I got em", "suddenly i see some niggas i don't like")
    • N.W.A. - "Fuck Tha Police" (vocals : "criminal behavior")
09. If My Homie Calls / Big D The Impossible
10. Brenda's Got A Baby feat. Roniece & Dave Hollister (chorus) / Big D The Impossible
  • 1991/05 (~) (final mixdown). This song re-used the concept of one of his first song called "Babies Having Babies" with Mouse Man (cf. The Early Years). As second single from the album, the song has a Radio version with alternate vocals and mixdown (cf. Singles & Soundtracks).
11. Tha' Lunatic feat. Stretch / Shock G
  • 1991/06 (~) (final mixdown). This song replaced an initial "Revenge of the Lunatic" 7' song and re-used some of its lyrics (cf. Underground Railroad sessions). That original version was also supposed to be a single with a still unleaked remix version.
  • Samples : 
12. Rebel of the Underground / Shock G
  • 1991/06 (~) (final mixdown). Backing vocals by Ray Luv, Pac's partner in Strictly Dope, Shock G and by Yonnie Stokes. Yonnie is probably the Sista from the aborted Dayz of a Criminal project (cf. Early Years) and the Mysta from the "4 Colored Girlz Only" project, second side of The Kidz project (cf. Ghetto Gospel), and she may be also the girl rapping with Syke in "Thug Bitch" in late 93 (cf. Honor Among Thugz).
  • Samples : 
13. Part Time Mutha feat. Angelique & Poppi (chorus) / Big D The Impossible
  • 1991/08 (~) (final mixdown). Poppi will also be the singer of "Pappa'z Song" and of the original version of "Changes" (cf. Ghetto Gospel). I read somewhere that it was the pseudonym of the producer Jeremy JZ Jackson... Angelique could be just a background voice, and the female rapping could be Yonnie.
  • Sample : 










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