So why is Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
Raw yet meticulous. Highly political, as relevant now as it was in 1988. Caustic and savagely unique. Exceptionally crafted lyrics that are often surprisingly witty and even very funny (the song titles “Rebel Without a Pause” and “Party For Your Right to Fight” alone are brilliant).
It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back demands your attention and then manages to be wildly entertaining while at the same time delivering its well-crafted messages.
“Bring the Noise” is an all-time Public Enemy classic, a densely layered, hyperactive yet finely tuned explosion of hip hop energy, helmed by one of hip hop’s legendary rappers in Chuck D, and with help from the perfect complement in the wildly offbeat Flavor Flav.
A few years later, Public Enemy would collaborate with metal band Anthrax for an updated version called “Bring the Noize,” which became the greatest hip hop and rock collaboration this side of “Walk This Way.”
I adore the rollicking, room shaking funk hip hop jam that is “Louder Than A Bomb.” It also includes one of my favorite hip hop lyrics of ever: “My posse come quick, because my posse got velocity.”
You can listen to Public Enemy in different ways because there’s so much going on at any given time. For example, check out the turn table and sampling work going on with “Prophets of Rage.” It’s phenomenal stuff.
Also see:
- Public Enemy – Fear of a Black Planet: #730 of best 1,000 albums ever
- Chuck D – Autobiography of Mista Chuck: #867 of best 1,000 albums ever
Pop culture stuff that has something to do with Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
In 2010, I went out to the movies with my wife and in laws. And to this day, I’m grateful that I wasn’t the one who picked out the movie we would see.
That movie, my friends, is called Hot Tub Time Machine.
Now, don’t get me wrong. While it’s not the greatest movie I’ve ever seen, I found it to be genuinely hilarious. The others… uh, did not.
Anyway, the “inciting incident,” as it were, involves the fellas – played by John Cusack, Craig Robinson, Rob Corddry, and Clark Duke – getting exceptionally wasted while hanging out in the titular hot tub and… well, I think you can figure out the rest by way of the movie title. “Louder Than A Bomb” accompanies the scene and gives the proceedings just the right ludicrous, hyper speed vibe.
I should also add that there are a few epic scenes involving Rob Corddry’s Lou jamming out to Motley Crue’s “Home Sweet Home.”
Some stats & info about Public Enemy – It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? East Coast Rap, Rap, Hip Hop, Hardcore Rap, Political Rap, Golden Age
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – #15
- All Music’s rating – 5 out of 5 stars
- When was It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back released? 1988
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #627 out of 1,000
Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from Public Enemy’s It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
My posse come quick, because my posse got velocity.
What does the “best 1,000 albums ever” mean and why are you doing this?
Yeah, I know it’s audacious, a little crazy (okay, maybe a lot cray cray), bordering on criminal nerdery.
But here’s what it’s NOT: a definitive list of the Greatest Albums of All-Time. This is 100% my own personal super biased, incredibly subjective review of what my top 1,000 albums are, ranked in painstaking order over the course of doing research for nearly a year, Rob from High Fidelity style. Find out more about why I embarked on a best 1,000 albums ever project.