So why is The Eminem Show on this best 1,000 albums ever thing?
“Without Me” has been on heavy rotation on various workout playlists of mine for over 20 years now, which means first and foremost that I’m getting old-ish these days(!).
But in revisiting The Eminem Show, I realized that it’s the relatively slower-paced tracks – in which Eminem is in a somewhat more “serious” mode – that elevate this album as worthy of being included in the Top 200 of the best 1,000 albums ever.
Eminem is endlessly creative, and not just in terms of his world-class rapping skills and delivery. I find the way that he slips into different personas, (literally) different voices, and different modes of lyrical storytelling to be incredibly inventive and exciting.
The best of these tracks includes “Superman,” featuring Dina Rae, and “Cleanin’ Out My Closet.” On “Superman,” Marshall Mathers puts on a player-like character, smarmily scamming on a young lady, before switching off into that fictional character’s “true voice,” exposing a blizzard of toxically masculine traits.
Much like smart and well-written stand-up comedy that’s considered “edgy,” it’s very easy for casual fans (and lazy critics) to take Eminem’s comedy and satire as his unvarnished opinion. This is unfortunate, as it’s often smart, insightful, and even funny.
They call me Superman
Leap tall hoes in a single bound
I’m single now: got no ring on this finger now
I’d never let another chick bring me down
The slow, melancholy, and mesmerizing music production on “Superman” is referred to as “Southern bounce” by HipHopDX, which is a pretty interesting way to frame it.
“Without Me,” on the other hand, is a danceable, fun ride that’s Eminem’s tribute-of-sorts to Dr. Dre’s “Forgot About Dre” – the theme being: guess who’s back, back again?
It’s also an absolute smasher and an endlessly head bobber of a track. I’d have a hard time not putting it on Eminem’s all-time Top 5 songs.
Everybody only wants to discuss me
So this must mean I’m disgusting
But it’s just me, I’m just obscene (Yeah)
Though I’m not the first king of controversy
I am the worst thing since Elvis Presley
To do Black music so selfishly
And use it to get myself wealthy (Hey)
There’s a concept that works
Twenty million other white rappers emerge
But no matter how many fish in the sea
It’d be so empty without me
And while Eminem’s longtime producer and collaborator Dr. Dre steps in front of the mic with Mathers on “Say What You Say,” the strongest collaborations on The Eminem Show are two other tracks: Nate Dogg appears on the aggressive “Till I Collapse,” and Eminem’s old crew D12 joins him on the harpsichord-driven, “When The Music Stops.”
Some stats & info about The Eminem Show
- What kind of musical stylings does this album represent? Hip Hop, Rap, Hardcore Rap, Dance Music
- Rolling Stone’s greatest 500 albums ranking – not ranked!
- All Music’s rating – 4 out of 5 stars
- When was The Eminem Show released? 2002
- My ranking, the one you’re reading right now – #171 out of 1,000
The Eminem Show on Spotify
A lyrical snippet from The Eminem Show that’s evocative of the album in some way, maybe
Now this looks like a job for me, so everybody just follow me.
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.