In a way this review may appear to some people, well, a bit out of date or retro. It is just over twon years since this album was released, but because of my absence from Ciao, I have never had the chance to put my opinion forward. In fact, the majority of my opinions in the near future are likely to be about older products. Forget that thouh, enough of the psycho babble, lets get down to the reviewing.

Packaging: Unlike his previous three album releases, `The Eminem Show` has a much more vibrant front cover. I must just add before I move on that some people will argue that there were only two previous releases. For anyone that doesn't know, there was an album released in 1996 called `Infinite`. It was only released stateside and only sold in the region of 3750 copies so it has largely been forgotten about.
In a nutshell, the three previous covers were very bleak and dull. `Infinite` portrayed a universe with stars, `Slim Shady LP` depicts Eminem and his daughter on a moonlit pier, and `Marshall Mathers LP` shows Eminem sat on the steps of his childhood home looking very much depressed. The cover of this album is a million miles away from that. It shows Eminem on a stage in a black suit, surrounded by a huge red theatre curtain. The brighter colours give out a more uplifting vibe than before and I think that this is Eminem showing a more upbeat approach about his life. At the time of writing this album, Eminem seemed to be happier, mainly due to the fact that he was given custody of his young daughter `Hailie`.

The usual opening to an Eminem album. A funny, witty sketch featuring the Eminem alter ego `Ken Kaniff`, an openly homosexual guy that probably bears testament to why many people call Eminem a homophobic.

A typical Dr Dre produced track with an uplifting beat and various well placed sound effects. Eminem uses this song to put across a message about the fact that despite many people campaigning to get him out of the music business, the reality is that it is just a business and it needs him more than he needs it. This track was released on the UK although as far as I can remember, it wasn't that successful.

This trak has obviously been strongly influenced by his upbringing. He makes a lot of comparisons to how he will bring up his own daughter and that he wont make the same mistakes that his own mother made with him. Again, there are also strong references about the demonstrations that have been made against him. Overall, a very angry song with a very strong message. This track was also released in the UK as a single.

A very hard track to describe. In simple terms, it is a very bouncy and uplifting track. Here Eminem raps about various different aspects of america, including comments about President Bush and the current administration. Many references are made to terrorism and how America tends to react to it. The point that he tries to make is that the way things are going, the USA will end up moving back to the days of conscription.

In this track we see Eminem put across a very strong message about himself. He wants everyone to know that even when he is in the face of adversity, he will always bounce back. He makes a big point that, and I quote "These shoulders hold up so much, they won't budge, I'll never fall or fold up". It is basically a direct response to the events depicted in the previous track.

This is another song that revolves around how close he came to being locked up. He talks about whether he should have ever became a rapper and about the disadvantages of fame. The basic message is in the song title, the message that once this album has been released, he just wants to get away from it for a while and re-evaluate things. You can tell that he blames his ex wife for much of what has happened. This is epitomised in the simple line "I'm not about to lose my freedom for no female". Overall, the track is another insight into the anger and frustration that he feels.

The first track on the album that features a collaboration with another artist. That artist is Obie Trice who now has his own record on the the Eminem label 'Shady Records'. The track has a very strong moral message. It may surprise some people but it is a warning against having unprotected sex. The title 'Drips' is a basic slang word for a sexually transmitted disease, and is mentioned many times during the song. In a way, it nice to hear this sort of message on a album like this. The kids listen to every word these rappers say, probably even more than those of their parents, so it makes a change to hear something positive come from an album like this.

The track that was the first release from this album. I would imagine that even if people have not heard the album, they will have at least heard this track. As always, with Eminem, the first release from his albums always seem to be like this. An easy word to describe it would be 'comedy'. Anyone familiar with his previous work should understand what I mean by this. It doesn't sound like the rest of the album and is always accompanied by a hilarious video. The genius thing is that it seems to attract a wider audience and sells albums. I have spoken to several people who bought the album because of this song, even though it turned out they did not like the rest. In the UK, this single did rocket to Number one.

In a stark contrast to the previous track, I view this as the weakest track on the album. It is a dedication to his daughter so I understand that the song had to be of a softer nature but come on, this is not Eminem. He mentions at the start of the song that he can't sing but is going to anyway. The truth is, he is right. Say no more.

Another track with a strong beat that we all expect from a Dr Dre produced song. As ever, any track that features Dr Dre nowadays, is used by him to get back at everyone that critiscises him. This includes fellow rappers, industry moguls and the media. Both Eminem and Dr Dre do a very good job of putting the record straight to these people who knock them.

Another comedy sketch performed by the open homosexual, Ken Kaniff. It is probably another last dig by Eminem at anyone who takes him too seriously.