Young MC released his debut, "Ston Cold Rhymin'" off the hype of his hit single, "Bust A Move". The Eglish-born, New York raised rapper performed a mainstream Pop version of the genre at the time (1989), and little was heard from him following this album.
1. "I Come Off"
To kick the album off, we have something which is very much of the time as we get into something which fits the sounds of the late eighties, especially the Pop world and how it became a lot more Hip Hop-influenced as it had fianlly been recognised as a fully-fledged genre in its own right. Along with a sample of Doug E. Fresh's "The Show", you have a little Aaron Neville, and it really hypes the thing up as it begins.
**Four Stars**
2. "Principal's Office"
Tracks such as this one are likely to have really brought down his rep in the Hip Hop world, and really put him in a position where he seems completely wack in comparison to the Rakim, Big daddy Kane and N.W.A dominating rap at the time, and having a school boy rhyme from him. It is a stupid one, and only the Fresh Prince could have pulled it off at the time.
**One Star**
3. "Bust A Move"
This was the only real hit from the rapper, and using extensive samples and Red Hot Chili Peppers' Flea on the bass, this is a funky little tune which has the rapper really capture the time with a fun tune filled with lots of hype and relavent raps from the MC to accompany the excitng grooves. It left him as nothing more than a one-hit-wonder, but the tune itself is a big one, and one a Grammy.
**Five Stars**
4. "Non Stop"
This onen uses some Black Sabbath, and so attempts to show some originality in the way that many Hip Hop acts went beyond the typical grooves from Soul and Funk. However I didn't think that it was that it did a lot for it as it wasn't as engaging as the sort of thing we are used to when it comes to sampling in this genre. The poor rhy,es, which had him resorting to lines about Ghostbusters were as just a low quality as the production.
**Two Stars**
5. "Fastest Rhyme" (Lude)
6. "My Name Is Young"
This one has him really take things to a level where he hasn't up to that point as he comes with a speedy flow, which seems to blend the Old School style of the likes of Kurtis Blow, Melle Mel, and Whodini with the newer rappers of that time. With various Hip Hop samples being used in this one, it makes it quite lively and is bound to attract many.
**Four Stars**
7. "Know How"
This one uses the Shaft Theme as its introduction, and then "Apache" too to then come out with a fresh breakbeat. However when this type of ting is created, they tend to use something a lot more obsure than those, and it is what makes it seem so tacky. However as a listener going back, I can feel it in a different way as ot me it is funky, and at the time it would ahve just been played-out.
**Four Stars**
8. "Roll With The Punches"
This one has some fresh production in it, and it really improves the quality of things as if you just read the lines he comes with, you are bound to be disappointed by how pointless everything he says is. It is a fair one from him, and although there's not really a lot happening, you are forced to enjoy it with the feel of the beats (which use faux-Funk samples.
On this one you have Wild Cherry's "Play That Funky Music", and I felt as though it makes you lay off him for a while as the production gets him just doing something for the feel-good factor, and he achieves it with this and some Old School flows, which use the original Hip Hop phrases, and the same sort of care-free excitement of that time (late seventies/early eighties).
**Four Stars**
10. "Pick Up The Pace"
I just wasn't having this one as he pushed it too far with the way he took from other rappers. The construction of hooks was seemingly taken from Rakim in most of the tracks on the album, and for this one he blantantly rips the style of Run-D.M.C. with the way that he does some Rap Rock on top of heavy beats, smoothed out with funky percussion.
**One Star**
11. "Got More Rhymes"
You have more use of fake Old School Soul grooves in this one in order to make it out to be a retro-inspired album, but it really makes it sound quite tacky The use of some Eric B.-used beats was also seen as a desperate attempt (as I heard it) to get some real street cred from the big men of the game.
12. "Stone Cold Buggin'"
The beats to this one have clear been inspired by classic breaks, but they really don't manage to get where they need to be as you have it taken a step too far, and as a result, it just sounds like a poor man's imitation of what the East Coast Hip Hop world was going through. The same can be said about the raps from him (just as in the rest of the album) with lots of references to popular culture of the time and a lack of substance.
**Two Stars**
13. "Just Say No"
To end the album off, we have a tune which has him acting as a role model, which he is able to do as a Hip Popper, and so he comes with a positive rhyme for the kids and does one to encourage people away from peer pressure. This is once again completely wick-wick wack, and I can't imagine anyone one over ten finding this worthy of a second listen (if you even get through a single one).
**One Star**
This is quite an inconsistent one from the rapper, and it has him do both big tunes, but then mix this in with a range of wack tunes which are clearly just there to capture the naive young Hip Hop listener. I wouldn't recommend this album, but there are a few cut to look out for.
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