Eazy-E reviewed
Eazy-E
Featuring . . . Eazy-E
(Capitol/Priority)
This stray-tracks compilation of out-of-print pieces and collaborations cuts right to the essence of N.W.A founder Eazy-E, though such a feat is hardly difficult.
Almost as shocking as Eazy’s cartoonish tales of street violence and dead-horse misogyny (or the fact he always sounded like a poodle next to Ice Cube and Dr. Dre’s bulldogs), was how quickly he ran out of ideas. Maybe you hadn’t gleaned that from his three EPs and five albums (combining solo and N.W.A), in which case, count your stars Featuring . . . Eazy-E has landed to corroborate the evidence. He may have figured out how to stir the pot with his vast arsenal of expletives (it’s actually more startling when he doesn’t swear, once opting for “butt” over “ass”), but musically he chased cars. You almost feel sorry for him on the remix of “Boyz In Tha Hood,” as Dre tosses E a Parliament sample from the trash heap. If Eazy had dumped N.W.A. sooner or finished his career behind the scenes (he cultivated Bone Thugs-N-Harmony) his story might be legend. Instead, the five years upto his death were a case of the emperor’s new clothes.
— Steve Forstneger
