Bullets Gots No Name

Master P "99 Ways To Die" (No Limit, 1995)


Master P "Bullets Gots No Name" (No Limit, 1995)

Wheels on the Tank is back again with the first record from the Tank's 5-Star General covered in this space.  99 Ways To Die is actually the third proper release from Master P (in addition to a couple of 12s), and the production remains on a strong West Coast vibe.  Beats are handled by the usual suspects from the early No Limit days:  E-A-Ski, CMT, Larry D., and K-Lou, though Bay Area O.G. Al Eaton lends his sampled funk to three tracks, as well.

This is a strong entry in the NL catalog that finds P refining his tales of the gangster lifestyle over thick, bass-heavy grooves and sinister synths on tracks like "17 Reasons" and "Dead Presidents", while "Baby Jesus" Eaton's electric piano and church organ vamps provide the backdrop for the thug lament of "When They Gone" (dedicated to Eazy-E who passed away earlier that year).

However, it is the title track that stands out as perhaps the most memorable and enduring on the album.  Larry D. lays down a fat, foreboding bass line (straight out of the World Class Wreckin' Cru playbook) and a woozy synth melody, as P lets the listener know there are 99 ways to die in his world...and only one way to stay alive.  It's a lifestyle that that leaves him searching for even the slightest of reprieves:  "Blood drippin' from my nose, I'm in a cold sweat/I done smoked this fool, can't sleep I need a cigarette."  It's clear that this lifestyle can take its toll on even a cold-blooded killer "dumpin' bullets in your back like young Scottie Pippen".

At the same time, though, P & Ski (along with Rally Ral) let you know that they won't hesitate to let 'tecs ring out on the Spice-1-sampling "Bullets Gots No Name":  "Hollow tips in ya, bang!/So duck when you hear that rat-tat-tat 'cause bullets got no name."  It's yet another example of how greatly the gangsta funk of early-90s West Coast artists influenced P and the pre-NOLA No Limit sound -- names like the RBL Posse and San Quinn don't usually come to mind when discussing this label, yet there they are sprinkled all over early compilations from the imprint.

But with that in mind, we'll be moving on from the Ski & CMT tenure behind the No Limit boards to the Beats By The Pound takeover, with a criminally slept-on artist who's 1995 album marks an important shift in the evolution of the Tank.  So check back here soon.

(All tracks ripped @ 320 kbps.)

Getting "Deep N The Game"

Lil Ric f/ Mr. Brainy "Mobbin' Through the Town"


Lil Ric f/ G.R.O.P.E. "Step Above the Rest" (prod. by Larry D.)

When Master P (or his grandfather?) received a large insurance settlement just before the turn of the decade, the young entrepreneur used the money to open the No Limit storefront in Richmond, CA in 1988. After putting out his debut album Get Away Clean on In-A-Minute Records and distributing copies through his store, it didn't take long for P to cut out the middle man and begin pressing up his own product on the newly formed No Limit Records.

Middling sales of the label's early releases, however, were tempered with the regional success of P's West Coast Bad Boyz compilations, which featured tracks from Bay Area underground stars such as JT the Bigga Figga, Cougnut, Rappin' 4-Tay, Young Cellski, C-Bo and P's own group TRU. The goal was to organize the stars of the burgeoning Bay Area scene to showcase the wide-ranging talent of the region (something that P would prove incredibly adept at doing once moving his operation to New Orleans).

Tucked away among the "bigger" names on the that first compilation, Anotha Level Of Game, was Lil Ric -- a rapper/producer from Richmond. His self-produced track, "Mobbin Through the Town" would lead P to release Ric's debut full-length, Deep N Tha Game, on No Limit in 1994 (his only entry in the NL catalog). Produced almost entirely by Lil Ric (though JT the Bigga Figga and Larry D. lend their skills to two tracks), the record proved to be one of the strongest releases from the label's early years.

Featuring a sound that is decidedly top-down, block-cruising g-funk, Ric boasts on the strength of his game with tracks like "Real-2-Reel", "Playaz and Hustlaz", "Fuck A Bitch" with Silkk and C-Murder, and the Warren G-evoking, KC and the Sunshine Band sampling "Ride Wit' Me".

"Mobbin' Through the Town" f/ Mr. Brainy and "Step Above the Rest" f/ G.R.O.P.E.* showcase the best aspects of this record -- Ric's ability to easily ride laid-back, weed-infused cuts and then switch it up double-time when needed, and trunk-rattling bass -- and are two of the stronger cuts on an LP that is worthy of spinning front to back.

*Little can be found on G.R.O.P.E. (or Grope) beyond a feature on Lil Ric's It's Like Armageddon release on Noo Trybe Records in 1998, and a couple of features on records from C.I.N. and Mafioso. As always, any additional information is appreciated in the comments.