Guru - The Best of Guru’s Jazzmatazz/
Virgin Records
GangStarr was among the jazz-rap forebearers of the early ‘90s. But when rapper Guru began his solo Jazzmatazz series, he pushed the genre’s conventions even further, collaborating with instrumentalists and vocalists ranging from N’Dea Davenport to Donald Byrd. This set is a perfect summation of Guru’s ambitious side-project, including highlights from each volume. It doesn’t all work, but the underappreciated Roots collabo “Lift Your Fist” and the near-classic “Loungin’” (with the aforementioned Byrd) show just how sublime these efforts can be. -dusty culpepper
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