Agnew's Mind He's got a long journey ahead of him.

The Chronic Vs. Doggystyle

VS. 

Tale Of The Tape:

The Chronic - 1992 - Almost 8 million sold worldwide

Doggystyle - 1993 - Almost 7 million sold worldwide

Track By Track:

The Chronic - Set the trend for West Coast rap as it moved into the 90s.  It was important as it was Dre's first attempt post-Ruthless. Launched careers of Snoop, Daz, Kurrupt, Warren G, RBX, Rage, Nate Dogg Mike Elizondo (Did work on every Aftermath CD including Eminem, G-Unit, etc. ) and brought The D.O.C. back into the limelight after his horrible crash.
1. The Chronic (The Intro) - A great track Dre cooked up popping the G-Funk's sound cherry. This marks the second time we've heard Snoop Doggy Dogg on a track (First ever was Deep Cover) Snoop comes hard and bashes Jerry Heller and Eazy E.
2. F*ck Wit Dre Day (And Everybody's Celebrating) - In an time where it was almost unheard of to release mainstream diss tracks, Dre and Snoop team up with a meanancing Dre drum loop (recorded live in studio) dissing Ruthless, Jerry, and Eazy. Later he quickly mentions Luke and Tim Dawg, a strategy Tupac would adopt when he recorded Hit 'Em Up. The whole song was about Biggie, Puffy, and Junior Mafia. Out of nowhere, Tupac let Chino XL have it. Line of the song: thought I was sleazy/Or though I was a mark cause I used to hang with Eazy.
3. Let Me Ride - Introduced me to what a "6-Fou" was. This song is so good on so many levels. From the amazingly laid back sampled beat, to the bridge which sounds like hydraulics, to the hook - this song was great. If you ever can dig up the rare gem of this song remixed with The Dogg Pound and a verse from Snoop and George Clinton - it's my favorite Death Row Era song of all time. Lyric of the song: So when I crawl I comes correct/Now, if your b*tch in my sh*t, it's your b*tch you check ni***.
4. The Day The ****** Took Over - In a rap trend during the 1992-93 era, EVERY rapper had to make a song about the LA Riots and how they all predicted it in the past. (See Ice Cube) Even Sublime thought they had to make a record about it. Lost in the sampling of newscasts was the awesome soundtrack Dre takes us through. As an 11 year old listening to this, I knew nothing about the situation or why or who was rioting when it happened. When I listened to Dre, he gave me the history lesson and it was justified. That's how I learned of the LA Riots. Standout Verse: RBX. On a side note, The Dogg Pound's debut on this track.
5. Nothin' But A G Thang - Classic. Everybody knows this song. The lead single from the album. The first song I heard from Dre/Snoop back on Power 99 in the 5th Grade right after "I Gotta Man" by Positive K came on.
6. Deeeeeez Nuuuuts - Funny phone call skit in the beginning debuting Warren G. Another G-Funk sound track. Dre and Snoop sound like they could kill you on this track... and you believed it. Daz raps again... in a normal voice. He sounds a little timid but still takes a shot Kriss Kross. Standout: Nate Dogg's debut as he sings the end of the song. Classic Nate Dogg.
7. Lil' Ghetto Boy - Very underrated track on this album ... hard to do, I know. Anyway, another Dre track laced with live drums in studio. Snoop sounds cryptic on this track and is easily one of their bests. This is the first serious track Dre and Snoop ever did. Snoop utters the words, "Murder was the case that they gave me" for the first time ever.
8. A ***** Wit A Gun - Never before has there been a more explicit song title. The hook was a bit weak, but the beat was unheard of at the time. This is how the word "instant classic" is an oxymoron. It's November 5, 2009 and I'm listening to this beat and still am as blown away as I was during 1992 in my room sneaking listens when my parent's weren't home. Dre ironically samples "Friends" By Whodini. One of the hardest tracks ever. Line of the song: "I've never did time on murder yet."
9. Rat-Tat-Tat-Tat - When you listen to this song... you think you are in Compton and "this is the for the hos that I used to know/when I didn't have a Six Fo' ...and a lota dough." One of the better hooks on the album. Dre's verses attack the beat in a way that he can't do anymore. Throw in a couple of "Hell Yeahs", Snoop talking at the end, and you have a classic.
10. The $20 Sack Pyramid - I didn't understand this in 5th grade on so many levels. From what they were talking about to what the parady was ... my friends and I just thought it was so funny because of the voices and cursing. In 2009, it's still funny -- but now I get it. Trivia: The D.O.C is the guy with the messed up voice.
11. Lyrical Gangbang- Best lyrical track on the album - that means all the good actual rappers are on this one. No Dre, Snoop , just Rage, RBX, Kurrupt. Lyrics are just not heard nowadays.
12. High Powered - One of the less exciting, laid back beats on the CD, Dre smokes and talks a lot in the beginning. RBX at least has a good verse and debuts the line, "I drop bombs like Hiroshima." Daz just talks at the end. So basically Dre and Daz talk and RBX has good verse over an average G-Funk beat.
13. The Doctor's Office - A skit about Dre just banging a ho in his office.
14. Stranded On Death Row - My favorite track on the whole album. The beat is so amazing, Kurrupt's first memorable verse. "Whoop ass like Van Dame." Snoop's last verse is a true standout and Rage drops her first verse. RBX is on here again with an awesome verse.
15. The Roach (The Chronic Outro) Not even a rap song, live instruments, RBX talking about chronic and cheeseburgers. I love the hook. Another interpolation but good anyway.
16. B*tches Ain't Sh*t - Not even on the original tracklisting. This was an old school hidden track. Almost like and encore. One of the best G-Funk beats of all time. A great storytelling (and rare) track from Dre and Snoop. Daz sounds weird on the second verse. Great album closer.

Doggystyle - The first CD I had purchased on the day it came out. November 23, 1993. Acutally, my mom had to buy it for me. She didn't know what it was, thank God. She probably thought it was another MC Hammer album. Set the stage for Snoop's career and blurred the lines of reality and entertainment. A short time before the release, Snoop was arrested for attempted murder. It's like when a pro wrestler bleeds when you are are kid. You know it's fake.... right??? Also, set the record for most albums sold in the opening week with 802, 858. That record would stand 7 more years until Eminem broke it with The Marshal Mathers LP.

1. Bathtub Skit - Snoop in the tub
2. G Funk (Intro) - If you thought The Chronic intro couldn't be topped, think again. The beat is G-Funk at its best with some of the bass ever heard to man's ears. Rage opens with a hell of a verse. Dre on the beat with some background stuff that sounds so good -- I don't know how to even describe it. Snoop melodic few bars ends the track before RBX says some weird stuff.
3. Gin & Juice - I don't have say anything here. Could be one of the best Snoop songs ever. Maybe better than What's My Name.
4. WBallz - Funny and starts a LONG chain of these throughut the years.
5. Tha Shiznit - Classic Dre drums. Great Dre beat and bass but I don't like how Snoop's voice started to evolve into lazy modern Snoop. You can kinda hear a SMIDGEN of it here.
6. Domino Skit - Features Domino ... often forgotten for the classic "Ghetto Jam" and "Sweet Potato Pie."
7. Lodi Dodi - Classic storytelling by Snoop , of course it was lifted from Slick Rick.
8. Murder Was the Case (DeathAfterVisualizingEternity) - Another story telling track from Snoop, inspired the movie and different version.
9. Serial Killa - Dogg Pound destroys this track and RBX is just okay. Snoop has one the better verses that reminds us of the Chronic.
10. Who Am I (What's My Name?) - Possibly the best rap song ever. Possibly. The lead single
11. For All My ****** & ******* - Another weaker beat, similar to Lyrical Gangbang. Great lyrics, though. Annoying hook.
12. Ain't No Fun (If The Homies Can't Have None) - A standout on the album. Great lines, a new style G-Funk beat, Nate Dogg -- Funny lines -- doesn't get better.
13. Chronic Interlude - Skit
14. Doggy Dogg World - Very slow, but a favorite and third single. He mentions the newcomer on the scene Coolio.
15. Class Room Skit
16. Gz and Hustlas- My personal favorite on the CD. Best rhymes, Snoop sounds really good, the beat is a KILLA.
17.Checkin' Interlude
18. Gz Up Hos Down (Only available on initial pressings) I got the CD on November 23, 1993 so I had this. CLASSIC. VERY GOOD SONG. I never heard anything like this at the time.
19. Pump, Pump - WHAT AN INTRO. Very hard beat and Snoop tries really hard with some young rapper on it. A good ender but nothing like The Chronic's closer. This track is like having Brad Lidge blowing like 5 saves all year. The Chronic's closer is like 2008 Brad Lidge. I don't think this was listed on the track listing at first -- as a hidden track.

Conclusion: I've just listened to both, back-to-back from start to finish. I actually surprised myself. Coming into this, my favorite was Doggystyle by a HAIR. When you sort through the way too many skits on Doggystyle, you still have a classic album. The beats are more evolved on Doggystyle. G-Funk was about 2 years away from seeing the end, but Dre is always one step ahead here. The lyrics are a tad better on The Chronic and the beats are more layered on The Chronic. Both albums have their respective themes and are amazing. To be precise, I will rank on a scale of 100.

And winner is....

The Chronic - 99/100 (No album can be perfect, I think. The album has one flaw. Can you spot it? )

Doggystyle - 95/100

About Matt

Staffer since 2005. Lured away from his independent, successful CorpusDz.com venture, Matt brings his jaded, "Positively Pessimistic" column to the site.