From Amazon.co.uk
Compton-born Artis Ivey Jr was well into his 30s by the time he made it big. Having served his time in old-skool rap acts like WC and The MAAD Circle since 1979, his breakthrough finally arrived in 1993 with the jubilant party anthem "Fantastic Voyage", but it was the
Stevie Wonder-sampling "Gangsta's Paradise" which made Coolio a worldwide name, selling 4 million copies (the biggest-selling rap record in history) and earning him a Grammy.
The fact that success came so late to Coolio was audible in every groove. The mello yello melodies and rubbery basslines had more in common with the phat-bottomed P-funk he grew up on than the G-funk that was in vogue. And his been-there, done-that maturity showed too, especially on this, his third album, with cautionary tales about crack and guns. My Soul is littered with the obligatory guest spots from the likes of G-funk crooner Montell Jordan, rapper Ras Krass, Coolio protegés 40 Thevz and legendary soul harmonists The Dramatics, and sometimes bizarre samples. "Ooh La La"--which lifts from Grace Jones' "Pull Up To The Bumper" to superb effect--makes perfect sense, but the biggest hit here is an unfortunate relic from the rap/classical crossover fad which gripped the world in late 1997: "C U When U Get There", based on Pachelbel's "Canon In D", might be a little too saccharine for some tastes. -- Simon Price
