Can't Avoid This Bum Rush!

Public Enemy

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back

1988, Def Jam

produced by Rick Rubin and Hank Shocklee

Chuck D

Flava Flav

Terminator X

Johnny Juice Rosado

• Rebel Without a Pause
• Bring the Noise
• Don't Believe the Hype
• Night of the Living Baseheads
• Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos

Yeah, Boy!  Bring the Noise!  I will be honest.  I decided to check out Public Enemy after listening to the Rage Against the Machine People of the Sun EP which featured a cover of Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos with a Chuck D guest appearance.  This was also around the time that Flavor Flav began his ridiculous reality television career.  So... obviously buying this album was a great idea.

Produced by the Bombsquad and legendary Rick Rubin, this album features several Public Enemy classics, and also has a Flavor Flav solo track (Cold Lampin with Flavor) which proves he isn't completely clown shoes. The idea was to produce music that was fast paced, in your face, and full of rage. Bring the Noise encapsuled the entire philosophy of the record, that music is just organized noise.

The record is #3 on Slant's list of best albums of the '80s, #2 on Spex's list of best records in the 20th century, #7 on Q's list of best albums of the 80's, #48 on Rolling Stone's 500 best, and made Time's list of 100 best records. Kurt Cobain included it in his top 25 influential records.