John Singleton
's debut as a director,
Boyz N the Hood
, was naturally compared to other urban
dramas
that came out during the early '90s -- such as
New Jack City
,
Straight out of Brooklyn
Menace II Society
Fresh
Juice
, and
South Central
. While the
soundtrack
for
was heavy on late-'70s and early-'80s
funk
, the
soundtracks
released for all the other films were filled out with up-to-date
hardcore rap
and youthful
R&B
, so they too were stacked up against one another.
's
is uneven as the others, though it does contain a handful of tracks that no fan of early-'90s
rap
should be without. (Granted, most of them had already appeared on studio albums by the respective artists.) While none of the
cuts are poor, not a single one would be remembered if they weren't bound to scenes in the film. Bits of the evocative score, from
Stanley Clarke
and
Quincy Jones
, are also included. ~ Andy Kellman