In the interest of full disclosure, let me say that this is only the second rap record I've ever bought, the first being Everlast's "Whitey Ford Sings the Blues." I'm a 47-year-old rock fan who grew up on the Stones, Cream, and Hendrix, and know very little about hip-hop. I heard of Everlast through his guest spot on Santana's album, and after seeing him open for Santana, decided to try one of his records.

That said, this is one of the most enjoyable new albums I've come across in years. I literally can't get enough of it, and have gone so far as to buy a second copy, so I can have it available in the car as well as at home.

True, this is mostly a rock record. The tracks "I Can't Move," "Black Coffee", "Babylon Feeling" and "Graves to Dig" are worth the purchase price, featuring lush arrangements, great lyrics, and powerful themes.

Having been drawn in by the songs, I've discovered at my advanced age that there's a lot to be said for driving down the highway with some thundering rap vibrating the windows and annoying neighbors.

When I heard his previous solo album 'Whitey Ford Sings the Blues', I wished there was more folk rock on it like "What It's Like". Well, Everlast just granted my wish. But now I wanna take it back :o)

This album is excellent. But it doesn't have much rap on it and experiments more with the folk blues thingy - expanding on that. There's nothing wrong with that though. It's a great blend of a little bit of everything. Great production. I like the cello and violins added to his music. It gives his style a warmer and wider sound. Just listen to the intro "Whitey" and hear how much potential it has.

But, like I said before, it lacks a bit in the rap department like WFSTB's "Funky Beat". I loved that one. That album was slightly better. But you should still get this one. It's great! Let it grow on you and you'll love it. After a while I did notice I was skipping a few tracks occasionally. But that's mostly because I'm too anxious to listen to my fave tracks of the album.

Those still are "Black Jesus", "I Can't Move", "Love For Real" and "Black Coffee". I think the latter is the best and most underrated song on the album. A true masterpiece. Such a simple but soothing and powerful song. But maybe it means so much to me cos it touches me personally and reminds me of past events of my life.

So far I'm more than pleased with Everlast's work. His two latest albums made him my favourite contemporary artist. His music is timeless.

For some people, this would count as Everlast's "difficult second album" regardless of the accuracy of such a statement ("Forever Everlasting" was his debut solo album, making this his 3rd). But, there have not been many albums in the 90s which are so focussed and perceptive as this one.

Everlast would appear, on the surface at least, to have jumped on the "let's try some odd combinations and see if they work" bandwagon which seems to be taking a lot of the music world by storm (Wyclef, I am looking in your direction). Not that this is a bad thing, but there's only so much that can be got out of it.

On closer listening, the album reveals the first of its many secrets. The apparently random nature of the guests is actually organised so that Everlast can demonstrate his own skills in performing many different styles.

All the tracks on this album are moving in some way or another - maybe not on first listening, but after you've got past some of the symbolism you'll beging to feel very emotional at most of them.

"Black Jesus" - Everlast singing what sounds like a very old blues song with modern lyrics ("Bloods keep bloodin'/Crips keep crippin'") while playing an acoustic guitar - may have been the lead off single but isn't the strongest track on the album, despite the power invested in the lyrics by Everlast's deep growl.

The better tracks here seem to be the quieter, reflective tracks. "I Can't Move", "Love For Real", "Babylon Feeling" and "Black Coffee" all have the effect of making the listener stop and take stock of the situation. "Graves To Dig" is another track in this vein but the abstract nature of the lyrics creates a feeling more of fright rather than anything else.

Another one of the best tracks is "Children's Story". According to the liner notes, Rahzel provides "human beatbox, human bassline, sound effects and all other cool stuff" on this track. The effect of having all the sound effects ("Uncle Whitey, tell us a story" and so on) being provided by Rahzel gives the track a comical edge which belies the harsh anti-crime message of Everlast's lyrics. The bassline is done so well it takes a long time to pick up that it isn't computer generated.

The album also features cameos from rappers such as B-Real. While this has the feature of showing that Everlast is true to his roots, it also shows just how much above the hardcore of hip-hop he has risen since the end of House Of Pain.

The only downside to this album is the simplicity of Everlast's guitar playing. But, when you're as talented as he is with the words and can get people like Carlos Santana to provide the music, you really don't need to be perfect everywhere.

In short, another superb album to expand the horizons of the hip-hop listener and introduce more people to the delights of the top end of hip-hop.

Though this album has some really great songs, if you want Whitey's best then just pick up Whitey's Ford Sings The Blues , his best album

Amazing cd, a hard-core rapper turned rock musician, his opening flow says it, "think i stopped rhyming, because I started singing, picking on a six string wrist bling blinging". It was nice to see someone take the time and write a meaningful lyric, he experiments with new sounds adding violins on some tracks and a noticeable harp on "graves to dig". Its got a folk feel mixed with hip hop attitude. This is one of the best cd's of the year, it is noticeable that he took his time to create each track, and our ears are the beneficiaries. Until this cd, I had never heard a bassline hit with a violin stringing in the back, great cd, If you are tired of hearing meaningless rock/rappers spit then pick up everlast and join in the passion every track has.