Radio 1985 Album

LL Cool J

I'm starting to revisit and review every LL album in chronological order. I had this at 2/5 originally and I've dropped it down half a star, as it's even less thrilling than I remembered. 'I Can't Live Without My Radio' should've ended at about 2:30. It goes on twice as long as it needs to with its boring beat. The next, 'You Can't Dance', uses some of the same instrumentation, and again, doesn't maintain my interest. 'Dear Yvette' has a laughable hook. 'I Can Give You More' changes up the production a little more than the same-sounding first three songs but still gets tedious. I think I'll end commenting on every song. 'Rock the Bells' is the best thing here. It doesn't drag on like the opener and there is a little more in the production. Albums like this are the reason why I'm apprehensive about checking out mid '80s hip hop. LL is entertaining at times, but the beats are just too primitive and similar from song to song. I could produce these songs in about 10 minutes. A few times as well, the chorus is just the beat riding. Objectively this may have been good for its time, but I'm rating this subjectively, and it does almost nothing for me. Beats: ★☆ Rapping/Bars: ★★★☆ Hooks: ★☆ Best Tracks: I Can Give You More, Rock the Bells