The Hip Hop Box

Who knew that “Rapper's Delight” would kick-start the most thorough alteration of pop culture since rock & roll itself? Marking 25 years of commercial hip-hop recording, this four-CD set gathers dozens of key tracks for connoisseurs of every age. In fascinating fashion, it brings together early strains of party rap, gangsta styles, and socially conscious lyrics from a time when they happily coexisted, while showing a convincing grasp of later developments as far afield as Timbaland & Magoo and 50 Cent. (A lack of permissions no doubt accounts for the absence of Eminem, Missy, the Beasties, and Slick Rick.) Every fan, of course, will have his or her own list of must-hear tracks, but this set will earn its place in many an SUV's disc changer. –Rickey Wright