It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back

From HitStory, the pop encyclopedia of School of Rock · Work

It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back · After the debut Yo! Bum Rush the Show, Public Enemy wanted to make a record with more pace for their live shows, and at the same time the hip hop equivalent of Marvin Gaye's What's Going On. The group recorded the album in 1987 and 1988 in New York. The recording reportedly cost about 25,000 dollars and took thirty days, thanks to a great deal of preparatory work in their own studio on Long Island. The production team, the Bomb Squad, built a busy, aggressive sound with influences from free jazz, heavy funk and musique concrète, over which the rapper Chuck D laid his political lyrics.

The album was released on 28 June 1988 and received wide praise for its production and lyrics. In The Village Voice's Pazz & Jop poll it was by a wide margin the best album of 1988. Rebel Without a Pause does not run on a sample of Funky Drummer: Flavor Flav played the rhythm on the drum machine throughout the entire track.

Listening

Track list

1. 1Countdown to Armageddon1:41Apple Music ↗
2. 2Bring the Noise3:46Apple Music ↗
3. 3Don't Believe the Hype5:19Apple Music ↗
4. 4Cold Lampin' with Flavor4:17Apple Music ↗
5. 5Terminator X to the Edge of Panic4:31Apple Music ↗
6. 6Mind Terrorist1:21Apple Music ↗
7. 7Louder Than a Bomb3:38Apple Music ↗
8. 8Caught, Can We Get a Witness?4:53Apple Music ↗
9. 9Show 'Em Whatcha Got1:56Apple Music ↗
10. 10She Watch Channel Zero?!3:49Apple Music ↗
11. 11Night of the Living Baseheads3:15Apple Music ↗
12. 12Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos6:24Apple Music ↗
13. 13Security of the First World1:20Apple Music ↗
14. 14Rebel Without a Pause5:03Apple Music ↗
15. 15Prophets of Rage3:19Apple Music ↗
16. 16Party for Your Right to Fight3:26Apple Music ↗

30-second previews via Apple Music. Listen to the whole album on Apple Music ↗