One of
E-40's best albums -- and along with
Tha Hall of Game (1996), perhaps his best overall --
In a Major Way features the Bay Area rapper early in his career, when he was at his most inspired and focused. His previous solo releases (
Federal, 1993;
The Mail Man, 1993), as well as his work with
the Click (
Down and Dirty, 1994), had been formative and low-budget, released independently by his
Sick Wid' It label in association with a regional distributor. Sure, some of that prior work was great, particularly
The Mail Man and its breakout hit,
"Captain Save a Hoe," but none of it compares to
In a Major Way in terms of scale and consistency. Over the course of 16 tracks,
E-40 collaborates with his
Sick Wid' It stable of producers (
Studio Ton,
Mike Mosley,
Sam Bostic) and rappers (
B-Legit,
Suga T,
Celly Cel), along with outside talent. Newcomer
Funk Daddy produces three tracks, including the standout
"Sideways," while up-and-coming Bay Area rappers
2Pac,
Mac Mall, and
Spice 1 team up for another standout,
"Dusted 'n' Disgusted." Besides these two standouts, highlights of
In a Major Way include a pair of hit singles (
"1-Luv," "Sprinkle Me") that broke into the Billboard Hot 100, plus
"Da Bumble." In a Major Way does have its shortcomings, chief among them the production, which still sounds low-budget, if improved from prior releases.
E-40 made the most of what he had to work with at the time, though, and for a mostly in-house album,
In a Major Way is an impressive showcase of the talent at hand.
E-40's raps would improve over the years, as would his production stable and his recording budget, yet few albums in his catalog rival
In a Major Way, which track-for-track is remarkably solid and thoroughly entertaining. ~ Jason Birchmeier
