Artist: Eminem Album: Curtain Call: The Hits Release: 2005 Bitrate/Quality: 184 kbps (VBR) Style: Hip-hop Genre: Rap Length: 78 min 17 sec

 

Eminem finally dishes out Curtain Call: The Hits. It is an album that takes you from 1999-2005, and gives you a little taste of what's to come. Let's all hope that this isn't really the final curtain call for the multi-talented rapper...

"I have some songs that a lot of people like, I have some songs that only I like. This album is obviously for the 'lot' of people." Eminem

 

One of the hugest selling artists of all time with over 65 millions albums sold worldwide, Eminem finally dishes out the obligatory greatest hits – and unlike many rehashed ‘best of’ collections, this one is actually worth it. Curtain Call: The Hits is an album that takes you from 1999-2005, and gives you a little taste of what’s to come. It spans contributions from all four of Eminem's major-label solo albums: 1999's quadruple-platinum The Slim Shady LP, 2000's nine-times-platinum The Marshall Mathers, 2002's eight-times-platinum The Eminem Show, and 2004's Encore, which is almost five times platinum. Each of his first three albums also won the Best Rap Album Grammy (Encore will be eligible for the 2006 presentation). It's only six years since Eminem launched himself on the world's consciousness, but it seems like so much longer. Back in the mists of 1999, his producer and mentor Dr. Dre was in the middle of ensuring that hip-hop was still the most adventurous music in the world. American music was polarized by the pre-teen brigade led by Britney and Backstreet Boys and angry men in shorts like Korn and Limp Bizkit. Eminem's genius was to distill this millennial pop culture into something as powerful as a force of nature.

 

Rappers use up far more words in a song than your average rock star does – by the time Eminem appeared ready for retirement this year, it looked as though he'd simply said all he had to say. If indeed he has retired (and that's by no means a certainty), remember him this way – the thrilling self-reflexivity of Guilty Conscience, the knife-edge emotional switchbacks of Kill You. This collection is arranged out of chronological order. The highlights are nearly all from Eminem's first two albums. My Name Is's cultural references may have dated but its mix of fizzing humor and menace still sound startling. There's also the clanging The Way I Am. Best of all is 2003's Lose Yourself, from his surprisingly good film 8 Mile. The album also includes three new songs FACK, Shake That (featuring Nate Dogg) and When I'm Gone, each written and produced by Eminem. FACK again showcases Eminem's comic side and his willingness to push all boundaries, while When I'm Gone is a bittersweet goodbye letter. In addition, the Curtain Call: The Hits bonus track marks the album premiere of the controversial Eminem-Elton John live duet of Stan from the 2001 Grammy Awards presentation. The one omission that comes to mind is Superman, and also maybe Encore, but there are enough hits to make most people very happy.

 

However you want to label him, Slim Shady, Marshall Mathers or Eminem, this rap artist has certainly been one of the most important influences on popular culture in our generation. The 17 tracks presented are a reminder as to exactly why, should he retire, a great hole would be left in urban music. Eminem's four studio albums shattered so many sales records that you might think just about every man, woman and gerbil on the planet already owns a bulk of the songs that make up this greatest hits collection. But Curtain Call: The Hits presents the perfect opportunity to have another look at the life of Marshall Mathers. If this is indeed the finale to Eminem's career, Curtain Call: The Hits does act as a good representation of what he was all about. Eminem's best songs still have the power to disconcert and set a standard that all rock stars will struggle to match. Let’s all hope that this isn’t really the final curtain call for the multi-talented rapper Marshall Bruce Mathers III.
 

 

 

In a few short months, Eminem has gone from being one of the most heralded emcees in independent hip-hop to one of the most provocative, controversial rappers in contemporary pop music. The overnight success of his debut album, The Slim Shady LP, literally rocked the rap world, making him one of the biggest music success stories of 1999.

　　Before he had the world singing along to "My Name Is …," he was Marshall Mathers, a poor kid growing up in Warren, Mich. As a child, he and his mother moved constantly, staying at relatives' homes. As a result, Marshall found it difficult to make friends, and he retreated into his comic books and television.

　　When Mathers was 12, his mother finally settled down on the east side of Detroit. There, he attended Lincoln Junior High School and Osbourne High School. He battled against other rappers at his high school, and quickly gained a reputation as a nimble rhymer. But his penchant for skipping school led him to fail the ninth grade. After dropping out of high school, he held down several odd jobs, while continuing to work on his craft.

 　   In 1998, Eminem put out The Slim Shady EP, which contained the original version of "Just Don't Give A …" The EP made him an underground star, and Eminem was invited to appear on underground MC Shabaam Sahdeeq's "Five Star Generals" single, Kid Rock's "Devil Without a Cause", and other rap releases.

   　Shortly afterward, The Slim Shady LP debuted at No. 3 on the Album Chart. Its sensationalistic depiction of rampant drug use, rape, sex, and violence horrified some; equally disturbing was Eminem's various four-letter-word insults directed at his mother and songs like "'97 Bonnie and Clyde," where Eminem fantasized about killing the mother of his child.

　　As hectic as 1999 was, 2000 shaped up to be even more of a roller coaster ride. The millennium year saw the release of his third album, The Marshall Mathers LP, which promptly sold 1.76 million copies its first week out, an amount second only to 'N Sync. 　

  　 Then came the controversies, which included being sued by his own mother, an arrest for pulling a gun at a nightclub, his wife's suicide attempt, almost getting banned from Canada, an impending divorce, and his lyrics being cited in a Senate hearing on violence in the entertainment industry. 　

　    Despite all these distractions, Eminem still managed to stay in the No. 1 spot for an astonishing eight weeks, and he collected three MTV Music Awards: Video of the Year and Best Male Video for "The Real Slim Shady" and Best Rap Video for his collaboration with Dr. Dre on "Forgot About Dre."