Short Dog's In the House

After tasting multi-platinum success with 1989’s Life Is…Too $hort, Too $hort was out to prove the universal appeal of his inimitable brand of bottom-heavy hip-hop. Where labels saw segregated audiences of “East Coast” and “West Coast” fans, Too $hort saw only Too $hort fans. From Sacramento to Alabama, Wisconsin to Colorado, Short Dog shouts out every region on the title track, reaching out to corners of the U.S. that had been totally overlooked by the hip-hop world. L.A. producers Sir Jinx and DJ Pooh add fresh elements to $hort’s style, with the jazz sample-inflected “Paula & Janet” almost passing for something from New York. $hort interpolated the Donny Hathaway anthem of the same name for his hit single “The Ghetto,” a portrait of the crack-ravaged inner city that surprised critics. “Hard On the Boulevard” is an archetype of the cruising song that would soon become an integral element of West Coast and Southern hip-hop. Of course, it wouldn’t be a Too $hort album without some X-rated raps and old-school boasts: “Rap Like Me,” “Ain’t Nothin’ But a Word to Me,” and “Short But Funky” are definitive examples of $hort’s timeless style.