Review Summary: Heavy D & the Boyz come through Big Tyme. We Got Our Own Thang, Somebody For Me, Gyrlz They Love Me, & More Bounce
The year was 1989, Hip Hop was still recovering from 1988’s bum rush of amazing classics. Public Enemy and BDP had brought consciousness to the rap forefront and NWA was making everyone want be a “gangsta” from Compton. This left everybody else to figure out where they fit, De La Soul had just released their classic “3 Feet High and Rising” and the Beastie Boys were about to release their masterpiece “Paul’s Boutique”. In the early summer of ’89, Heavy D & the Boyz dropped their second album, ‘Big Tyme”, a smooth and danceable hip hop classic. A year before MC Hammer crossed the hip hop game over, “Big Tyme” put out some hip hop club hits like “We Got Our Own Thang” & “Somebody For Me”.
The quick-tongued Heavster was backed by dancers G-Whiz, the late, Trouble T-Roy and along with their producer/DJ Eddie F they set out to fill the gap and make their mark. They corralled a “who’s, who” list of producers, like their own DJ Eddie F., Marley Marl, a ‘Midas touched” Teddy Riley, and a young Pete Rock.
You know you got something when from the beginning of the Teddy Riley produced “We Got Our Own Thang”, where Heavy D lays out his infamous “bum-deedle-deedle –dees” over a quick moving, butt shaking beat. The chill, Eddie F & Pete Rock produced “Somebody For Me”, which has an “about to blow up” Al B. Sure! rocking the chorus is the smoothest track on the album. Legendary Marley Marl provides his genius touch to the hit “Gyrlz, They Love Me”, that has an almost reggae sound that also matches up well with the similar “Mood For Love”. The DJ Eddie F. produced “Moure Bounce”, with it’s heavily Zapp sampled beat, showcases Heavy’s vastly underrated flow, while in the mean time setting up the bravado-ish style on “Flexin”.
Overall this album evened out the madness that was the summer of ’89. One side had everyone raising their fists being proud, while the other side had everybody wanting to throw their fists and be hard… “Big Tyme” provided some sanity and relief right smack dab in the middle. In the end, Heavy D and the Boyz did what they wanted to do and they more than filled the gap and made their mark with this all around effort.
