Scarface Album: “The Diary”

For those who don't know who this rapper is, he was part of the Geto Boys, which formed around the late 80's-early 90's. They were also best known for their incredible story-telling on 'My Mind's Playin' Tricks on Me'. In 1994, rap was at the top of the charts. With classic albums like Illmatic, Enter the Wu-Tang, Hard to Earn, Ready to Die, Enta Da Stage and more, Scarface put out an INCREDIBLE album that proved to others that the South could do it too.

The South doesn't play a particular role in the game as most of its rappers are weak (Nelly, Chingy, Cash Money etc.) but there were those who could rip it up (Geto Boys, OutKast, Goodie Mob etc.). Without the The Diary, rap wouldn't be quite the same.

Slick Rick was best known for his story-telling. Scarface is best known for also telling stories but with a gritty pace and dark mood. And believe me, his rapping technique is something quite different. He has an extraordinary powerful voice which will totally deafen your ears if you have this up loud. His voice is incredibly strong and while rappers like KRS-One, Ice Cube, Erick Sermon etc. have powerful voices, I reckon Scarface blows them all.

Now, on to The Diary. It starts off with one of the best intros I have ever heard. The piano piece in this is touching and soft but the end of it will give you quite a shock as guns are shot. Then it quickly enters the incredible The White Sheet, a song which is too gangsta for radio. Chorus is catchy and nice, Scarface comes out rough here. No Tears is a hit you'll love. He talks about revenge and uses powerful words to match his powerful voice. Jesse James is another big ups. He speaks very clearly about murder with an open mind. I especially love the lines (I pulled my .45 and buck, buck, buck, buck/and right before he die I f*ck, f*ck, f*ck, f*ck). A true classic. Next up is G's, which is much smoother than the other tracks before it. Nice but I've seen better. I Seen a Man Die is the track you're all looking for. His lyrics in this is AMAZING. Lyrics like "Now your time has arrived for your final touch/I see the fear in your eyes and hear your final breath" and "But if you ready close your eyes and we can set it free/there lies a man not scared to die, may he rest in peace" prove to you just how AMAZING Scarface is at writing lyrics. One is incredible too. It has a real gangsta beat and Scarface drops some hard rhymes here. Goin' Down is the party track here. He speaks of a girl and how he'd like to lay her down. By far the mellowist track on the album. One Time is the interlude and is exceptionally excellent. However, the next track is what I think is Scarface at his BEST. Hand of the Dead Body featuring Ice Cube, the only guest appearance on the album. INCREDIBLE, SPECTACULAR, A MASTER PIECE! Excellent beat matching tight rhymes equals perfection. Mind Playin' Tricks '94 is the remake of the Geto Boys hit single, My Mind's Playin' Tricks on Me and I must say, it's incredible. While sequels to the originals never come out right, Scarface somehow made this one another masterpiece. He still keeps it raw but I would have like to seen the Geto Boys on this song too. The Diary is what I suppose you can call Born Killer 2, his incredible rap battle song. Scarface drops the hardest rhymes on this song out of every song on this album. The beat is fast and dark. And what a way to end this MASTER PIECE with the incredible outro. The piano piece in the intro is extended and sounds like a classic. I would have like to see what kind of lyrics Scarface would write to this incredible piece of music.

The Diary. One of gangsta rap's hardest albums and even today, it still is. I would put this in the top 5 hardest gangsta rap albums, along with others like Straight Outta Compton, Rhyme Pays, Eazy-Duz-It and other ones. But trust me on this, this is a rap gem. So get it. It really is worth your money.

Best moments= No Tears, Jesse James, I Seen a Man Die, G's, Hand of the Dead Body and The Diary

"The Diary" (1994) is one of Scarface's best albums. A short release at 13 tracks (including intro,interlude and outro), I first got this album almost ten years ago as a gift. Sometimes a short release pays off as this one does, the first thing that grabs me on this is the intro which was original to me at the time, and the way it ended in gunfire. Scarface comes through strong on the next track "The White Sheet", I like the chorus to this track. "No Tears" is about looking for revenge on a friends killer. Face tells a story of murder on "Jesse James". The only guest appearance comes from Ice Cube on "Hand of the Dead Body" a dope hardcore collabration track. I have two favourite tracks on this one, both exceptional classic Scarface tracks "I Seen A Man Die" and "Mind Playin'Tricks". Both are excellent for there own reasons, both have Face exhibiting his premium dark storytelling skills. Scarface to me is definetly the best Southern solo rapper, and "The Diary" is an album for everyone who enjoys his music. People who are new to his music may want to start off with his best work of recent years "The Fix".

Scarface is probably most well-known for creating the classic rap song "No Tears" from the Office Space soundtrack. While that is clearly the best song on the album, there are certainly other good tracks to be found here. Scarface himself is a very likable and unique rapper who has a hard-hitting delivery that matches what he's rapping perfectly (he SOUNDS gangster). He's definitely one of my favorite MCs. The lyrics tend to be about gangbanging and making fun of people, and while they aren't necessarily deep (except for "No Tears") they are all fun to listen to (the only complaint I could make is that he uses the "F" world A LOT). Some of the lyrics are even hilariously quotable ("you're up against a stacked deck, n***a, so where yo manpower?", for instance). The production is pretty good here - it's a g-funk style that unfortunately isn't that good towards the end (it tends to dampen Scarface's voice which annoys me a lot). Every song here is good or very good, but it just seems to lack an overall consistently and pleasantness to warrant aa "5" star rating (arguably). Also, I didn't like the album a lot at first, but it definitely grew on me. I think that most rap fans will love this album, although I don't think other genre fans will. Still, I would highly recommend this!

Highlights include:

"The White Sheet"

"No Tears"

"Jesse James"

"G's"

"Hand Of The Dead Body (Ft. Ice Cube)"

Scarface displays why he's among hip hop's most legendary mc's on this album....'Face has got an uncanny ability to vividly take you inside his dark world....'Face drops many great storytellin' gems on this album....

Fav tracks include "seen a man die, white sheet, mind playin' tricks on me '94, hand of the dead body"...."hand of the dead body" is a classic track w/ an Ice Cube guest appearance...'Face and Cube team up to create a gem...."Never seen a man cry til I seen a man die" has got to be one of the more powerful and deep hip hop tracks Ive ever heard...THe song is chilling and very introspective....

Dont debate getting this album; if you're a fan of good music and hip hop, get this album NOW!

the diary is a classic. if your new to scarface, then you have come to the right place. geth this album and see what you have been missing out on. ive bought his whole collection one after another after hearing this album. this man is about quality!. not one bad album. hes also one of the few rappers that i feel rep the south in a great way and shows what they can be made of down there. this album is sooth. and i love it.