As producer of Eric B & Rakim, Pete Roc, A Tribe Called Quest and Nas, William Paul Mitchell, aka The Large Professor, played an important role behind the scenes of hip hop. After years in the background, he thought the time was right for his own album. 1st Class surprisingly comes out on the indie label Matador, which usually mainly releases alternative rock. The hip-hop of The Large Professor
… therefore has little to do with the commercialized hip-hop from the charts. The music on 1st Class is more reminiscent of the 'old skool' sound, where bare, funky breakbeats are rapped. The professor is assisted on this album by his loyal students Nas, Q-Tip (from A Tribe Called Quest) and Busta Rhymes. (MS)more
