E-40 Loyalty And Betrayal CD

If San Francisco rapper E-40 can stay out of jail, he may have a great future as a cartoon character. Most of his raps, when he's not talking about poppin' caps in people's asses, are hilarious. When he ducks the violence and misogyny of his contemporaries he devotes his energies to riotous and potentially tongue-twisting wordplay, which, to ears weary of explicit content, is a vastly more entertaining listen.

Things start off as they mean to go on from the intro, where a small, background, uncredited Jiminy Cricket-type voice undercuts E's macho pronouncements. "Loyalty and Betrayal" has the usual back-and-forth about who did what to whom, but the arrangement is catchy, and you find yourself humming it after a single listen. This is also the case with "Sinister Mob," which features a great insistent chorus that sticks with you long after you think you've shaken it off. E-40 isn't cute, and he isn't pretty, but he sure ain't all bad.

Engineers include: D-Wiz, Bosko, Mark Rains.

Personnel includes: E-40, Too $hort, Pimp C, The Click, Nate Dogg.

Producers: Battle Cat, Bosko, Rick Roc, Tone Capone, Outkast.

Personnel: E-40 (vocals); R. Scott, Nate Dogg (vocals).

Audio Mixers: Michael Denton; Daniel Romero; Josh Butler; Rick Rock.

Recording information: Bosko's Chicken And Beats Studios, Los Angeles, CA; DJ Silk's House, Westside, CA; EMI Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Infinite Sound Studios, Alameda, CA; Mizery Studios, Kansas City, MO; Orange Room, Danville, CA; Sound Tree, Atlanta, GA; The Cosmic Slop Shop, Sacramento, CA.

Guests: Nate Dogg,Too Short, The Click,Pinp C Of Ugk

Personnel includes: E-40, Too $hort, Pimp C, The Click, Nate Dogg, Ice Cube, Baby, Mystikal, Mack 10, 8 Ball, Jazze Pha, Suga-T, Al Kapone, Pastor Troy, Young Mugzi, Almost High, Jackie Childress, Otis, Shug, B-Legit, D-Shot, R. Scott, Kokane, Levitti.

Producers include: Tone Capone, Battle Cat, Bosko, Rick Rock, Tone Capone.

Vibe (11/00, p.160) - 3 discs out of 5 - "...Compelling...His biggest assets have always been his uniquely accented voice and clever use of language, both of which are instantly disarming and enchanting..."