Ugk Super Tight... CD

All songs written or co-written by Underground Kingz. Samples include "Thoughts Of Old Flames" (as performed by Pleasure), "Paul Revere" (as performed by The Beastie Boys), "Spinning Wheel" (as performed by Blood, Sweat & Tears) and "Fuck The Police" (as performed by NWA).

UGK's third release smoothed out some of the rough edges of their earlier efforts without even coming close to selling out, something that not only landed them in the Billboard 200 album chart for the first time but solidified their status as the leaders of Texas hip-hop. Well aware they were going to earn a new audience with the album, Super Tight... reprises one of Too Hard to Swallow's best tracks as "Pocket Full of Stones, Pt. 2" and adds an anthem for the duo with "Underground," a track that marries a George Clinton-styled chorus with stone-cold rhymes. The Bun B showcase "Feds in Town" is the fondly remembered gangsta track of the album, "Front, Back & Side to Side" gave both Mike Jones and Paul Wall their blueprints for success ten years later, and Pimp C's slow and funky beats reached maturity right here, but if there's one reason UGK arrived with Super Tight..., it's "It's Supposed to Bubble." The snide swagger so key to the duo is captured in two lines -- "It's Dom Perignon/It's supposed to bubble" -- as laid-back funk, deep bass, and jazzy guitar loops all come together in perfect harmony. It's the sound of UGK finding the perfect formula to take Texas hip-hop to another level, two years before their next album, Ridin' Dirty, would make them the undisputed champions of Lone Star rap. ~ David Jeffries

Underground Kingz: Bun B (vocals); Pimp C (vocals, programming).

Engineers: Tim Kinsey, Tim Latham, Matthew Burras, Sterling Winnfield, C.L. Butler.

Personnel: 3-2, Smoked (rap vocals); Leo Nocentelli (guitar); Pimp C (programming).

Audio Mixers: Roger Tausz; Tim Kimsey; Tim Latham.

Recording information: Big Ole Bud; Dallas Sound Lab; Digital Services; Studio 13; Ultra Sound Studios.

Additional personnel: 3-2, Smoke-D (rap); Leo Nocentelli (guitar); David Tornkanowsky (piano, organ); Chris Severin (bass).The Wire (p.44) - "[With] an increased emphasis on spiraling gospel organs, funk samples and a grainy organic palette of rhythms."
The Source (10/94, pp.84-86) - 3.5 Stars - Dope - "...The majority of their creativity is shown in the choruses and hooks....It may sound simple, but I guarantee you'll be repeating it for hours afterwards..."