Camp Lo - Uptown Saturday NightA lot of my favorite moments around Camp Lo's first and unquestionably best record have come when I wasn't listening to the record: the moment when I picked up Marvin Gaye's I Want You and caught the cover homage, the time only a few months ago when the usually top-40-focused Entourage picked the group's "Luchini" for their Vegas ep, and - most importantly - the first time I heard The Avalanches' brilliant Since I Left You weave samples from "Sparkle" into its tapestry. But my absolute favorite moment is still a listen to the entire record I had four or five years ago. Walking around New York City, I put on the record, and one after another, every song came out a classic to my ears, and I immediately remembered why I had fallen in love with hip hop in the first place. Uptown Saturday Night is the perfect laid-back party vibe mixed with an updated jazzy hip hop sound that came off as fresh and unique years after the trend seemed played out. Listening to it now, it's still one of the best hip hop records of the 90s, and that same childlike enthusiasm for the genre comes rushing back.


Yeah, everything including the cover art was amazing for this album. Nothing sounded like it at the time and even today when I put it on it brings me back. I think I'll play it now actually.