DJ Spair, founder of the Oakland Faders, has a shiny URB Magazine mixtape award on his mantle. Next to the mantle, on the floor, there are crates and crates filled with records from a pretty sweet era of hip-hop. The forty tracks on Hip-Hop's Best Kept Secret remind us how hard-hitting the Cool C stuff was, moving into Poor Righteous Teachers, MC Lyte, BDP, The Biz, Special Ed, Stetsasonic. Remember that video where Master Ace is sportin' cowboy stirrups? Marly Marl? Peep track 22. Unfortunately, he spends only a minute on a jaw-dropping turntable workout where he slows "Billie Jean" down to a stumbling scratch-fest. The album's definitely worth checking out, if not for his exercises on "Don't Believe the Hype" then for the quality selection of '80s and '90s Dre and Ed Lover faves. Spairing no room for Main Source on this one, though? 'Sup with that?