Revenue Retrievin': Day Shift

A comparable but slightly superior outing to E-40’s nightlife-oriented Revenue Retrievin’: Night Shift, which was released on the same date, Revenue Retrievin’: Day Shift finds the Bay veteran sticking more closely to his comfort zone and making songs about what he knows: the streets. Crammed with diss-tracks (“B*tch,” which features the originator of the term “beeotch,” Too Short), cautionary tales of running drugs (“I’ma Teach Ya How to Sell Dope,” “The Weedman”), and stories about gangbanging (“The Art of Story Tellin’,” “Duck”), the raw content is perfectly fitting for the minimalistic production that spans the two discs. E-40 returns to his roots with a grimy sound and roomy kick-snare beats — courtesy of Rick Rock, Willy Will, and E-40’s son, Droop-E, among others. Also joining E-40 is a lengthy list of guest contributors, including Gucci Mane, B-Legit, Mike Marshall, Suga T, J. Valentine, and Stressmatic. Even as individual discs, Day Shift and Night Shift are too bloated to be truly excellent, but as exhaustive as the material is, there are a fair number of gems on board, and E-40’s wordplay is as unrestrained and provocative as ever. – Jason Lymangrover