I must admit that I never really payed any attention towards L while he was alive but when his unfortunate death occurred, it made me curious to check him out considering how critically acclaimed his only album was. I bought it and I discovered a very talented MC. By the summer of 2000, much anticipation was built for this posthumous release and with good reason.

For the diehard Big L fan, they may have heard some of the material that appears here. "Ebonics" has circulated as a single in the streets and "The Enemy" has appeared on the D.I.T.C. album. But not everything is new. For those not very familiar with L, this will obviously sound fresh to you; but plenty of verses have previously appeared on freestyles but now it's provided with a new backdrop in an attempt to make it sound better. And they succeed.

Primo produces top-notch material for the three tracks touched, particularly "Platinum Plus" which Kane destroys. Pete Rock & Ron Browz do wonders for "Holdin' It Down" and "Size Em Up." Injected for the casual listener is "'98 Freestyle," which is often lauded as the greatest freestyle of all-time. L also shows diversity and impeccable storytelling skills as displayed by "The Heist" and "Casualties of a Dice Game" (despite its weak beat).

What I like about this better than other posthumous albums in hip-hop is that this actually sounds like the style of production that he would rock over. It's a great album and it only supports the claim that he is the "King of the Punchline." The 'ask Beavis / I get nuthin' Butt-Head' has become legendary. He's amazing lyrically. He raps the way he talks and raps with a swagger that Jay-Z would later inherit. He is dearly missed and it's unfortunate that he was only alive for one album to master.