Words by Jesse Serwer

The song “Babylon” on Book of David, the most recent album by DJ Quik, has Bizzy Bone of Bone Thugs N Harmony interpolating “Ring the Alarm” on the hook. It’s certainly novel to hear Bizzy apply his nasal Cleveland twang to some Tenor Saw, but the fact that it happened on a Quik record shouldn’t take anyone familiar with his catalog by surprise. The Compton representative has had a reggae/dancehall flavored tune on just about all of his albums. There’s often a skit-like quality to these tracks, and none are among his best known work, but collectively they go to show how the West Coast pioneer was more than just Way 2 Fonky: he’s one of hip-hop’s most diverse and multi-talented artists and producers. Here’s a look back at Quik’s most irie jams–’cause Kingston… is just like Compton.