It’s time to finally knock out another long-requested ranking!
We got Layzie
and Krayzie
Bizzy’s in the house
Wish is in the house
And Flesh
(And shout out to Shatasha!)
In an era overstuffed with half-singing rappers who ramble about their pharmaceutical choices, it’s time we showed love to the pioneers. Nobody – and I mean NOBODY – sounded like Bone Thugs-N-Harmony in the mid 90s. Their double time flows were razor sharp – they were fast, sure, but you could hear every syllable clearly. Their soulful harmonizing stood toe-to-toe with the big names of R&B in the moment. Their eerie presence had half the parents in America clutching their pearls and praying for the souls of their kids – and as you can imagine, that controversy only added to their legacy.
The story of Bone Thugs is a very long and winding road, but today we’re only going to look back at their official studio albums. No solo projects, no side hustles and no mixtapes BUT I’ll make an exception for one very important EP.
BTNH unknowingly laid the foundation for a generation of rapping crooners, but none of ’em could do it like the Thugs.
11. New Waves (2017)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5
Edd said: We’re starting off with the ending – the finale Bone album to date – and at this point we’re down to just two members, Krayzie and Bizzy. This was another attempt at reinvention for the group, and if you wanted to hear Bone rapping over EDM and pop production, this album is for you. Which means this album ain’t for me. Credit where it’s due – Krayzie and Bizzy clearly wanted to present messages of hope and positivity and lyrically they aren’t phoning it in. But hearing Bone over roller-skating jams just gives me 404 error messages in my brain. It’s a difficult album to score – it’s not horrible but it also just doesn’t work.
Forgotten favorites: “Change the Story”
10. Uni5: The World’s Enemy (2010)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5
Edd said: The reunion! All five Bone members were back together for the first time in about a decade BUT … it’s not the roaring return to form we wanted. The energy is upbeat, it’s great to hear Flesh and Bizzy back in the fold after their absences, and we get lots of flashes of previous greatness. But the overly glossy production feels really out of place. “Everytime” would be a cool beat for LeToya Luckett or somebody, but not at all for the Bone Thugs. Autobiographical moments like “Pay What They Owe” hit hard, but we just don’t get enough of them.
Forgotten favorites: “Meet Me in the Sky,” “Pay What They Owe”
9. Faces of Death (1993)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3 stars out of 5
Edd said: Only the hardest of hard core Bone fans probably know this, but Faces of Death is the original Bone Thugs debut – not Creepin’ on Ah Come Up, not E. 1999. Then known as BONE Enterpri$e, this feels more like NWA on fast-forward than the harmonizing horrorrcore stars they’d soon morph into. The talent is there but it’s still very raw and unrefined. I’d say it’s a great showcase of their budding talent but it’s not a great album by any means.
Forgotten favorites: “Sons of Assassins,” “Bless da 40 oz”
8. Thug Stories (2006)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Edd said: By 2006 Bone was down to a trio – Flesh-N-Bone was incarcerated while Bizzy was excommunicated. However, this leaner unit still proved pretty potent. After years of more lighthearted projects, Thug Stories slowly introduces a more gritty feel back to the party. The sample-heavy production is a little TOO 2006 though –it’s always weird to hear Bone over trendy production when they made their name by carving their own sinister path. More tracks like the blaxploitation leaning “So Sad” would have been a better look. Thug Stories is a solid but not-so-spectacular listen.
Forgotten favorites: “Don’t Stop,” “So Sad,” “Stand Not In Our Way”
7. Thug World Order (2002)
Soul in Stereo rating: 3.5 stars out of 5
Edd said: Time for another sonic reset! Thug World Order is a reflection of Bone’s evolving 2000s sound. The rhymes were still rapid fire but the production was a little more mellow and the lyrics a little more introspective. That’s best showcased by “Home,” which got round-the-clock airplay on BET in 2003. The heart is there but the album is hindered by shockingly so-so hooks, which usually a high point on their early projects. Good intentions don’t always work out perfectly.
Forgotten favorites: “If I Fall,” “All the Way,” “Cleveland is the City”
6. The Art of War: World War III (2013)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Edd said: After the big reunion on Uni5, World War III narrows Bone back down to, fittingly, three members. Krayzie and Wish had bounced by this point, but still pop up occasionally on pre-recorded material. Serving as the successor to 1997’s Art of War, Bone revisits their darker, more aggressive era here. It’s great hearing Bone sound like Bone again. Flowing over a 2pac flip on “Bone” or the West Coast groove of “Bring it Back” just feels right – that is, until we get hit with autotune, Ty Dolla Sign and other annoying 2013 bells and whistles. But to be fair, those missteps are few and far between. This was a nice return to the original Bone energy.
Forgotten favorites: “Bone,” “Bring it Back,” “It’s a Bone Thang”
5. Strength and Loyalty (2007)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Edd said: Bone came through with the heavy hitters in 2007 – Swizz Beatz, Yolanda Adams, Twista Mariah Carey and even Bow Wow. “I Tried” with Akon also became the Bone’s last big hit to date. Credit where it’s due – you’d expect all the high-profile guests and A-list producers to overwhelm the project but it’s the opposite. It’s a nice update to Bone’s sound. Obviously everything doesn’t work – “Candy Paint” sounds too much like a Young Dro throwaway – but overall this was quite the pleasant surprise.
Forgotten favorites: “Flowmotion,” “C-Town,” “9mm”
4. BTNHResurrection (2000)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Edd said: 2000 was a tough era for the Bone boys, as rumors of inner turmoil got a louder, along with Flesh-N-Bone’s conviction taking him off the grid for almost a decade soon after this dropped. Despite the drama and an evolving rap scene, Bone stood tall. The bars are still very sharp and the production – handled by DJ U-Neek, LT Hutton, Jimmy “JT” Thomas and Darren Vegas – is that classic mix of electric soul and creeping menace. It might not have the highs of their most noteworthy works and the back half of the project does tend to drag but BTNHResurrection is a winner.
Forgotten favorites: “The Righteous Ones,” “Battlecry,” “No Way Out”
3. The Art of War (1997)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Edd said: How do you follow up on the biggest album of your career? By dropping TWO at the same time! The Art of War is a sprawling double album. DJ U-Neek produces the entire project and uses an seemingly infinite roster of soul samples as templates for the albums’ impressive soundscapes. And their flow is downright hypnotic on some of these tracks. But at 28 tracks, even my Cousin Chris Brown would tap out halfway through disc two, which is a noticeable step down from disc one. It’s a good project that sets its sights too high and keeps it from being an exceptional one.
Forgotten favorites: “It’s All Real,” “It’s All Mo’ Thug,” “Ready 4 War”
2. Creepin’ on Ah Come Up (1994)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4 stars out of 5
Edd said: The EP so good that we all thought THIS was their debut album. And it’s easy to see why – this is when Bone evolved from NWA soundalikes to counter-culture icons that had politicians shook. The lyrics were haunting, the production was straight out of a John Carpenter horror flick and the hits – “Thuggish Ruggish Bone” and “Foe Tha Love of $” – were undeniable. Creepin’ on Ah Come Up immediately established BTNH as hip-hop trendsetters. This was the perfect jumpoff.
Forgotten favorites: Creepin’ on Ah Come Up, No Surrender
1. E. 1999 Eternal (1995)
Soul in Stereo rating: 4.5 stars out of 5
Edd said: It only took a couple of years but by 1995, Bone Thugs were the hottest group in the game, and E. 1999 Eternal was their menacing masterpiece. It’s such an immersive experience – the quicktime rhymes, the soothing harmonies and the surprisingly strong storytelling drag you into their bleak world, refusing to let you up for air. It’s unnerving as it is welcoming; disturbing as it is spiritual. And most importantly, it became the foundation for countless harmony-driven rappers decades later. Bone seemed to exist in another plane of rap existence, and to this day no one has replicated the magic of E. 1999
Forgotten favorites: “Eternal,” “Mr. Bill Collector,” “Mo Murda”
Let us know your favorite Bone Bone Bone Boneeee projects below!
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