Guru
Rapper/composer Guru (real name Keith Elam) first rose to prominence as the "lyrical half" of the hip-hop duo Gang Starr, one of the first outfits that attempted to fuse jazz with rap. After three albums by Gang Starr hit record store shelves (1989's No More Mr. Nice Guy, 1991's Step in the Arena, and 1992's Daily Operation), Guru launched his own solo career, issuing Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1 in 1993. The album featured guest appearances by the likes of Roy Ayers, Donald Byrd, and N'Dea Davenport of the Brand New Heavies, and was followed up two years later by a sophomore solo outing, Jazzmatazz, Vol. 2: The New Reality, which again featured a variety of special guests (including Ramsey Lewis, Branford Marsalis, and members of Jamiroquai).
Despite his solo career, Guru remained true to Gang Starr as well, continuing to contribute to further albums such as 1994's Hard to Earn and 1998's Moment of Truth. In 2000, five years after his second solo outing appeared, Streetsoul (the third in the Jazzmatazz series) was issued, again featuring a stellar cast of supporting characters: Herbie Hancock, Isaac Hayes, the Roots, Erykah Badu, and Macy Gray. Wasting little time, Guru returned directly to the recording studio, issuing a follow-up one year later, Baldhead Slick & da Click.
It took four years for the next Guru release, Version 7.0: The Street Scriptures, to come out, the first on his new label, 7 Grand Records, with beats by Solar (who became a vital force on 7 Grand's subsequent releases). The MC used the same producer for his next installment of Jazzmatazz, Vol. 4, which, as always, included a number of guest vocalists and instrumentalists and was released in the summer of 2007, along with the "raw" companion disc Guru's Jazzmatazz - The Timebomb: Back to the Future Mixtape. Guru 8.0: Lost and Found, the rapper's fourth full-length release on 7 Grand, followed in 2009. In addition to the aforementioned artists, Guru collaborated with some of rap music's best-known producers, including fellow Gang Starr member DJ Premier, Pete Rock, Alchemist, Ayatollah, and DJ Spinna, as well as Ice-T, Naughty by Nature's Treach, Killah Priest, and Ed O.G. After battling cancer, Guru suffered a heart attack on February 28, 2010 and fell into a coma from which he later emerged; however, he died on April 19, 2010 at the age of 43.
© Greg Prato /TiVo
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Jazzmatazz Volume 1
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Chrysalis\EMI Records (USA) on Jan 1, 1993
The Qobuz Essential Discography16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru's Jazzmatazz, Vol. 1 (Deluxe Edition)
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Virgin Catalog (V81) on May 18, 1993
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jazzmatazz Volume II: The New Reality
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Chrysalis\EMI Records (USA) on Jul 6, 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Streetsoul
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Virgin Records on Sep 26, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Jazzmatazz: The New Reality
Jazz - Released by EMI Catalogue on Jul 6, 1995
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru's Jazzmatazz, Vol. 4: The Hip Hop Jazz Messenger: Back to the Future
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Jul 31, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Keep Your Worries
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Virgin on Jan 1, 2000
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
The Mixtape
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by Rapster Records on Jan 14, 2008
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
State of Clarity
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Jan 10, 2024
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru 8.0 Lost and Found
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Jan 1, 2009
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Jazzmatazz, Vol. 4 (Instrumentals)
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Nov 6, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru Version 7.0- The Street Sciptures
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by 7 Grand on Jun 21, 2005
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Nova Lvx
Miscellaneous - Released by Sleeping Church Records on May 26, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Never Sell Out: The Final Verses
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by 7 Grand Records on Apr 21, 2010
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru's Jazzmatazz Back To The Future TimeBomb Instrumental
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Nov 6, 2020
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
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Guru 8.0 Lost and Found Instrumentals
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Dec 31, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru 7.0 the Street Scriptures Instrumental
Miscellaneous - Released by 7 Grand on Nov 14, 2023
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo -
Guru's Jazzmatazz: The Timebomb Back to the Future
Hip-Hop/Rap - Released by 7 Grand on Jul 31, 2007
16-Bit CD Quality 44.1 kHz - Stereo