Big Apple Rappin': The Early Days of Hip-Hop Culture in New York City 1979–1982

Big Apple Rappin was released in 2006 by Soul Jazz Records.[1]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	"[1]
Pitchfork Media	(7.0/10)[2]
Spin	[3]

Andy Kellman of AllMusic gave the album a four and a half star rating out of five, noting that the album only contained a few well known singles, specifically "Spoonin' Rap" by Spoonie Gee and "Weekend" by the Cold Crush Brothers.[1] Kellman commented that the album will "appeal most to hip-hop fans who have only the basics. For hip-hop neophytes and younger listeners who were born too late, it might be like jumping into an advanced class, but the whole thing is too fun to make you feel lost."[1] Kellman commented that some songs "might sound archaic and practically novelty-like" while noting that "the infectious exuberance on display through the whole thing, along with the knowledge of how this culture would continue to develop, more than makes up for whatever misgivings you might have toward the simplicity of it all."[1] Jeff Chang of the Village Voice declared the album ""A fine new two-CD compilation lovingly curated and annotated by Swedish transplant Johan Kugelberg captures what happened after the unexpected success of "Rapper's Delight.""[4] Peter Macia of Pitchfork Media commented that "songs here are more than rose-tinted artifacts. While they do convey the blitheness before "The Message", they also dispel myths about hip-hop's natal innocence, naiveté, and homogeneity. Most importantly though, for songs built specifically not-to-last, some still sound pretty fresh."[2] Jon Dolan of Spin referred to the album as "euphoric" and awarded it five stars.[3] Dolan again listed it among the best reissues of the year at tenth place in the January 2007 issue of Spin.[5]

Bret McCabe of The New York Sun contested that after several 1990s reissues, box sets and mix tapes of hip hop music this compilation "doesn't cover much new ground, but it makes for a fascinating piece of musical archaeology. The set's compiler, the tireless underground archivist Johan Kugelberg, gathered a number of previously hard-to-find tracks [...] Still, the set feels a little like a museum exhibition, trapped in glass." and that the liner notes "can't fill in the narrative holes surrounding the collected songs. The CDs as a whole would have been better served by expanded interviews with the people who were actually there."[6]

Track listing adapted from back of vinyl sleeve and sticker covers.[7][8]

Credits adapted from the vinyl liner notes.[9]

• Johan Kugelberg – compiler, sleeve notes, interviewer, photography, flyer collection,
• Adrian Self – sleeve, interviewer
• Fly Paper – sleeve
• Angela Scott – licensing
• Joe Conzo – photography
• Pete Reilly – mastering
• Duncan Cowell – mastering
• Pierece Smith – reproduction
• Grandmaster Caz – interviewee
• Buddy Esquire – interviewee
• Lister Hewan-Lowe – interviewee