Various

While the origins of hip-hop in New York are the stuff of legend, and the role New Jersey played is also acknowledged, the contributions of Connecticut are virtually unknown. Hence The Third Unheard, a compilation that shines an insightful light on this previously unheralded scene. Fascinating stories and historical significance often overshadow the records themselves but a few important figures arise. The most important is Mr. Magic — not content with releasing the first hip-hop record in the area, he scoured the region for other artists to put out including his 12-year-old nephew Pookey Blow. As well as containing a fly kazoo solo, Pookey Blow's "Get Up (And Go To School),” according to compilation producer Egon Alpatt, probably contains the first legally brokered hip-hop sample. Most tracks on this compilation though are held down by the live instrumentation by the Forum Band seamlessly segueing from one old school break to another for local heroes like the Chillie 3 MCs and L.O.D. Crew to drop their celebratory and definitively old school rhymes over. While these artists never penetrated the insular New York scene to gain widespread recognition, their assembly on this compilation serves as an essential and overall highly enjoyable history lesson.