Ronald Dregan: Dreganomics

Mac Dre never had more fun with his music than he did towards the end of his life, and Ronald Dregan shows his creativity in full swing. Dre seems to be trying as many styles as possible here. There’s a bit of Jamaican dancehall on “Jump It,” flamenco guitar on “Dreganomics,” Punjabi sitar on “That’s Wassup” and even heavy metal guitar on “On the Run.” To balance things off with some local cooking, “Get Stupid,” “Me Damac” and “Feelin’ Myself” are all hunchbacked bass workouts in the mold of “Thizzelle Dance.” Dre got so much attention for his big beats and colorful rhymes that his more fundamental funk songs often get overlooked. “Witme” is such a slippery funk break that it could be a prime outtake from Puff Daddy’s Bad Boy label. “Since ‘84” is even better, as Dre employs a sticky Ohio Players-esque guitar figure to espouse the singular verbiage of a new age pimp: “I got cutthroat friends and lots of women / I ride in a Benz but I'll squat a lemon / I want a stuff turkey with all the trimmings / To pay and play extra innings / I'm winning, fat lady start singing / I'm finna get the cougnut and start swinging.”