Coolio, one of the greatest of all one-hit wonders, died today. Heart attack at 59. Why are people dropping dead at a relatively young age of sudden heart incidents? Maybe ask Fauci. But I digress.
Gangsta's Paradise is one of the best rap songs of the early 90s, in particular because it wasn't profane and helped bridge the gap between those songs that were and a listening audience that might not have quite been ready for the raw vulgarity of other artists. It's still strong today.
Of course Coolio didn't write the music. Or many of the lyrics. Or actually much of any of it. It was a near direct ripoff of a song from the Stevie Wonder album Songs in the Key of Life titled Pastime Paradisewhich came about 20 years before.
I really never faulted Coolio for taking it and adding a little bounce. I remembered the song from the 8-track I had. Songs in the Key was a masterful album and this song got lost in all the rest of the greatness. It didn't stick. Coolio's version did.
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