‘Street Soldiers’ Does Duty as Early Rap Sampler

“Street Soldiers� is a useful sampler for anyone interested in exploring the militant, pre-Los Angeles riots rap that chronicled--and some say warned of--escalating inner-city frustration.

Not everything in the Priority Records album is essential, but the key tracks are landmarks in late-’80s and early-’90s rap commentary.

Is militant rap a willful and irresponsible attack on all authority, as some law enforcement groups and others have charged? Or is it an accurate, if jarring, reflection of inner-city tensions, as rappers themselves have maintained? It’s a question that was raised in the recent debate over Ice-T’s rock song “Cop Killer,� which the rapper voluntarily removed last month from his “Body Count� album after weeks of protest against the recording.

While the rage on some of the selections in “Street Soldiers� remains unsettling, it seems clear in the context of the recordings that the anger isn’t directed against all police officers, but at those who misuse their power. Proceeds from the album will be donated to various riot-relief charities, says Bryan Turner, president of Priority Records.

The highlights include:

* N.W.A.’s “F--- Tha Police�: This hard-edged entry on the “Straight Outta Compton� album in 1988 popularized “gangsta rap,� igniting a debate over whether this music encourages hostility toward law enforcement officers or merely documents a longstanding bitterness.

* Public Enemy’s “Fight the Power�: One of two selections from PE’s acclaimed “Fear of a Black Planet� album in 1990, this call for black pride and unity was featured in Spike Lee’s equally compelling movie “Do the Right Thing.� Chuck D. is the Bob Marley of rap, a leader who is both charismatic and revolutionary.

* Ice Cube’s “Endangered Species�: If this sounds like a sequel to “F--- Tha Police,� it’s understandable because Ice Cube helped shape the sound of the N.W.A. song before leaving the group for a solo career. Far more than Ice-T (who is represented on this album by one number), he is a major artist, second in authority and imagination perhaps only to Chuck D.

* LL Cool J’s “Illegal Search�: This is a surprise choice because LL is known more for boasting and bravado than for social commentary, but the song’s chronicle of police harassment of black youth provides an interesting contrast because the tone of the recording is much more tuneful and poppish than militant.

* Public Enemy’s “911 Is a Joke�: Chuck D.’s comic sidekick Flavor Flav takes over the microphone on this catchy and accessible, yet pointed commentary about slow police response in inner-city areas.

For further investigation, try any of the four Public Enemy albums (“It Takes a Nation of Millions to Hold Us Back� and “Fear of a Black Planet� are especially recommended) or either of the Ice Cube albums.