And it is hard to argue with his top four, though you will probably want to register a Life+Times comment name just to yell at him about “Empire State of Mind.” (“Sorry critics, it’s good.”)
But that is the point — you are supposed to yell at Jay Z in this circumstance. It is the reason for the List Season.
Anyway, here are his rankings. (The notations are Jay’s. Forgive him for not following the traditional countdown-list format; he is new to this.)
1. Reasonable Doubt (Classic)
2. The Blueprint (Classic)
3. The Black Album (Classic)
4. Vol. 2 (Classic)
5. American Gangster (4 1/2, cohesive)
6. Magna Carta (Fuckwit, Tom Ford, Oceans, Beach, On the Run, Grail)
7. Vol. 1 (Sunshine kills this album … fuck … Streets, Where I’m from, You Must Love Me…)
8. BP3 (Sorry critics, it’s good. Empire (Gave Frank a run for his money))
9. Dynasty (Intro alone …)
10. Vol. 3 (Pimp C verse alone… oh, So Ghetto)
11. BP2 (Too many songs. Fucking Guru and Hip Hop, ha)
12. Kingdom Come (First game back, don’t shoot me)
