Recovery: Pros vs. Cons (Review)

[Eedee]

This thread is dedicated to Recovery. It gets love here. It gets hate here. It gets indifference here. This is just me going through each track's pros/cons. (Not reviewing the bonus tracks)

COLD WIND BLOWS

Pros
- Jumps right into the album with some hot fire.
- Great rhyming
- Funny lines (when I call you a slut, it's funny!)
- Nice lyricism

Cons
- Corny lines (call me a ballsack, I'm nuts!)

Determination
- A great song to start off the album.

TALKIN' 2 MYSELF

Pros
- An insight into his drug years with more clarity
- Some emotional content
- Nice flow (bottle/throttle/McDonalds line)
- Hook

Cons
- Some maybe TOO self-aware lines (Wayne, West)
- Hook

Determination
- A solid track, hook can go both ways, rhyming isn't the forefront here, but rather telling a story.

ON FIRE

Pros
- Spitting straight fire
- Amazing rhyme schemes
- Great flow
- Feels like Shady
- Porter's production

Cons
- ???

Determination
- Amazing track. I can't think of any cons to this track.

WON'T BACK DOWN

Pros
- Solid rhyming

Cons
- Beat is unorthodox (open hi hats)
- Yelling
- Corny punchlines
- Didn't use hook to the fullest

Determination
- A weak song.

W.T.P

Pros
- Catchy flow
- Amazing imagery (his car, Santa)
- Feels like something old Shady would rap about

Cons
- Hook is a BIT stale, this barely made it to the con section

Determination
- Fun song, easy listening, funny.

GOING THROUGH CHANGES

Pros
- Dat sample
- Story-telling at it's best
- Let it out, Marshall. Let it out...

Cons
-

Determination
- One of the best songs on Recovery, and maybe his whole catalog. You be the judge of the latter.

NOT AFRAID

Pros
- HUGE impact on his career
- Inspiring
- Some nice rhyme schemes

Cons
- Beat
- Relapse line ( )

Determination
- A solid single, and a solid song on Recovery.

SEDUCTION

Pros
- Beat
- Em's demeanor
- Suckin' my dick, aw fuck!

Cons
- Not clear as to the theme of this song. Who's he talking to/about?

Determination
- Amazing song riddled with great rhymes, flow, and classic Eminem attitude

NO LOVE

Pros
- Em's verse

Cons
- Lil Wayne
- Beat and hook's use of the sample
- Lil Wayne

Determination
- I only listen to this for the Em verse...

SPACE BOUND

Pros
- Great storytelling
- Nice rhymes

Cons
- Hook can get a bit too much at times

Determination
- A good song; great for what it is: a story of love and relationships.

CINDERELLA MAN

Pros
- Dat beat!!
- Brings us back to a certain TES anthem
- Confidence

Cons
- Hook can go both ways

Determination
- Look who's back with another anthem

25 TO LIFE

Pros
- Haunting hook
- Passionate delivery
- Solid flow

Cons
- Beat is a bit meh, I agree.

Determination
- One of my most played Recovery songs, I love it. But objectively, it's a good song. You can't deny his intensity.

SO BAD

Pros
- Dre beat!!
- Very Shady-feel
- Bouncy flow
- Rhymes galore

Cons
- Song is a bit run-on

Determination
- Play this in your car. Just do it.

ALMOST FAMOUS

Pros
- Hunger
- Interesting concept
- Rhymes/flow

Cons
-

Determination
- Can you think of any cons (seriously, because I can't)? Great song, he sounds hungry as fuck.

LOVE THE WAY YOU LIE

Pros
- Great concept
- Nice verses

Cons
- Beat
- Window pane

Determination
- Rihanna fit the song's concept. She did a great job as well singing it. It's a great concept and Em pulled it off. Good song.

YOU'RE NEVER OVER

Pros
- Heartfelt message
- Great rhyming

Cons
- Beat
- Hook?
- Ketchup/mustard

Determination
- Think what you want about this song, but you can't deny Em did this straight from the heart. RIP Proof.

UNTITLED

Pros
- Feels Shady.
- The flow/rhymes

Cons
- Should've been a main track, not hidden

Determination
- Great hidden track, great for what it is.

----------------------------------------------

I don't get the hate Recovery gets. Sure it has some bad beats. Sure, it has some bad lines. But those get out shined immensely by the great rhyming, flow, concepts, and overall atmosphere of MOST of the songs on this album. You say you want Em to do more story-telling songs (GTC, 25 To Life, Spacebound, LTWYL). You say you want some more Shady-like songs (CWB, So Bad, Almost Famous, Untitled). You say you want some more hungry songs (Almost Famous, Cinderella Man)... Recovery has all of it.

This album is full of wit, atmosphere, rhyming, and it has some EPIC moments. I seriously don't understand the hate. Sure, it's a breakaway from what we are used to from Eminem... but it still has elements of what makes him great and what we love about his music. It's still a great album.

This is my defense for Recovery. I tried to be fair and objective on every song.

[Raul]

1st of all... Nice thread.

I agree with most of what you said, Eedee. Em is hella hunger on this record. There are some truly gems on this album. Seduction, GTC and Spacebound are my TOP 3 (not counting bonus tracks).

I think my major gripes with this album are the punchlines, the delivery (I seriously can't stand the yelling. He can do a powerful/strong voice without yell so much. For example, I LOVE Almost Famous' beat and lyrics, but is kind of unlisteanable because of the screaming, for me) and the inconsistency of the quality of it.

And the production is subpar for an Eminem record. All of his albums (excluding Infinite) have better production.

About the lyrics, they are great in some songs, they're awful on some songs. Again, the punchlines don't work.

I also can't stand the Relapse bashing on this album. It feels like Recovery is an apology for making Relapse. Dat Cinderella Man line breaks my heart, and Not Afraid's also do it.

GTC and Seduction are two of the best songs he made since his comeback. And I admit that Recovery's highs are higher than Encore's.

I just want to perpetuate the thought that... Encore x Recovery IS a serious debate, that should not be bashed like it is on TR. There ARE pros and cons of both albums, ffs.

Powerful thread, Eedee. Respect.

[Kill You]

Good, solid review. I agree with a lot of it.

[KoLyric]

For the most part, I agree.
The reason I'd prefer eminem to have a different sound to what he had on here, is because I've always enjoyed the growth and change he's presented from each album to the next.
I'd be disappointed if MMLP2 sounded like a bunch of polished Recovery tracks. Nahwhudimean?

I hope the trend stays (And doesn't decrease like it did from recovery to hell the sequel)

[Slim Stanley]

I only see people around here hating on this album, and I don't get it either. If it's not your cup of tea that's cool, but it's almost universally recognized as a very good / solid album, and for good reason. It's a great comeback album and shows real growth. There's not a single bad song on there really , and Eminem sounds hungry and focused for the first time in forever.

[PAINKILLƎR]

Missing some cons but other than that I can dig it.

[Eedee]

Missing some cons but other than that I can dig it.

I probably did, tbh.

[RayMcTechGuy]

[SoldierShady]

Hmm. Good thread but I still think the album as whole is mostly sub-par.

[Kill You]

This album honestly seems like only a really good mixtape tbh. I like Recovery, I really do. And individually many of these songs range from great to fantastic. But it's not consistent. It's not coherent. Maybe vocally and lyrically it is, but the messy sounding production brings it down a lot. I don't even think a lot of the beats are truly bad. But they are bad for Eminem. Em has a distinct sound. Relapse had that sound, the production was very much "for Eminem." I hope that Dre and Rubin recapture that sound.

The thing I'm worried about MMLP2 is the production. I am not worried about Eminem going HAM, I know that he will because he has been. Just listen to Survival, a song that didn't even make the cut, and lyrically that's probably some of his best shit in a very long time, probably since The Warning. I'm not worried about his flows, he seems calmer now and I'm not worried about his voice because of the same reason. But it's the beats I am concerned about. I'm hoping he keeps it very tight-knit within his own camp.

[Satan]

Hmmm, I could get in on this.

COLD WIND BLOWS
Pros
- He sounds fucking hungry as fuck, and doesn't use the screaming to illustrate that.
- The last few bars are purely amazing (You diss me/I slaughter you/I put that on everything/Like everyone does with autotune)
- Has some other classic lines scattered about.
- Intense beat.
Cons
- SO many awful punchlines!
- Too many bullshit lines.
Determination
It's fun to listen to, it has some problems lyrically, but it's somehow saved by delivery.

Talkin' 2 Myself
Pros
- A decent look into the mind of his drugged up self.
Cons
- Filler
- "i almost mada song dissin lil wayne/he woulda murdered me"
- All of the subjects he talks about are touched upon better on Deja Vu and GTC.
- Kobe on the hook is just...just awful.
Determination
Eh, it's decent, not bad, not good. Just feels like filler that could've been replaced easily.

On Fire
Pros
- Best flow on the album.
- A lot of great lines.
- Dr. Dre imitation beat that works perfectly.
- His delivery sounds so confident without pushing it (FUCK MY DICK'S BIG!!!!)
Cons
- Sounds a bit too much like autopilot at times.
- Could've used a better hook.
Determination
A great, confident, and energetic song.

Won't Back Down
Pros
- Maybe three or four decent bars (the "Drink gasoline and eat a lit match" line comes to mind)
- It's not My First Single.
- The flow and rhyming doesn't make me want to shoot myself.
Cons
- Pink killed Eminem on this song.
- Screaming like a maniac
- Punchlines like no others (THE FUCKING UNCOOKED SLAB OF MEAT LAYING ON YOUR KITCHEN FLOOR LINE OH MY GOD!!!!!!)
- Poppy rock beat.
- Do I need to go into anymore detail?
Determination
This song ate a boy named "Good" in hopes that it would become him, but it didn't...IN OTHER WORDS IT'S NOT GOOD AT ALL! YEAH GET IT "NOT GOOD", DICK-SNOTS? PYTHON'S RIGHT BACK ON YOUR BITCH-ASS!

W.T.P
Pros
- It's inoffensive, and not a chore to listen through.
- The "Stephon Marbury/R. Kelly" bars are great.
- No punchlines.
Cons
- Cringeworthy singing and hook
- The premise in general...ugh
Determination
Rather bland, but it's a decent listen, nothing really "bad" about it.

Going Through Changes
Pros
- It gives a greatly detailed and dark look into the mind of his 2005-2007 self
- Feels like a sequel to Deja Vu, rather than rehashing Deja Vu
Cons
- The hook and bridge are...ehhhhh.
- The fourth verse is a bit weak.
Determination
What else is there to say? It's near perfection lyrically.

Not Afraid
Pros
- Uhhhh...rhyming is decent.
- Flow is okay.
Cons
- Too much confidence that results in the song falling flat on it's face and dying like a bee without a stinger.
- Punchlines...that one word is all I need to say...punchlines.
- "HE'S STILL SHITTIN!"
- "That last Relapse album was ehhhh!"
- Terrible beat.
- Eminem telling me to "holla"...
Determination
I'm going to treat this song like a stone in front of a river while I've got free time, AND SKIP IT!

Seduction
Pros
- Lots of great Eminem-like lines to be found.
- Somewhat new concept for Eminem.
- The beat, while unlike an Eminem beat, is great.
- The last 8 bars...oh my god.
Cons
- "I’m the logo on that Dallas Cowboy helmet: a star"
- Hater alarm? Nah.
Determination
His attitude is the most badass on the album, rhyming is amazing, and has some of the most godly lines from him.

No Love
Pros
- The loose concept gives Em a lot of freedom to give some great lines all over the place
- Eminem's verse is mostly godly
Cons
- The beat and hook can go choke on a railroad spike.
- The "monopoly board" line...nope.
- Lil Wayne can take his "semi-Cartermatic" (for serious?) and go home.
- The LONG chorus.
Determination
This song shouldn't have worked, but it does, even with Weezy, and the miserable sample. One of his best since his comeback.

Space Bound
Pros
- Gives off a dark sound that Eminem hasn't delivered for a while.
- A great break from his loud angry sound the last couple of songs.
- Hook is gawdly.
- Bridge is gawdly.
Cons
- The "love is evol, spell it backwards" line is a bit awkward.
Determination
Besides maybe one or two awkward bars, it's just plain amazing. What else can I say that hasn't been said?

Cinderella Man
Pros
- The bombastic beat...whew.
- His energy is purely amazing
- His part on the chorus is great.
- Flow is great
Cons
- Punchlines came back.
- Rhyming is ugh.
- Autopilot Eminem at his worst
- Confidence. like Not Afraid, causes the song to fall flat on his face.
Determination
A bland, imperfect mess, but it's an unskippable song, it's sound is just too damn good.

25 To Life
Pros
- Inoffensive.
Cons
- Yelling is just tired
- Awful execution of an already done concept
- Eminem sounds way too pissy
- His last bar where he straight up says the concept as if he was going over everyone's head.
- The hook...just no.
- The beat...my god
Determination
Eh, skippable, but rather inoffensive, not a bad song by any means, but has a lot of problems.

So Bad
Pros
- His hook is great.
- Dr. Dre's sound coming back...it feels great.
- Bridge...whoa.
- Few great lines scattered throughout the song.
Cons
- Laziness is at full force.
- "I'M READY FOR YOU MOMMA, WHY YOU THINK THE ONLY THING I GOT ON IS MY PAJAMAS"
- "THIS AIN'T THE FIRST DAY OF APRIL, BUT THANK YOU FOR STAYING APRIL"
- Delivery is slow and bland.
Determination
Obvious filler, but for what it is, it isn't bad.

Almost Famous
Pros
- The second and third verse are amazing.
- The hook actually works.
- Rhyming is tricky.
Cons
- First verse is meh.
- Yelling can get a bit too strained at times.
Determination
Jesus, such a passionate song, lots of great bars, it's widely loved for a reason.

Love The Way You Lie
Pros
- Rhianna isn't bad at all.
- The verses have some good bars scattered.
Cons
- A few bad bars throughout ("yesterday is over/it's a different day" "window pane" "Nintendo game")
- Concept is as weary and tired as Rhianna herself.
- The verses and sets of bars are interchangeable a lot of the time
- A few moments of bland autopilot
Determination
The fame of the song has changed people's outlook on it. It's not a really "bad" song, it's a bit mediocre, but not bad at all. Rhianna isn't bad at all on it.

You're Never Over
Pros
- A few heartfelt bars that somewhat make up for the really really bad bars.
- Heartfelt, definitely.
Cons
- The fact he focuses a lot more on himself than Proof in the first verse.
- "ketchup/mustard" uguggghgughghgughgugh
- "Just Blaze and me we are knocking on doors and no we ain’t pumpkins on Halloween but we’ll show up on your porch"
- Beat is painful
- Eminem's vocals are overshadowed by the loud beat
- "For you, I wanna write the sickest rhyme of my life, so sick it’ll blow up the mic, it’ll put the "dyna" in mite" WHAT THE FUCK DOES THIS MEAN?!
- "I’mma own so many belts, the only place they can hit me is below them" Heheheheh you know this isn't true, Em.
- "bloggin about bologna"
- The bridge can go jump off a bridge and shit itself.
- The hook is...well...atrocious. Touchdown and Big Weenie's hook kills it.
Determination
There are two angles to judge it from, either it's a wonderful self-aware imperfect tribute to Proof, or it's a loud mess with too many terrible lines to enjoy it. It's passionate, but it kind of falls flat on it's face.

Untitled
Pros
- Second best flow.
- A lot of just plain out badass lines.
- Short and sweet.
Cons
- The confidence that results in the "bass-turd" line and lines like it (oh Marshall...why?)
- The punchlines.
- The Eskimo bars...eh.
- The last bars are pretty bad.

Determination
It's good, a bit stupid at times, but it's not bad in any way. A few bad bars bring it down from great to good, however.

[kkaniff]

I'm not worried about that, Rubin's minimalist, somewhat loud production should be tempered by a bit by Dr. Dre. If, of course, he doesn't pull a Recovery and forget his exec. prod. duties.
The problem with Recovery, corny lyrics aside is like Kill You said, the messy sounding production.
Somebody once said the producers prolly just gave Em the beats and fled the studio, and honestly, it sounds like that's what happened. Also, Berzerk while loud sounding initially, seems to mellow on further listens, something that still hasnt happened with Recovery. Dunno if its just me though.
Aside from that, it's pretty good.
Still hate YNO though, and Talking to Myself.

[Jimmy Conway]

COLD WIND BLOWS
Pros
-Decent beat
-fairly strong lyrics, at least compared to other Recovery Tracks
Cons
- Forced lame punchlines that plague the entire album
-
Determination
It's one of those songs that I think "Not bad" But at the same time it's forgettable and I never listen to it.

Talkin' 2 Myself
Pros
- Em's voice sounds good on this track
- Pretty good flow
Decent bridge
Cons
- Kobe on the beat
- a beat that had already been circulating before Recovery was even in the works
- Apologizing and making excuses for his music
Determination
The apologizing lyrics make me hate the song, which is a shame because the lines before it
"So I pick myself off the ground and fuckin swam 'fore I drowned" is really good.
On Fire
Pros
-One of the top beats on the album
Good flow, good voice

Cons
-"I just wrote a bullshit hook in between two long ass verses if you mistook the for a song" How about you put some effort into this instead of wasting Porter's beat?
- hen why the fuck am I yellin at air
I aint even talkin to noone cause aint nobody there
Kind of sums up a lot of this song. What exactly is the point Em? It's just a angry rant trying to pass as a passionate attack....on nothing, but kind of everything
Determination
I like this song, it's listenable. Horrible hook though. Much better choices in Em's catalog. The kind of song that if it came on I wouldn't change it, but I would rarely seek it out.

Won't Back Down
Pros
None
Cons
The entire song
Determination
Fuck you for make me want to listen to songs like this to fill in the blanks on this "rate Recovery" template

W.T.P
Pros
- The beat doesn't make me want to die
-I'll rip a tree out the ground
And flip it upside down
'Fore I turn over a new leaf, clown
I'll tell ya now
I'm so raw I still need to un-thaw
You feel me, yall?
I shut the club down like Drake in the mall
Cons
The rest of the song that I didn't mention above
Determination
Unlistenable really. The lines of lyrics I posted were the only enjoyable parts of the song and I already had a noose tied before it got to that point
Going Through Changes
Pros
- Good lyrics
- Not the strongest beat, but it works
Cons
- dilly dallying? Really? Fuck you Em
- Not a good chorus
Determination
I still think it's one of the most overrated Eminem songs, but it's not horrible

Not Afraid
Pros
Nothing
Cons
- Talking bad about Relapse
- beans gassed up, demons jumping jacks....
-take my hand
-the beat
-ugh, everything, fuck this song. I didn't even bother to listen to it today, just going on off the memories of this shit
Determination
Fake forced label driven song

Seduction
Pros
- Probably my favorite beat on the album.
- One of my favorite songs on the album. Makes me want to ride around in my car on a summer evening bumping this.

Cons
- "I’m the logo on that Dallas Cowboy helmet: a star"
- All that "ahh "off" "nah" shit in the background in that second verse is a little over doing it
Determination
I like this song. Not a classic, or even great. But a strong song.

No Love
Pros
- Em's verse was good
Cons
- a few corny lines scattered through the song
-that fucking chorus
Determination
It's alright

Space Bound
Pros
Em sounds pretty good, passionate
Cons
- The love is evol line
-That god awful chorus
- The beat being made by Embase on his pro tools basic
Determination
Another....eh it's alright
Cinderella Man
Pros
- There's a storm comin' that the weather man couldn't predict,
I start the bug prick, you better flee cause I get ticked
It's a rap, I was down, when I was down I was kicked.
I got up I'm back to punch ya to the ground, ya trick,
-He really has some strong points in the verses during the song
Cons
-It's a trap, fuck my last CD that shits in my trash,
- that steak reference
- some filler/ weak lines
Determination
That one line fucking kills me. I try to look at it like, "hey, em is shitting on Relapse, he's just saying that "fuck everything else, this is it right here" But I can't. Another shot at his classic album because he caved to the peer pressure of 14 year old girls saying "ew Em's Relapse album is icky.

25 To Life
Pros
- Creative,
-passionate,
-one of the few times he makes the Recovery voice sound good.
-Good song
Cons
- Hook could have been better
-Beat was....decent...but, it just had too much going on and wasn't mixed well.
Determination
One of the better songs off the album. Really strong lyrics. One of the few songs that makes me want to rap the words and not miss a word.

So Bad
Pros
- Dre beat
Cons
- So bad is right. Just a bad song
Determination
Unlistenable, except maybe as a instrumental
Almost Famous
Pros
- Love the lyrics
Cons
- Chorus isn't good
Determination
Really enjoy it
Love The Way You Lie
Pros
- None
Cons
- Window payne
- the entire song
-lifes n0 nentendo payne33
Determination
Hopefully Em at least got some pussy for making this disaster.

You're Never Over
Pros
- Passionate
- The Chorus and bridge get a lot of shit, but I don't think it's that bad, just....he...got too soft with it.
-Some strong parts, like the first half or so of the second verse. Brilliance scattered about.
Cons
- excuse the corny metaphors....sorry I can't
- the beat
Determination
It's a shame this song has so many weak parts, because some parts of verses make you go wow. But there is just too much mediocre crap in between the touches of greatness.

Untitled
Pros
- meh
Cons
- song is just everywhere
Determination
bluh. I think there was a couple good lines in there, but I'm not searching through anymore shit in this album

[1LynguisticMind]

This album honestly sounds like a mixtape.

[1LynguisticMind]

are you kidding me

weezus shat on no love

it was the best verse on this entire garbage album

you sound like one of these kids on ktt