Classic Non-Album Cuts: Dr. Dre

Dr. Dre is the king of hip-hop.

He has about a billion dollars. He has released two classic solo albums and a revolutionary group album. Even his unreleased album is iconic in its own way.

He has mentored three greats from three different eras – Snoop Doggy Dogg, Eminem, and Kedrick Lamar (four if you count Ice Cube). He’s moved beyond simply being the Quincy Jones of hip-hop. He’s a legend’s legend.

So why not celebrate the release of Compton by looking back on Dre’s avalanche of great non-album appearances? Due to his reclusive nature, there are more than most people probably realize, but still far less than most people who have been creating music as their living for three decades. It’s stunning to look at the years some of these songs were released and realize how long Dre has not only been relevant in the culture but dictating the sound of it, through his music and his protégés. (One quick rule: In addition to not having been on any of Dre’s three solo albums or N.W.A projects, these songs had to include vocals by Dr. Dre, so tracks that he simply produced or only did an intro or spoken interlude on were excluded). Again, these are not all of his contributions in these categories, just the best ones.

The doctor is in.

Soundtracks

“Natural Born Killaz” (featuring Ice Cube) off the Murder Was the Case soundtrack (1994)

“187 um [Deep Cover Remix]” (featuring Snoop Doggy Dogg) off the One Million Strong soundtrack (1995)

“Keep Their Heads Ringin’” off the Friday soundtrack (1995)

“Zoom” (featuring LL Cool J) off the Bulworth soundtrack (1998)

“Bad Guys Always Die” (featuring Eminem) off the Wild Wild West soundtrack (1999)

“Chin Check” (featuring N.W.A & Snoop Dogg) off the Next Friday soundtrack (2000)

“The Wash” (featuring Snoop Dogg) off The Wash soundtrack (2001)

“On the Blvd.” (featuring Snoop Dogg) off The Wash soundtrack (2001)

“Bad Intentions” (featuring Knoc-Turn’al) off The Wash soundtrack (2001)

“Put It On Me” (featuring DJ Quik & Mimi) off the Training Day soundtrack (2001)

Compilations

“East Coast/West Coast Killas” (featuring B-Real, KRS-One, RBX & Nas) off Dr. Dre Presents…The Aftermath (1996)

“Been There, Done That” off Dr. Dre Presents…The Aftermath (1996)

“Puppet Master” (featuring B-Real) off Soul Assassins Chapter 1 (1997)

As Featured Artist

“Funky Flute” off Jimmy Z’s Muzical Madness (1991)

“California Love” [Original] off 2Pac’s All Eyez on Me (1996)

“No Diggity” off Blackstreet’s Another Level (1997)

“Firm Family” off The Firm’s The Album (1997)

“Game Over” off Scarface’s The Untouchable (1997)

“Ghetto Fabulous” off Ras Kass’s Rassassination (1998)

“Ask Yourself a Question” off Kurupt’s Kuruption! (1998)

“Just Dippin’” off Snoop Dogg’s No Limit Top Dogg (1999)

“Hello” off Ice Cube’s War & Peace Vol. 2 [The Peace Disc] (2000)

“Split Personality” off E-A-Ski’s Past and Present: Unlimited Edition mixtape (2000)

“Fast Lane” off Bilal’s 1st Born Second (2001)

“Your Wife” off Nate Dogg’s Music and Me (2001)

“Symphony in X Major” off Xzibit’s Man vs. Machine (2002)

“Say What You Say” off Eminem’s The Eminem Show (2002)

“Shit Hits the Fan” off Obie Trice’s Cheers (2003)

“Here We Go Again” off The Game’s Ghost Unit mixtape (2005)

“Imagine” off Snoop Dogg’s Tha Blue Carpet Treatment (2006)

“Set It Off” off Kardinal Offishall’s Not 4 Sale (2008)

“Crack a Bottle” off Eminem’s Relapse (2009)

“Drug Test” off The Game’s The R.E.D. Album (2011)

“Compton” off Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d. city (2012)

“The Recipe” off Kendrick Lamar’s good kid, m.A.A.d. city (2012)

“3 Kings” off Rick Ross’s God Forgives, I Don’t (2012)

Randoms and Unreleased

“The Next Episode” [Original] (featuring Snoop Doggy Dogg) (1993)

Death Row medley at The 1995 Source Awards featuring Tha Dogg Pound, The Lady of Rage, Nate Dogg, Sam Snead, DJ Quik & Snoop Doggy Dogg (1995)

“Everyday Thing” (featuring Nas & Nature) (1997)

“Zoom” [Original] (featuring Snoop Dogg) (1998)

“Syllables” (featuring Eminem, Jay-Z, 50 Cent, Stat Quo & Cashis) (2010)

All entries in the Classic Non-Album Cuts series:

Christopher Pierznik’s nine books are available in paperback and Kindle. Check out more of his writing at Medium. His work has appeared on XXL, Cuepoint, Business Insider, The Cauldron, Medium, Fatherly, Hip Hop Golden Age, and many more. Subscribe to his monthly newsletter or follow him on Facebook or Twitter.