Catalog Number: SH-584 Condition Details: Still in ORIGINAL SHRINK-WRAP (opened). Vinyl plays with occasional light-crackles (play-graded). 12" Single. Generic Sugar Hill cover has a few creases near edges; discoloration spots (front/back/spine/bottom-edge). Inner-sleeve is generic white. Spine is easy-to-read with very mild-wear. Little shelf-wear along top/bottom-edge; minor wear to corners. Opening is crisp with signs of light use and a few divots. (Not a cut-out.) Tracks: The Message (Vocal) The Message (Instrumental) About The Record: The Message is a song by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five. It was was later featured on the group's debut studio album of the same name. The Message was an early prominent hip hop song to provide social commentary. The song's lyrics describe the stress of inner-city poverty. The song was ranked as No. 1 "Track of the Year" for 1982 by NME. Rolling Stone ranked The Message No. 51 in its List of Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Songs of All Time, (December 9, 2004). It had the highest position for any 1980s release and was the highest ranking hip-hop song on the list. In 2012 it was named the greatest hip-hop song of all time. It was voted No. 3 on About.com's Top 100 Rap Songs, after Common's I Used to Love H.E.R. and The Sugarhill Gang's Rapper's Delight. In 2002, its first year of archival, it was one of 50 recordings chosen by the Library of Congress to be added to the National Recording Registry, the first hip hop recording ever to receive this honor. The Message was No. 5 on VH1's 100 Greatest Songs of Hip Hop. The Message is No. 1 on HipHopGoldenAge's Top 100 Hip Hop Songs of the 1980s. It was featured as in-game radio music for the video game Grand Theft Auto: Vice City and on the video game Fuser.