The Game- The Documentary

Intro- Just talkin on a beat….
Rating- N/A

Westside Story f/50 Cent- Game spits gangsta on a hot beat from Dr. Dre AND Scott Storch. That’s right, two of the best producers on one track. The whole album is packed with high profile producers, which is the why the G-Unit Game sounds so much different from the "Untold Story" Game. 50 Cent would love to claim credit for Documentary’s success, but the production is the real reason. 50’s dope on the hook here as always, and fortunately doesn’t do a verse.
Rating- 9/10

Dreams- We’ve all heard this one… I’m not sure why this was used as a single, but it’s not a bad song. Kanye West produces this one.
Rating- 9/10

Hate it or Love it f/50 Cent- Another one that everyone’s heard. I personally like the remix better (found on 50’s "Massacre), but both are dope. Another hook from 50, but this time he does a verse too. Its not bad, but he can’t outshine Game.
Rating- 10/10

Higher- This one should have been a single instead of Westside Story or Dreams. In my opinion it’s the 3rd best track on the album (1st- Put You on the Game, 2nd- How We Do), and Game proves that he doesn’t need 50 to make a catchy hook. Dr. Dre’s beat is FIRE…
Rating- 10/10

How We Do f/50 Cent- If you haven’t heard this song, you’re probably deaf… The excessive airtime can’t ruin it though. 50 lights up the hook, and actually spits a good verse, another hot beat by Dr. Dre also helps this one.
Rating- 10/10

Don’t Need Your Love f/Faith Evans- Game raps about how tough is life is, but not to feel sorry for him. I ain’t really feelin the hook by Faith Evans, but its not horrible.
Rating- 8/10

Church for Thugs- Basic track about how Game’s a thug and that you shouldn’t fuck with him. Yet another dope beat, this one from Just Blaze.
Rating- 9/10

Put You on the Game- DOPE AS FUCK!! Best song of 2005, one of my alltime favorites. Energetic club track on a dope Timbaland beat. This should have been a single, but for some reason it wasn’t. I wouldn’t be surprised if he made it his next single though, and if he does it will be playing for months.
Rating- 10/10

Start from Scratch f/Marsha of Floetry- Another beat by Dr. Dre & Scott Storch. It isn’t as good as I would expect, but it’s still dope. Game spits about what he would or wouldn’t change if he could start his life over again.
Rating- 9/10

The Documentary- Game talks about his life, and compares his album to the classic rap albums:
"I’m "Ready to Die", without "Reasonable Doubt", smoke "Chronic" and hit it "Doggystyle" before I got out, until they sign my "Death Certificate" its "All Eyez On Me", I’m still at it, "Illmatic", and that’s "The Documentary.""
Jeff Bhasker provides one of the album’s best beats. Game really likes to show respect for classic rap, if you haven’t already noticed. If you listen to his lyrics, you’ll find many references to rap classics.
Rating- 9/10

Runnin’ f/Tony Yayo- This ones a slower track, with Tony Yayo as the only non-50 G-Unit collabo. The hook’s good, but I ain’t feelin the beat from Hi-Tek.
Rating- 8.5/10

No More Fun and Games- The beat’s good, Game spits fire, but one of the wackest hooks I have ever heard…
Rating- 8/10

We Ain’t f/Eminem- Eminem produces this, and is featured on it. Do I need to say anything else. It sounds like every other Eminem song, even Game sounds like Eminem on his verse. Eminem even samples two of his other songs in this (One Day at a Time, Patiently Waiting).
Rating- 8.5/10

Where I’m From f/Nate Dogg- This is pure West Coast music. Nate Dogg on the hook, G-Funk beat, Game spittin about reppin Compton. I was expecting more of this from all of Game’s talk about putting the West back on the map, but this track is still good.
Rating- 9/10

Special f/Nate Dogg- This is Game’s song for the ladies. Nate Dogg sings another dope hook, despite it being a little bit corny ("I want you to know you’re special").
Rating- 8.5/10

Don’t Worry f/Mary J. Blige- Another song for the ladies, Mary J. Blige does a good job on the hook, and sings a bit it. I like how the beat is soft when Mary is singing, and then switches to a grimy piano beat when Game starts rapping.
Rating- 8.5/10

Like Father, Like Son f/Busta Rhymes- This song is dedicated to Game’s son, and is done perfectly. The BuckWild beat works perfectly with it, and Game does a good job with the lyrics. Busta Rhymes is an unusual choice for the hook, but it worked better than I would have expected. So much better than "Mockingbird"…
Rating- 10/10

Overall- This is one of my favorite albums, and in my opinion, definitely the best of 2005 so far.
Rating- 9.75/10