The feud between the Hatfields and McCoys is perhaps the most famous family conflict in American history. As legend has it, two neighboring families in the backwoods of Appalachia waged a crude and bloody war against each other over a stolen hog, an illicit romance, and longstanding grudges. Yet the events that took place near the end of the 19th century between the Hatfields and McCoys are part of a much richer and more complex narrative of the American experience.

The flashy style of hip-hop-inspired contemporary R&B neologized by journalist Barry Michael Cooper – in an October 1987 Village Voice feature on innovative producer and Guy leader Teddy Riley – gets a surprising and thoughtful overview through a two-disc volume in Hip-O/Universal's extensive Gold series. It's not definitive, but it's representative. More significantly, it's a rare anthology capable of wowing casual listeners on a nostalgia trip, as well as collectors. Rather than merely compile album versions and single edits of the biggest hits in the Universal-distributed catalog, Hip-O goes deep with some dubs, extended mixes, and remixes. For every two massive crossover hits (such as Keith Sweat's Riley-produced "I Want Her" and Bobby Brown's "My Prerogative") there's a forgotten R&B hit or a buried gem, such as Jeff Redd's "You Called and Told Me" – an exemplary but low-charting single rightly considered a classic by NJS fanatics. Some might be surprised by the presence of Al Green, but he appears with a track produced by Al B. Sure! and Kyle West, who don't get enough credit for their contribution to the style's genesis and development.