By Allison Stewart
Special to The Washington Post
Tuesday, January 13, 2009

Bad-boy Christopher Wallace, better known as the Notorious B.I.G., was a gangsta rap superstar in life and a cash machine in death. As with friend-turned-rival Tupac Shakur, he has had more albums released under his name since his 1997 murder than he ever did alive. The latest, "Notorious," comes attached to an upcoming Biggie biopic of the same name. A myth-stoking, vault-raiding, better-than-usual attempt to both confound and inflate the Myth of Biggie, it's equal parts primer and hagiography, divided into three very unequal sections:

Biggie Songs You've Already Heard: The few Biggie classics included here -- like the iconic "Juicy" -- serve mostly as appetite whetters, at least partly intended to steer new fans toward more expensive and inclusive greatest-hits collections. Which is to say: Don't expect monster hits like "Big Poppa" or "Mo Money Mo Problems."

Biggie Songs You Haven't Heard: There are several previously unreleased demos from the seemingly inexhaustible vaults, including the early-career "Microphone Murderer," which serves as a reminder that Wallace was funnier than he ever got credit for, and more charmingly awkward, too. Less charmingly, he had an obsession with his penis that would have gob-smacked Freud.

Songs About Biggie, Done by Others: In the most touching and creepy posthumous duet since "Unforgettable," Wallace's 12-year-old son, C.J., raps alongside his dad on a redo of the dirty-even-when-it's-cleaned-up "One More Chance." It's every bit as inappropriate as it sounds, even though mom Faith Evans provides backing vocals and ostensible adult supervision.

Evans also appears on Jadakiss's "Letter to B.I.G.," which brings Biggie up to speed on hip-hop current events (to recap: Things are a mess). The Kanye West-produced "Brooklyn Go Hard," the union of Jay-Z and a Santogold sample, was reportedly originally slotted for Jay-Z's upcoming "Blueprint 3." Ineffably compelling, it's the only "Notorious" track un-slavish in its Biggie devotion. It's probably not a coincidence that it's the best thing here.

DOWNLOAD THESE: "Brooklyn Go Hard," "Juicy"