The Essential is a 2CD slipcased compilation album by Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five.

Although titled to Grandmaster Flash alone (and containing no photos of the Furious Five), it does not contain any tracks from Flash's later Elektra Records albums and mainly features tracks from The Message era and subsequent singles.

The eight-page booklet contains a brief October 2006 essay by Quinton Scott and features pictures of Flash from the photo session originally used for his Essential Mix: Classic Edition album.

The rear slipcase and sleeve notes state that the set contains "all the classics from Grandmaster Flash & The Furious Five in their glorious original versions."

Despite this, several tracks are edited and mistakes have been made regarding the group credits and song titles (see notes).