• Rating:
A Tribe Called Quest is a rap group that was part of the Zulu Nation back in the day. Aside from their somewhat superficial philosophical musings, you can’t deny that those from the Zulu Nation are truly charming.
In short, they’re not the kind of rappers who remind you every two seconds that they’re hotshots coming to kick your ass; in fact, when Phife boasts a little about how many Gs he's taken to bed, it’s kind of endearing.
I mentioned Phife, but THE "A Tribe Called Quest" is primarily Q-Tip: the poet of the abstract. He's certainly no Shakespeare, and the topics he deals with aren’t as abstract as he’d like us to believe, but he’s damn good.
<Back in the days when I was a teenager> and off we go. The novelty, for a rap novice like me, is that you can enjoy this album even if you don't understand English very well and all the ghetto slang. The sound is excellent, crafted, jazzy, relaxing, and (brace yourselves because here comes the bomb!) there’s even Ron Carter's legendary bass pumping in "Verses from the Abstract." YO! Ali Shaheed truly does an outstanding job and always lays down the right beat under the flow of the two rappers (calling it a beat is an understatement).
At this point, you might want to know what these two are talking about throughout the entire album, but I won’t tell you. However, I do recommend listening to "Jazz (We’ve Got)," "Excursions," "Verses from the Abstract," and the beautiful and relaxing "Butter"; among my favorite rap songs (among the few I know).
In short, the approach these guys take to the genre is original, and finally, we can enjoy some rap made by cool people and not like those MTV-repping pain-in-the-neck rappers. And I mean, how do they even become so successful? Does anyone really care how much they hook up and how much cash they blow on nonsense? Eh, the mysteries of faith.
The review could end here. But I know exactly what you're thinking...and "Scenario" you didn’t even mention? Yes, I did, I just did.
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