Week 49: 50 Albums That Changed Music

[Swish]

Well, I'm down to the second last week and will be glad when this is over as interest appears to be on the wan, and many of the most recent selections have been suspect at best. This week is one for which I have no comment as it's from a genre that never appealed to me and never will. De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising (1989).

Ten years after hip hop's arrival, its original joie de vivre had been subsumed by macho braggadocio. Three Feet High made hip hop playful again, the light rhythms, unusual sound samples and its talk of the D.A.I.S.Y. age ('Da Inner Sound Y'all') earning the trio a 'hippy' label. Without this...thoughtful hip hop acts like the Jungle Brothers and PM Dawn wouldn't have arrived.

All right, I kind of liked PM Dawn and they were a refreshing break from the harsh rap that was seemingly everywhere, and which really turned me off. I can't say I ever heard De La Soul, so I can't make any valid comments about them.

G Swish

[3-LockBox]

pass


But don't fret Swish...tis been a swell ride. Kudos in advance for keeping the commitment.

[noddin0ff]

Well, not that I have strong opinions in Rap, I liked this album a lot and I think it did have an impact. Unfortunately, non-thoughtful bust 'em, f*ck 'em rap seems to have won the day. Despite how much I appreciated the positive vibe of 3 feet, I'd still have to give the edge to Fear of a Black Planet, though 3 feet high would be my number 2 choice of the most influential 4 rap albums I ever bothered to listen to.

I love their cover/sampling of my favorite Schoolhouse Rock Hit--uploaded in ALAC :-)
Magic Number
(even a Johnny Cash reference in there...)

p.s. I've enjoyed this thread/theme a lot. Thanks!

[noddin0ff]

wow, someone's fast. 1 download already!

[audiobill]

Outside of my reference point.

I am looking fwd to #50.

Thanks-a-ton, for keepin this one going....man, Swish, you've got patience.

audiobill

[bobsticks]

I agree with n0's point of view which is precisely why I would argue that this album didn't change music substantially and shouldn't be on the list.

I like this album, to the point where it still gets some occasional play around these parts. I respect its unrelenting positivity, frequent humor and it's got some funky tunes as well. Overly or overtly musical? Nah, but it's decent stuff.

My perception is that despite the immediate impact of this album it was a bit of a flash in the pan. Indeed, the "non-thoughtful bust 'em, **** 'em rap" does seem to have won the day, and while this may have given people an idea of what the medium could accomplish the producers and the powers-that-be have assured that the airwaves are crowded with largely negative material.

FWLIW, I can dig "Fear of a Black Planet". When I was coming up folks were listening to "It Takes A Nation Of Millions...", "Straight Outta Compton", and Ice T's "Original Gangster".

[nobody]

Decent selection that represents the sort of "concious" rap that is out there. Personally, I'd have preferred a pick from Tribe Called Quest in this real (Low End Theory is fantastic and the jazz samples that form its musical foundation would probably appeal to many that otherwise don't listen to rap), but De La Soul's ok too. I think what makes it a hard pick as to being influential is while this sort of nonviolent message based rap has lived on in small ways, it has been so eclipsed by harder rap styles that it seems to pale in comparison to other acts. Public Enemy would probably be a better choice as others are saying as they gave a message without sounding as soft and also moved the production end of the music forward more than De La Soul.