My Top 100 Albums: #77 - A Tribe Called Quest, ‘The Low End Theory’

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77.

A Tribe Called Quest, ‘The Low End Theory’

Jive, 1991

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“Back in the days when I was a teenager/Before I had a status and before I had a pager/You could find The Abstract listening to hip-hop/My pops used to say it reminded him of bebop”. These are the opening lines of The Low End Theory, as rapped by Q-Tip over Ron Carter’s pizzicato double-bass jazz groove. The link between jazz and hip-hop is musical - a heavy improvisational feel, a strong focus on rhythm, creative melodic flows involving syncopation and cross-rhythms - but it is also cultural and spiritual; both styles have become central to black identity and status, both inside and out of the musical sphere. A Tribe Called Quest weren’t the first hip-hop artists to consciously lean on their jazz heritage, but on The Low End Theory, they were arguably the first to realise the full potential of that relationship. On top of that, they manage to do it with both a reverence to their forebears and a nuanced appreciation of the socio-political context of the album’s release, whether it’s the nod to hip-hop architect Afrika Bambaataa on Vibes and Stuff or the exposé of rape culture on The Infamous Date Rape. One of the more prominent themes in the lyrics is the concept of selling out, or “crossing over” as it’s often more euphemistically described. Q-Tip and Phife Dawg interchange fluidly and potently, with the former’s more languid, philosophical style contrasting with the latter’s more combative, self-effacing flow. The bebop- and hard bop-influenced instrumentals are understated but compelling, creating a hypnotic rhythm that carries the listener through the album on a river of sound. The Low End Theory is the complete package: a groovy, socially-conscious alt hip-hop record that combines the rhythmic potential of bebop with the slick lyricism of early rap music. To Pimp a Butterfly owes a lot to this LP.

Hidden Highlight: Excursions

1. Excursions

2. Buggin’ Out

3. Rap Promoter

4. Butter

5. Verses from the Abstract

6. Show Business

7. Vibes and Stuff

8. The Infamous Date Rape

9. Check the Rhime

10. Everything if Fair

11. Jazz (We’ve Got)

12. Skypager

13. What?

14. Scenario

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See the full list so far here:

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