Name: The Low End Theory
Brand: A Tribe Called Quest

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

19658884871

Colour

Black

Colour details

Discogs ID

[r31430825]

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: No

Format detail

Format Music GB

Limited edition

Release date

2024-08-09

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier GB

Sony

Tax rate GB

Standard:20

UPC / Barcode

0196588848711

Total Cap

Black LPx2

Artist

A Tribe Called Quest

Genre GB

Hip Hop

Label GB

A Tribe Called Quest was a critically acclaimed rap group formed in 1988 in Queens, New York City. The group consisted of Q-Tip, Ali Shaheed Muhammad, Jarobi, and Phife Dawg. They were part of the Native Tongues Posse along with Queen Latifah, De La Soul, Black Sheep, Monie Love, and the Jungle Brothers. Their music blended jazz and hip-hop influences to create a unique sound.

After their debut in 1989 with "Description Of A Fool," they gained popularity with hits like "Bonita Applebum" and "Can I Kick It?" Their album "The Low-End Theory" showcased their blend of boom bap beats with jazz, funk, and soul melodies. ATCQ collaborated with jazz bass player Ron Carter and incorporated samples from artists like Lou Reed and Stevie Wonder.

Throughout their career, ATCQ released several successful albums including "Midnight Marauders," which earned them the Group Of The Year award at the Source Magazine Hip Hop Award Show in 1994. Their album "Beats, Rhymes And Life" debuted at number 1 on the Billboard chart in 1996. Although their later album "The Love Movement" received critical acclaim but lacked the spark of their earlier works.

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Rough Trade Essential

While most of the players in the jazz-rap movement never quite escaped the pasted-on qualities of their vintage samples, with The Low End Theory, A Tribe Called Quest created one of the closest and most brilliant fusions of jazz atmosphere and hip-hop attitude ever recorded. The rapping by Q-Tip and Phife Dawg could be the smoothest of any rap record ever heard; the pair are so in tune with each other, they sound like flip sides of the same personality, fluidly trading off on rhymes, with the former earning his nickname (the Abstract) and Phife concerning himself with the more concrete issues of being young, gifted, and black. The trio also takes on the rap game with a pair of hard-hitting tracks: "Rap Promoter" and "Show Business," the latter a lyrical soundclash with Q-Tip and Phife plus Brand Nubian's Diamond D, Lord Jamar, and Sadat X. The woman problem gets investigated as well, on two realistic yet sensitive tracks, "Butter" and "The Infamous Date Rape." The productions behind these tracks aren't quite skeletal, but they're certainly not complex. Instead, Tribe weaves little more than a stand-up bass (sampled or, on one track, jazz luminary Ron Carter) and crisp, live-sounding drum programs with a few deftly placed samples or electric keyboards. It's a tribute to their unerring production sense that, with just those few tools, Tribe produced one of the best hip-hop albums in history, a record that sounds better with each listen. The Low End Theory is an unqualified success, the perfect marriage of intelligent, flowing raps to nuanced, groove-centred productions.

The Low End Theory

Music GB

Discover The Low End Theory by A Tribe Called Quest on vinyl LP. An iconic fusion of jazz and hip-hop, with smooth rapping and brilliant production.