I glanced down the track listing. The 10th song was titled “Rhythm (Devoted to the Art of Moving Butts).” I knew I was in for a good experience already.
I had heard of A Tribe Called Quest – it’s a moniker you tend to remember. However, I wasn’t familiar with any of their music. After perusing a few albums, I decided, with some encouragement from some of my more hip-hop savvy friends, to go with their debut, People’s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm.
The album is really all over the place, but in the best possible way. From the deep, woody bass vibes of “Luck of Lucien” to the fun, south-of-the-border production of “I Left My Wallet In El Segundo.” It’s a great album for when you’re looking to enjoy a period in music when hip-hop still had it’s heavy roots in jazz and poetry. Lead MC Q Tip shows his versatility by taking lead on the verses of each song. Some songs show a slow flow reservation that makes your head do less of a bob and more of a fluid slide forwards and backwards.
“These are the types of jams you could play for hip-hop non-believers, and smile as you watch them file in behind us on the ‘paths of rhythm.’” (Matty C.)
Other tracks, the rap is staccato and deliberate, pushing the song along with an urgency known only to those who know that they have something important to say in a brief amount of time. The most pleasant part of the lyricism here, is the ability to understand the words themselves. Whether in a story song, were each line is an integral part of an overarching anecdote, or in a more traditional rap, were each line or stanza can stand independently, Q gives us an intelligible and coherent narrative voice – always getting his point across. Whether his point is something to do with current affairs or just listing different foods he enjoys on “Ham ‘N’ Eggs,” it’s a consistently enjoyable listening experience (I’ve since found that “Ham ‘N’ Eggs” is not as out of left field as it seems. The chorus saying that the Tribe refrains from the titular food because of it’s high cholesterol content was indicative of the current African-American heart problem epidemic.)
As I’ve stated before, each cut is a brand new experience, and each of those experiences is one that is enjoyable in its own right. The album is as versatile as it is groundbreaking – the Tribe paved the way for a whole new sound in sampling and production that would be further expanded upon in their next effort, The Low End Theory.
So, even if you’re not part of the hip-hop or rap enclave, I’d encourage you to decide to affiliate yourself with A Tribe Called Quest and initiate yourself by listening to this masterpiece of a debut.
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Released: April 10th, 1990
For project details and to suggest your own favorite album, visit the intro page.