Mos Def "Black On Both Sides": C/D?

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It's nearly five years since this album out and "changed hip-hop forever".

Except it didn't, obviously, but is it actually any good?

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 01:14 (twenty-two years ago)

It's really good, but I'm so biased. It was one of the first albums that really got me back into hip-hop...in fact, I think my v. first ILM post was defending it.

It really did have great beats and a huge sound though, esp. when compared to most undie-hop.

― Jordan (Jordan), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 01:17 (twenty-two years ago)

So incredibly great and classic. YAY! But I have the feeling some here may disagree.

― sym (shmuel), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 01:19 (twenty-two years ago)

it's great. seems like most of the criticism of it is of the 'oh it's not THAT great' hata variety.

― oops (Oops), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 01:32 (twenty-two years ago)

This backpack-wearing white guy gives it a thumbs up!

― Nick Mirov (nick), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 02:39 (twenty-two years ago)

I don't know if you noticed, but there's a track on there, "Rock N Roll"? Give that one a listen sometime!

― Clarke B., Wednesday, 14 January 2004 02:47 (twenty-two years ago)

If only I could find an instrumental CD of said classic. "Black On Both Sides" is easily as important to hip-hop as "Endtroducing" or "Low End Theory" - sadly none of the three changed hip-hop forever, but they should have.

― nader (nader), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 03:36 (twenty-two years ago)

There are about 4 tracks that I consider totally classic (inculding the intro). The rest I could leave.

― Debito (Debito), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 03:39 (twenty-two years ago)

i'd say classic, even if it has its weak parts. it represents a certain stance in hip hop very well, and it is very typical of, but better that most of, the indy shit that came out in the late 1990ies.

― Jay Kid (Jay K), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 10:27 (twenty-two years ago)

it was the way into hip hop for probably 75% of the indie kids i know (including me), so i have to say classic, even though i haven't listened to it for a long time, and don't want to very much. 'mathematics' will be classic until the end of time though.

― pete b. (pete b.), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 10:54 (twenty-two years ago)

Whenever I put it on I enjoy it enough, and it certainly beats the shit outta Common, but I really don't play it that often.

― Nick Southall (Nick Southall), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 11:25 (twenty-two years ago)

If only I could find an instrumental CD of said classic. "Black On Both Sides" is easily as important to hip-hop as "Endtroducing" or "Low End Theory" - sadly none of the three changed hip-hop forever, but they should have.

I have a vinyl copy of the instrumentals, could be they never pressed it on CD (though scour soulseek, you might be able to find it there).

i love this album a whole damned lot. i still think there's nothing to trump the early 12"s collected on the first Soundbombing, though that's probably just because of the ultra lo-fi lo-end sound of that album...

― stevie (stevie), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 11:48 (twenty-two years ago)

It wasn't quite classic, but it was shit you had to enjoy. His vocal performances were great and 'May/December' is one of the best tracks of its type, if a little too tasteful in parts.

― Barima (Barima), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:08 (twenty-two years ago)

It has one of the best opening tracks of any hip-hop CD I've ever heard.

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:10 (twenty-two years ago)

Which was?

― Barima (Barima), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:18 (twenty-two years ago)

"Fear Not of Man"

― nickalicious (nickalicious), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:20 (twenty-two years ago)

Memory check: go.

Completed.

Dude, you're so freaking right! At the end when 'Hip Hop' kicks in, it's like BAM! 2 of the best opening combinations in LP historee.

― Barima (Barima), Wednesday, 14 January 2004 19:24 (twenty-two years ago)

I absolutely love that intro/openning track. I wish the whole album sounded like it. It has an organic quality. The other tracks tend to be a bit too slick.

― Debito (Debito), Thursday, 15 January 2004 01:19 (twenty-two years ago)

a
b
boys rock the world

(stevie's right about universal magnetic /if u can huh)

98, man. still gets me tearful

― prima fassy (bob), Thursday, 15 January 2004 01:38 (twenty-two years ago)

I always thought it was a bit overrated but its good. I think it sort of falls off a bit after the collab w/ Talib Kweli. 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 9, 11 were good tracks I remember. Ha, sorry. I remember being a bit let-down by the Primo track which is something that NEVER happens.

― Johnny Badlees (crispssssss), Thursday, 15 January 2004 03:10 (twenty-two years ago)

i got way more into Common's "Like Water For Chocolate" and even the Kweli/Hi-Tek record a bit more at the time. Man, hip-hop seemed like it was REALLY about to take off at that time...... oh well

― Johnny Badlees (crispssssss), Thursday, 15 January 2004 03:12 (twenty-two years ago)

Yeah, whatever happened to hip-hop anyways? I sorta miss it.

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Thursday, 15 January 2004 03:19 (twenty-two years ago)

smartassery aside, I kinda forget how great this album is when it's on point (and how dumb it can be when it's not). "Got" is a sick sick beat.

― nate detritus (natedetritus), Thursday, 15 January 2004 03:20 (twenty-two years ago)

how dumb it can be
But would they treat Woody the same if his name was Woody BLACK?

― sym (shmuel), Thursday, 15 January 2004 03:35 (twenty-two years ago)

Oh god, don't remind us of that line...

"I have read a book" political viewpoints aside, I'm inclined to go with "classic". "Speed Law", "Do It Now", and "Ms Fat Booty" is a hip-hop trinity that few albums match, and "bukka bukka bukka" is a good catchphrase.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 15 January 2004 03:53 (twenty-two years ago)

Sorry. But he actually ran a bookstore. He's read many books!

― sym (shmuel), Thursday, 15 January 2004 04:15 (twenty-two years ago)

OK, I motion for a US-set version of Black Books with Mos Def as Dylan Moran and Common as Bill Bailey.

― Dom Passantino (Dom Passantino), Thursday, 15 January 2004 04:17 (twenty-two years ago)

four years pass...

classic - prob the best album by a rawkus artist and kinda underrated these days cos of how he dropped the ball pretty much as soon as BOBS was over.

― titchyschneiderMk2, Sunday, 7 December 2008 13:56 (seventeen years ago)

its also a 100 times better than LWFC and the first kweli album.

― titchyschneiderMk2, Sunday, 7 December 2008 13:58 (seventeen years ago)

U crazy dude reflection eternal >>>>>>>>>>> bobs

― beyonc'e (max), Sunday, 7 December 2008 13:59 (seventeen years ago)

yeah half of BOBS was the beginning of Mos dropping the ball, Train Of Thought is pretty great.

― The wickerman from the hilarious 'nic cage' movie (some dude), Sunday, 7 December 2008 14:37 (seventeen years ago)

This backpack-wearing white guy gives it a thumbs up!

― Nick Mirov (nick), Tuesday, January 13, 2004 9:39 PM (4 years ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

― Ron Polarik, PhD (and what), Sunday, 7 December 2008 15:31 (seventeen years ago)

classic - prob the best album by a rawkus artist

― titchyschneiderMk2, Sunday, 7 December 2008 13:56 (1 hour ago) Bookmark Suggest Ban Permalink

^^^ poll?

― Peter "One Dart" Manley (The stickman from the hilarious 'xkcd' comics), Sunday, 7 December 2008 15:33 (seventeen years ago)

U crazy dude reflection eternal >>>>>>>>>>> bobs

reflection eternal has better singles, but lots more dead space. mos is the q-tip to kweli's phife.

― tipsy mothra, Sunday, 7 December 2008 16:47 (seventeen years ago)

"yeah half of BOBS was the beginning of Mos dropping the ball"

nope. that was the new danger. BOBS only has one shitty song (r&r) and thats only cos mos says some weird shit on it. the beat (for the first half) is still hot in that late 90s hydra/beatnuts/godfather don kind of way.

― titchyschneiderMk2, Sunday, 7 December 2008 17:16 (seventeen years ago)

"Umi Says" redeems any number of bullshit wanky jams that followed.

― Super Cat (The Reverend), Sunday, 7 December 2008 17:41 (seventeen years ago)

i love new danger

― slap bass: the ungentle art (stevie), Sunday, 7 December 2008 21:20 (seventeen years ago)

asodjf 89w4efrjfvdm,

― HOOS wearing bitchmade sweaters and steendriving (BIG HOOS aka the steendriver), Sunday, 7 December 2008 21:22 (seventeen years ago)

This album absolutely felt like the pinnacle of backpacker hip hop when it came out, and it definitely influenced Andre, Kanye, Lupe and a lot of the spacey post-conscious hip hop out there right now. It also felt like the beginning of a movement at the time, but in retrospect this album was impossible to replicate- it turns out you need quite a big personality, a sense of humor, and some really great lyrics in order to make this sort of thing work. Mos Def had all of that, but most of his peers didn't, which is why Talib is so boring.

― makeitpop, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:20 (seventeen years ago)

i like lwfc more -- honestly mos def's fall off was a lot more graceful than common's tho

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:23 (seventeen years ago)

http://concreteloop.com/wp-content/uploads/2008/10/spl52822_009.jpg

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:24 (seventeen years ago)

this is a dope album but the talib/reflection eternal h8rs are just makin me *smdh*

― beyonc'e (max), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:24 (seventeen years ago)

i remember watching this load verrrry slowly on my computer when i first got to campus in 2k1 on the then-still-in-existence rawkus website

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:26 (seventeen years ago)

man this song is great -- wtf happened to underground rap

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:27 (seventeen years ago)

wasnt the big picture on rawkus? thats the best rawkus artist album

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:28 (seventeen years ago)

man this song is great -- wtf happened to underground rap

― deej, Sunday, December 7, 2008 5:27 PM (2 minutes ago) Bookmark

gettin remixed by the crookers

― Bomb Sackantino (J0rdan S.), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:30 (seventeen years ago)

kweli sounded kinda ruff on this one -- all over the place lol

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:30 (seventeen years ago)

^^^ dopest kweli verse all-time?

i got nothing to say about black on both sides : /

― Ron Polarik, PhD (and what), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:35 (seventeen years ago)

It's amazing that an indie hip hop artist ever had the budget for a video like The Blast. Is it true Rawkus went out of business because of a lawsuit over the sample on the Simon Says beat? I've heard this several times...

― makeitpop, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:38 (seventeen years ago)

godzilla's legal team is not to be fucked with

― Ron Polarik, PhD (and what), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:39 (seventeen years ago)

love this beat

― some know what you dude last summer (Jordan), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:39 (seventeen years ago)

kweli is corny on this but everything else is great

― some know what you dude last summer (Jordan), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:43 (seventeen years ago)

i met kweli when he came to speak at blackness week at my college, hes a good dude, said that the reason hes always offbeat is that hes still using rhymes from when he was like 13 that he used to write down in his notebook when he didnt have beats to go over

― beyonc'e (max), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:47 (seventeen years ago)

o_O

― some know what you dude last summer (Jordan), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:54 (seventeen years ago)

weird story

― deej, Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:55 (seventeen years ago)

u asked him why he is always off beat?

― Bomb Sackantino (J0rdan S.), Sunday, 7 December 2008 23:57 (seventeen years ago)

^^^^always loved this single

― Peter "One Dart" Manley (The stickman from the hilarious 'xkcd' comics), Monday, 8 December 2008 00:01 (seventeen years ago)

love that album

― deej, Monday, 8 December 2008 00:19 (seventeen years ago)

altho 'rape' is pretty damn o_O

― deej, Monday, 8 December 2008 00:20 (seventeen years ago)

^^^mad underrated

― Animal Collector (The Reverend), Monday, 8 December 2008 08:31 (seventeen years ago)

"said that the reason hes always offbeat is that hes still using rhymes from when he was like 13 that he used to write down in his notebook when he didnt have beats to go over"

he should write some new ones ;)

― titchyschneiderMk2, Monday, 8 December 2008 10:36 (seventeen years ago)

good one

― deej, Monday, 8 December 2008 10:41 (seventeen years ago)

real question here- whatever happened to rah digga?

― a hoy hoy, Monday, 8 December 2008 11:35 (seventeen years ago)

i think she got repeatedly knocked up by young zee.

― titchyschneiderMk2, Monday, 8 December 2008 13:11 (seventeen years ago)

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