1001 Albums Generator
3 Feet High and Rising by De La Soul

3 Feet High and Rising

De La Soul

1989
3.44
Rating
28652
Votes
1
5%
2
14%
3
31%
4
32%
5
18%
Distribution
Genres: Hip-Hop Styles: Conscious, Boom Bap

Reviews (page 6 of 13)

Why skits?

Timeless this is not. It’s forever stuck in 1989. Back then it works great. Now, not so much.

Not my usual genre but this one was quite fun! There were a couple of offputting tracks (orgee) but overall a solid listen.

De la Orgee singlehandedly drags the otherwise enjoyable and fun and goofy album down to mediocrity

11/13/25. Always happy to revisit this, amazing album. From the production, samples, and storytelling, this is definitely one of my favorite hip hop albums, and overall, likely my favorite album from the late 80s.

3 er et magisk nummer.... Og det her var bedre end forventet, men lidt langt med de mange skids, og Bits..

Sjov hip-hop. Fed sampling. Lidt langt. Virkelig platte interludes.

The album that was on the forefront of it all. So many emcees all owe it to the native tounge/zulu. The perfection of socially conscious rap, the perfection of boom bap. They might of walked so Tribe could run but this album never gets old. De La Soul to laugh Tribe to be political.

Nenei, nid mini Musig u z viu Gschnur.

De har bättre..

Kind of a definitive sound of hip-hop in the early 90’s. Fresh Prince vibes ha. Good beats, good flow. Upbeat, energetic. There’s a lot of comedic lyrics and skit tracks interspersed on the album. Notable tracks include The Magic Number, Ghetto Thang, Eye Know, Say No Go, Me Myself and I.

Pure fun!

this is such a vibe (song #1) never mind (song #3-4)

This hip-hop album is like a patchwork quilt stitched from funk, jazz, and imagination. Unhelpful as I was already having difficulty with IT being a quilt.

So funky, so abstract. There's a lot going on here. Sometimes not enough. Sometimes it loses its way - especially in the deluxe re-release, but overall a groundbreaking banger that still sounds great 4.5

90s hip hop at its finest. Front to back play, no skips required

4,5!! Rap springfyldt med personlighedbog gode beats ✨

I am not a hip hop guy but this is a classic

Amazing. No notes

Early hip hop is okay. The interlude stuff like the little bit of soap is fun. Lyrically seems to be still relevant. Sampled a lot of fun music as well. It's the sound of the samples in early hip hop that make the beats sound kind of tin-cannish and that's why I don't much prefer early hip hop.

Love de la soul. One of my favourite rap groups. Me, myself and I is my favourite song off this album. I would have to say that they were one of the most influential groups in the rap genre, in my eyes anyway. They brought rhythm, great beats, and awesome lyrics to their music.

Early rap. Clean and solid. But I like my rap a bit harder and grittier

Some really good songs, some really corny songs. It's good I guess, but not my favorite group from this era. I respect the production style though. Really pushed forward sample heavy hip hop beats.

Groundbreaking group out of New York has some nice grooves and rap rhythms.

Great album, love the old school hip hop

Great stuff.

Fun and playful sound but I doubt I will ever come back to it

Some fine moments, some are not, mostly over the place

Thankfully I wasn't doing this challenge pre-2023, or else this would have been difficult to track down on streaming. Having De La Soul's entire catalog available online is a net positive in my eyes. Anyway, I'd consider this a significant album in the history of hip-hop. In a landscape where gangsta rap was pretty much dominating the genre, this stood out on its own with how...positive everything sounded and the unique samples used. Specifically the jazz and psychedelic-infused beats and samples make this an easily digestible listen for the most part (the sampling in "Eye Know"...*chef's kiss*). This album also sort of popularized the use of skits in hip-hop, for better or for worse. That's honestly the only slight I have with this album and the only part I'd argue that didn't age too well. (I mean, who's coming here to listen to "De La Orgee"? Come on, man...) There's some humor to be found in the quiz show skits, however. Despite some minor gripes, I'd still consider this album a cornerstone of hip-hop. The eclectic sampling and quirky lyricism quite honestly freshened the genre and De La Soul's contributions overall sort of ushered in the popularity of jazz rap/alternative hip-hop, which I'll always be fond of. R.I.P. Trugoy

Similar vibe to A Tribe Called Quest

Production: great. Skits: horrendous. 3/5

Liked it a lot. Very danceable. Would have been a 5 if the running gag in-between tunes was missing.

I didn't even need to relisten, but I did. An eternal classic.

If I had a favourite hip-hop/rap album, which I don’t, but if I did, it would probably be this one. But I don’t. The genre leaves me feeling old and bewildered, but this is a fun record and I enjoyed listening to it. As with all records in this genre, it’s the music that makes it for me.

As Hip-Hop goes I am sure this is significant in it's development etc. There are some tracks which stand out , but as is so often the case with this genre for me its the variation in the music and instrumentation that makes it of interest. All the same this feels a bit... long. Magic Number, Me Myself and I are, great. The quiz show bits wear thin very quickly.

This is #day454 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… it's been a while since I've had a record from what's apparently called the D.A.I.S.Y. Age. I always knew about the Golden Age of Hip-Hop; same thing, I guess? Anyway, I've seen this cover before and heard of the band and the album name, but somehow never actually listened to it. Until today. Surely influential and all that. A little too soulful and laid-back for my taste, though. Also, too long. This is a 3 out of 5. Looking forward to #day455.

Innovative ✅ Influential ✅ Approachable ✅ Had fun doing it ✅ Fun to listen to ✅ Would listen to it again ❌

Well structured! Good sense of humor and nice vibes Highlights Me Myself and I, The Magic Number

a lot of this feels like the informational videos that you would get shown in health class (A Little Bit of Soap) and the rest feels like a few guys joking around and stepping up to the mic with no real plan, just letting their inside jokes guide them (Can U Keep a Secret). i doubt i’d listen to this again, but it was a fun listen. i enjoyed Eye Know, Buddy, and The Magic Number.

I remember the precise moment I first heard De La Soul. I was refinishing my parents' kitchen cabinets and looking at the clock above their oven when Eye Know came on the radio. It felt like salvation. From many things, not the least of which a decade where popular music was dominated by boomer nostalgia. It's ironic perhaps but they were sampling Steely Dan, a boomer band if there ever was one, but to say something completely new. Genius. Simply one of my very favorite records. The kind of out of nowhere creative explosion that created an entire sub genre that would have consumed all of hip hop if not for the dominance of gangsta rap. So far out on a limb they had to kill themselves off with their next record, De La Soul is Dead. Took sampling to such an insane extreme that it took the lawyers over thirty years to clear all of the samples, so it couldn't debut on streaming platforms until 2023. Sadly, Trugoy (Yogurt backwards, for some unknown reason) aka Plug Two, one of the greatest rappers the world will ever see, died a month before. Anyway, I can't tell you what it felt like to hear so many cultural touchstones from my youth brought together in one place. In the very first song you get Schoolhouse Rock and Johnny Cash. They were making funky and funny tunes out of Hall and Oates! They combined all of these nuggets to create an entire world with its own vocabulary. Like other truly great albums it takes you on a journey to a place you've never been. The Promised Land, in this case. Maybe it was the drugs, but for the roughly two years between this album and De La Soul Is Dead I literally believed that the D.A.I.S.Y. Age was going to transform the world and bring humanity together to usher in an enlightened era. That's what I was working toward. That, and getting more drugs. Anyway, incredibly creative album and powerful statement on the promise of youth and positive energy unlike anything before or since. I don't like those "best of" lists - music is not a competition and making it a sport diminishes its magic, but I wouldn't have a problem if you came with Three Feet High And Rising as the greatest album ever made and I will be sorely disappointed if it isn't one of the very highest rated by the 1001 community.

I wasn't sure whether we'd get this album in the collection, but I'm very relieved we did, mainly because it's fun to revisit an album I've enjoyed for a long time, and now I feel like I have a bit more context for what was going on musically when this came out. I love the way they incorporated a bunch of great samples into a fun, light-hearted and decidedly un-gangsta rap/hip-hop album, all with a touch of social commentary at times. Nearly all of the tracks are really well done--the only ones that kind of fall flat are the various game show interludes, plus "De la orgee"--but my favorites are probably the "The magic number", "Jenifa taught me", "Potholes in my lawn", "Say no go" and "Me myself and I", with an honorable mention to the brief French masterpiece "Transmitting live from Mars" (although I never realized that they got sued by The Turtles for the uncleared sample for "You showed me"). It was also fun to see the videos for their singles for the first time, and to place faces with voices nearly 40 years later (especially true for "Eye know"). I'm also really impressed that De La Soul *finally* managed to reissue this album digitally, after decades of clearance issues, and a long-standing conflict with Tommy Boy's ownership of their masters. It's a bit of a bummer that a few tracks had to be changed (e.g. "Cool breeze on the rocks" lost all of its awesome rapid-fire collage of samples), but the overall effect remains the same, a truly unique album and an amazing legacy.

What a treat! The magic number is 5.

3.5 stars This is a great and influential hip hop record that I appreciate more than I enjoy. While singles like “3 is a magic number” and “Me Myself and I” are undeniable classics, the album feels overlong and some of the tracks feel their age. While the sampling in this era of hip hop is impressive, the beats and rhyme schemes can often feel repetitive, making the listening experience for a 1 hour record a bit trying. I was glad that the skits were extremely brief. I’ll return to it and it may increase in my opinion over time. I’ve listened to much of the album in the past but this was my first full listen and it didn’t grab me as much as I thought it would.

Great first half.. Okayish 2nd half.. some really groovy beats tho..

Apreciei

Couldn't get through. 6/10

Tried it, didn't like it.

Big beats and weird little skits, with a wide range of samples from the likes of Cymande, kids TV shows, Steely Dan, Funkadelic and Kraftwerk (to name but a few)... this is absolutely my type of hip-hop. De La Soul never seemed to take themselves too seriously, and, like The Beastie Boys, that irreverence and comedy comes across as a fun energy throughout the album. But the quality of this music is serious. 3 is a magic number, but this gets 4.5 stars.

That’s just fun

Had a lot of fun with this album. Very unique and goofy while having some great beats and east coast style

My first foray into Hip-Hop in this journey. Very much not my usual genre. Intro - X/10. Not rated, played like a gameshow introduction. (3 is) The Magic Number - 8/10. Nice beat, a bit meta and very intelligent lyrics. I like it. Change In Speak - 7/10. Good beat, I like the backing music. Solid groove. Cool Breeze on the Rocks - X/10. Not rated. Gameshow Interlude. Can U Keep a Secret - 7/10. Good groove, lyrics fit with the title of the song. Jenifa Taught Me - 7/10. Another nice groove. Ghetto Thang - 7/10. Surprisingly, I find a lot of similarities between this and Elvis Presley's "In The Ghetto." Transmitting Live From Mars - 5/10. Not bad, but not as good as the previous tracks. Eye Know - 9/10. Smooth groove, and they're sampling Peg by Steely Dan and Sitting on the Dock of the Bay by Otis Redding. These gentlemen have taste. Take It Off - 4/10. Not a fan of this one. A Little Bit Of Soap - 6/10. Nice sample of Stand By Me. Tread Water - 6/10. Another smooth groove, which they seem to specialize in. Potholes In My Lawn - 8/10. This has me doing a little dancing in my chair as I listen. I like it. Say No Go. - 7/10. Another smooth groove. Using the words almost as another instrument. Do as De La Does - 6/10. More of an aggressive groove here than what's come before. Not bad. Plug Tunin' - 7/10. Back to the smoother grooves, and I like it. De La Orgee - 4/10. Significantly more ... explicit than what's come before. A bit jarring. Buddy - 6/10. More on the explicit side, but also more subtle about it, so I don't mind it. Description - 7/10. Smooth and back to the fun of the early part of the album. Me Myself and I - 6/10. Very nice groove, mix might be a little too heavy on the music, lyrics aren't as easy to pick out as I'd like. This is a Recording 4 Living in a Fulltime ERA - 6/10. Very typical of this album. I Can Do Anything - 5/10. Meh. D.A.I.S.Y. Age - 6/10. Smooth and simple. Overall Rating - 3/5. Solid album.

35 years on, It’s saying something that this is even listenable at all, never mind standing tall as a landmark of hip-hop and of music in general. 3FH&R is essentially an episode of Sesame Street to a funky beat but it’s the top notch flows, esoteric sample choices, and CHOONS which are the solid foundations to its longevity.

Some great tunes on this one but some filler also

All-time great album and means a whole lot to me personally.

Sounds timeless. Great album experience with a few recognizable tracks from films I’ve seen.

really weird, but super funny 3

A bit of a long album but it didn’t feel that way because it was so playful and fun. I love De La Soul and I love Tribe so this album is always a treat to listen to.

SEEEEEEEEE

Inside joke I'm looking in on

Skipped every one of these awful recordings after a minute or so and the album still took forever. A smorgasbord of inadequacy.

Yeah this is really good stuff. Just something fun about it. Sounds great and really good lyrically. Always been on my list to listen to as well, I’ll delve further. Simpsons: Yes

The music was alright and gave a real uplifting vibe, which was nice; however, it was a bit too long for me.

Some bits I quite liked but not enough interesting stuff for me.

And early hip-hop classic that delivers on its reputation.

is the magic number.

Some parts great, some parts repulsive. No parts for me.

Fun record

die dudes sind fun hahah. mega freudigi musig irgendwie. s intro check nöd aber isch sehr funny. die nögste zwei tracks sind huuere geili beats. bi can you keep a secret ischs zwor nöd agnehm zum lose dass sie flüstered aber funny isches scho. jenifa taught me au fun, aber find de stockend beat irgendwie nervig. nie würkli miis gsi. ghett thang checki nöd so ganz. aber ok. transmitting life from mars. quelle heute est-il? wiso lern ich horny französisch gad? ah des saucisses haha. eye know mega coole beat. isch das steely dan s sample? yeeep isch peg. geil. take it off checki weniger. sie hend halt platz gha ufere CD. mer merks würkli 90er albe hend immer bitz speck womer nöd brucht. a little bit if soap gad au. coole beat i guess. ok tread water isch en richtige song. alte de slappt sie reded zerst mitme fisch und denn mitme mister monkey. fuck yeah. say no go au huuere coole beat. i mag. do as de la does isch funny. you fuckin lasagnaheads isch huuuere lustig. sie hend so spass. buddy isch huere fun. me myself and i au haha sie sind cool. riese beat.

iwie findi de la soul easy en funny name hahah ahhh coole vibe, sochli unseriös falls das sinn macht change in speak gad wieder voll andersch! aber trz kohärent iwie cool breeze on the rocks bests lied bis jz ich lieb wie sie ihri samples ihbauet, prominent aber nöd, dass es obnoxious isch transmitting live from mars hani mega geil gfunde hahaha hahaha little bit of soap INSANE dumm aber funny (und riese sample (find cool, dass es nie ufegaht)) OMG HOI MR. MONKE NEIII SINI BANAN EYE KNOW MITEM OTTIS REDDING ERST JZ GSEH hahaha s jodel-sample riesiiig do as de la does gaht ja DUMMM OMGGGG S SAMPLE "I'd like to return to the classics" HET DE NOTHING,NOWHERE AU MAL GSAMPLED IN BETTER de la orgee chli unnötig aber was wetsch mache q-tip am annefizze! jaa wie so hüfig halt eifach z lang es knapps 4i. d lieder sind megaa kreativ und immer chli laidback, doch es het mich au chli wenig gecatched. und ebe für mich z laaang

I found 3 Feet High and Rising to be a very good listen, especially since hip-hop isn't usually my go-to genre. The sound is notably mellow, rich in melody and groove, with rhythms that are far from monotonous or predictable. The vocals are excellent and never get tiresome. While the album starts strong with "The Magic Number," the following few tracks are merely good. The album truly hits its stride and takes off starting with "Eye Know" and continues to deliver from there, making for an overall happy vibe and an enjoyable listen. Even the skits didn't bother me! Four stars. 1 "Intro" (4/5) 2 "The Magic Number" (5/5) 3 "Change in Speak" (3/5) 4 "Cool Breeze on the Rocks" (3/5) 5 "Can U Keep a Secret" (3/5) 6 "Jenifa Taught Me (Derwin's Revenge)" (3/5) 7 "Ghetto Thang" (3/5) 8 "Transmitting Live from Mars" (3/5) 9 "Eye Know" (5/5) 10 "Take It Off" (4/5) 11 "A Little Bit of Soap" (5/5) 12 "Tread Water" (5/5) 13 "Potholes in My Lawn" (4/5) 14 "Say No Go" (5/5) 15 "Do as De La Does" (3/5) 16 "Plug Tunin' (Last Chance to Comprehend)" (4/5) 17 "De La Orgee" (3/5) 18 "Buddy" (featuring Jungle Brothers and Q-Tip) (4/5) 19 "Description" (3/5) 20 "Me Myself and I" (5/5) 21 "This Is a Recording 4 Living in a Fulltime Era (L.I.F.E.)" (4/5) 22 "I Can Do Anything (Delacratic)" (3/5) 23 "D.A.I.S.Y. Age" (3/5) Total - 87 Average - 3.78 137/1001 71/137 albums reviewed were new to me.

Wahou ! C'est frais, c'est dynamique et y'a une petite vibe nonchalante qui fait trop kiffer

Alright, getting to check out De La Soul today. The Long Island trio of Kelvin "Posdnuos" Mercer, David "Trugoy the Dove" Jolicoeur, and Vincent "Maseo" Mason is considered one of the biggest alternative hip-hop groups out there, and they have been playing the game since high school. They got to work early on with producer Prince Paul, known for leading the hip hop group Stetsasonic, and exploded onto the scene with their debut, 3 Feet High and Rising. Right off the bat, the production on this record is astounding. This is one of those early sample-heavy hip-hop records where De La Soul and Prince Paul pulled several elements from existing tracks to create new sonic palettes. The hook of "Me, Myself and I" lifted from Funkadelic's "(Not Just) Knee Deep", the foundation of "The Magic Number" being based on an old Schoolhouse Rock tune, the multiple utterances of "rock" used throughout "Cool Breeze on the Rocks", sneaking in a bit of Kraftwerk's "Trans Europe Express" on "Ghetto Thang". Hell, one of my favorite tracks on this album, "Eye Know", is a grooving cross between Otis Redding, Sly & the Family Stone, and Steely Dan of all bands. Much like the Beastie Boys would do on Paul's Boutique later that same year, De La Soul were very inventive in how they incorporated the samples to create fresh beats and ad-libs for a fun, timeless listening experience. As for the lyrical content, the three of them traded bars that swerve between intellectual and surreal. These are three dudes having fun while also largely avoiding or lampooning the more confrontational subject matter of the purveying gangsta rap of the time. From dealing with sexual encounters on "Jenifa Taught Me (Derwin's Revenge)" and "Eye Know", to addressing poverty and social injustice on "Ghetto Thang", to speaking awareness of overtaking drugs on "Say No Go", to standing up against labels being put on them on "Me, Myself and I", and offering guidance in moving forward with life on "Tread Water", the group spoke thoughtfully on the different problems they were seeing. All the while, they threw in hilarious bits like sharing secrets, offering soap to deal with smells, and goofing around with their fellow Native Tongues friends on the posse cut "Buddy". Continuing with the humorous nature, this album is one of the first in hip-hop history to employ skits. Mostly, the narrative of this record involves a game show in which all the members are contestants trying to answer questions, and the skits work in this lane for the most part. I could have done without the "De La Orgee" skit, but even that wasn't enough to deter me from enjoying this record. Plus, an argument could be made that they were once again lampooning the more sexual tendencies of some rap groups. Overall, 3 Feet High and Rising proved to be a phenomenal debut for De La Soul. The guys knew how to break onto the scene with their own identity, and are all the better for it.

FUCKING BANGER. peace love and hip hop for real. I am obsessed and forever upset that I wasn’t around to hear 80-90s hip hop as it happened.

Fun sound and energy on this album. Not something I think I’d revisit much, but a good hip hop album with lots of twists and turns. 3/5

This was great. I don’t think I ever heard an album with more fun in it. This made me chuckle multiple times, it’s just so charming and loose. It’s musically interesting, the whole concept of a game show being called back to again and again was so unique and cool as well. It’s such a shame I never heard of this before because I really enjoyed my time listening to it. I respect an artist that can make crowd work sound enjoyable but an artist that can make crowd work enjoyable with me being the crowd is marvelous. I don’t think I would want to listen to individual songs much but the album as a whole? Great. Also happy to announce it’s on Spotify now

I don't like the skits, they drain a lot of energy, but the tracks are really good. Great flow, excellent rhymes, kinda understated, which I really like.

When a group has great chemistry and is having fun, you get a great album like this.

This was fun mixed with message mixed with Proof Redding. It was just a simple album for the day that had me think a little and chuckle a little.

It's okay. In it's best moments it has some creative sampling and cool scratching. Their rapping isn't that great. Sometimes seemed kind of juvenile, probably because they were young when they made this & some of it seems like they are just messing around.

This record is a pioneer in hip hop and I truly respect it, and yet I can’t rate it high because it simply does nothing for me. The tracks are interesting and yet not. It sounds like it was all made up in the spot.

This album feels like a big party. Super fun vibes. It went on a little too long for my taste, especially with the similar back beat that is present through so many of the tracks, but I was impressed with the creativity and the raps.

Hip Hop - Late 80s hip hop was playful sounding and certainly unique. They have a "sound" but it wasn't repetitive. I like the late Tribe Called Quest feature on the album. The simulated orgy track though was….uh….something…. I would listen to this album again.

BANGER 5/5

As usual, I prefer the alt rap to the typical gangster rap of the 90s, and this is no exception. I also like the positive vibes of this album

I've never been a fan of comedy rap.

Highlight Song/s: (3 is) The Magic Number, Ghetto Thang, Eye Know Quite a relaxing album, no yelling or other aggressive forms of rapping are present. Positive and light-heartedness and comedy are some other elements on this album. De La Soul; all three of them have a really clean, steady, punctual flow. De La Soul references like a dozen or so words in most of the songs, which to my ears gives it a more cohesive feel to it; like it's a show or something. Some thoughts that didn't fit anywhere else: -Eye Know sounds so hopeful and so so sweet. -Tread Water's flow kind of sounds like the flow from It's Tricky by Run-DMC.

The production and DJing on this album is still unparalleled, and the rapping is fun but definitely of it’s time.

Overall still a classic, but I was fighting a vague sense of disappointment where my memories of the album were better than the reality. Kinda like visiting your parents

Great artists. A witty and poetic approach to reality through hip hop, an enjoyable alternative to wannabe gangsters. Fantastic sampling and flow, which make a great album experience that transports you with the group. Didn't need to take us to De La Orgee, though — we could purge that track from every platform. Highly original, groundbreaking, and positive. But hasn't aged as well as Tribe. 4.5/5 I believe this work was also a huge influence for two of the greatest hip hop albums of all time, which shockingly are missing in 1001AYMHBYD: Mos Def & Talib Kweli Are Black Star Black on Both Sides

I have pretty strict tastes when it comes to soul. I think they're doing cool, really new stuff, but it isn't for me

It's proper upbeat and you can tell they had a blast making this album. It really makes me want to enjoy it, but in reality, it's just not that great. The beats are sometimes really good, other times fine, few times boring and uninteresting. I'm not a fan of the rapping either, and for an hour long, 23 song album it gets too much. Maybe a harsh 2, and I feel bad about it because I want to like it more than I do. What makes it even worse is that (3 Is) The Magic Number is the song that plays when you first load up MLB The Show, and that game has been PISSING me the fuck off lately.

Nothing special

An absolute classic that helped redefine the hip hop genre and maybe even help make it a bit more accessible to the suburban white parents who thought their kids were becoming degenerates.

Clouds part for the hip-hop sunshine radiating from De La Soul’s brightest day.

So early nineties. So much fun.

Very fun and interesting album with impeccable rhythm

Nice and fun. I liked the track (3 Is) The Magic Number. I also really like how these 90's rap albums tend to have all these intermission tracks, which I love in albums. Also, I like the game show storyline

I’ve always said that Hip Hop is at its best when it’s FUN and this exactly what this is. You can tell they had a great time creating this :)

Awesome. A classic. Hip hop is so steeped in the culture of the moment that listening to old albums can be a bit like a time capsule. Overall, it holds up. A bit long, but I enjoyed it.

What a blast. The energy, the humor, the imagination — it all feels alive. The beats are fresh even decades later, and the interludes actually enhance the concept rather than bog it down. 3 Feet High and Rising pulls off something rare: it’s both playful and technically sharp. I’m not always drawn to hip-hop concept records, but this one works start to finish.

The answer is 3

holy shit

They really like sampling.

fun vibey album, didn't know this was from the 80s, sounds very modern. Favorite track: Eye know other picks: magic number, me myself and i, say no go, buddy

Have only been aware of De La Soul, and haven't spent any time to listen to them. This album is phenomenal! Granted, I'm a Tribe fan and seeing QTip is on this album and De La Soul is chummy Tribe all makes sense. Great samples from some big songs and perfectly incorporated into their songs. Big time props for Eye Know for using Steely Dan. I may actually have to buy this album

I had fun, so did the artists. All around a good time!

Heel lekker

Oddio, non ce l'ho fatta a finirlo... Troppo ripetitivo

Smoooooooth

89 was the year of guilt free sampling apparently. This and Paul’s Boutique changed the game. Note to self: Stock up on Ludens

Jaunty! PSA vibes.

Very creative, maybe a bit unrefined. But if you like old school hip-hop and rap, it's fun.

This is really fun. It’s wild that these guys almost single handedly invented the rap album skit concept. I grew up in a world where this was so much a part of hip-hop that I never even considered who started it. Now I know. There’s maybe a little TOO much going on with this album that keeps it from being perfect, but it’s still a lot of fun just the same.

What a fun album! Hip hop is not normally my jam, but this was really good. The Magic Number, Eye Know and Say No Go are exceptional.

Ok, not offensive. just not my thing.

A great listen when it came out in 1989 and a great listen today. This was from the period of time when I listened regularly to hip hop music, and De La Soul was one of my favorites. So fun, so inventive, so intelligent. I worried it would sound very dated, and I didn't think it was at all. Some of the reviews commented on the game show skit that is followed through the album, and I didn't really remember it being all that much of an issue. And it wasn't. It was barely a thing. Some people just like to complain to complain I think.

Like it when a nice hip hop album turns up on a day when you really need it.

3.6 stars rounded up.

it was good, not really a hip hop fan but has really enjoyable tracks that really are worth the listen, I've loved the concept too

Fun one. Weird in a good way. Love a good math song.

Remember when hip hop was just fun? This record is just a good time. I wish there were less skits but that's not a huge deal. Favorite track: The Magic Number

This was quite fun! Not the usual sort of thing I listen for in hip hop, but I liked it. I was really impressed by the DJ and the production, as well as how early those "skits" you often find in hip hop appeared.

Well, that was sheer joy. Really playful. Lovely crunchy beats. Some nice crocodiles. A bit long but peng.

Lush and lovely, expansive, playful, innovative hip-hop. Great to revisit this band and hear the whole album. Cheered me up on a bit of an urgh work day, but really this should be for lounging about in a park on a hot, bright day feeling free I think. I found it a bit long, but I don't think I would in that context. Eye Know is such an amazing tune.

Didn't realize how many of these I already knew, or how many felt familiar. Maybe that is a sorta Mandela effect, but I can tell this album has gone on to influence a lot of artists. A lotta saved songs on this album, I will be coming back to it.

Good and not as good

Good and fun

Banger album, some of the best 90's hip-hop has to offer

some hit and miss songs but overall I enjoyed the album. wouldn't mind listening again

A master class of how to make samples work. Overall a very fun album its hard to sit still to this one.

Just a fun time.

Very sunny and uplifting slab of old-school hip-hop. Prince Paul is the main hero of this record for me, as lyrics will often float by me on the first few listens with rap records; still, I appreciate the craft and accessibility of the words here too. The biggest downside of the album, for me, is the skits. They really got tiresome for me the more I listened, and I never found them that funny to begin with. If I give myself permission to skip tracks, though, this is a perfectly fine record.

I'm not typically a fan of this era of hip hop for some reason. This album is definitely an exception to that and I'm confused as to why I haven't heard of them before. Reading through some of the other reviews, it looks like it's because they weren't available on some streaming services before so I'm glad they are now (at least on my streaming service of choice). This will go into my rotation.

Not something I’d listen to again

It's a pretty good hip hop album but it is loooonngg. Tracks felt repetitive. Also "De La Orgee" is unnecessary. If De La Soul could've tightened this album up, it would've been four stars. Top tracks: "Me Myself and I," "(3 Is) The Magic Number," "Eye Know," "Plug Turnin' (Last Chance to Comprehend)"

--Intro... --(3 is) The Magic Number...opening your hip hop album with some School House Rock is a choice. It's a good choice --Change in Speak...something about the mix bothers me. percussion is a little muddy --Cool Breeze on the Rocks...skit --Can U Keep a Secret...wtf is this? This is somehow weirder than anything Dr Octagon has done and that's saying something --Jenifa Taught Me...not really feeling this. where's the hook? --Ghetto Thang...it's good but the beat is a little basic --Transmitting Live from Mars...interlude --Eye Know...I dunno, y'all, I find the production/beats on here pretty basic. Are the lyrics good? I'll leave that up to smarter people --Take It Off...I'm surprised at how hard I'm bouncing off of this --A Little Bit of Soap...sure --Tread Water...I don't know if every song has been the same tempo but it feels that way --Potholes in My Lawn...here we go. this is my kind of weird --Say No Go...you can't use a Hall and Oates sample! that's cheating! --Do as De La Does...wtf is this? part 2 --Plug Tunin'...another track I just don't feel. I think my issue is mostly the tempo. not for me --De Le Orgee...no. just no --Buddy...save me, Q-Tip! Of course I like this one. not sure how much of it is Q's or the Jungle Brothers' influence --Description...whatever --Me Myself and I...I'm just not vibing with the production. not much more to say --This is a Recording...I like the bass here --I Can Do Anything...what is with 90s rap and "doodoo"? --D.A.I.S.Y. Age...yeah, don't get this at all. it's basically an anti-groove

Soft rap.

It's amazing how well this holds up. An alternative to the macho posturing that comprised(s) a lot of hip-hop also without being a mirror-gazing affirmation session. De La Soul feel like real actual people you would know or even be on this record. Their sampling is peerless, even all these years later. Great skits, infectious beats, amazing flow, funny, smart, warm, real.

I heard a hilarious story about De La Soul in a New York Times podcast a few years ago as part of the whole Hip Hop at 50 celebration. After this album blew up, the group joined a tour with Public Enemy and a couple other acts, and people were giving the them a lot of shit about supposedly being hippies. They did not take kindly to this and became notorious on that tour for getting into fistfights with detractors (Maseo had a boxing background, IIRC). Anyway, it’s hard to know what to say about albums like 3 Feet High that hasn’t already been said a million times. Yes, they blew open the doors on what was possible with sampling, introducing a previously untapped level of creativity. Yes, the lawsuits that indiscriminate sampling spawned helped bring about the eventual downfall of the form. Yes, Prince Paul emerged as a brilliant producer. On top of all of that, it’s just funky and incredibly fun. And I’ve always felt that De La doesn’t get enough credit for their clever wordplay and flow — there's a really smart poetry in their rhymes. These were essentially three teenagers living with their parents in Long Island who figured out how to loop snippets from random LPs they found at rummage sales and their parents’ record collections and fuse it into something that sounded like no hip-hop or anything else before it. They were Transmitting Live From Mars, and they changed the course of popular music. RIP Dave.

Just a classic. When this dropped it was perhaps the best rap album ever recorded. Prince Paul's beats still sound good and the corny nursery rhymes of earlier rap records are replaced with flow and lyricism.

man I listened to this a lot when it was new. mostly harmless. may be responsible for the "skits in hip-hop" trend it took a decade to stamp out?

How can you not listen to this album without a smile? One of the best. Yea, the skits are corny. Maybe they didn't age very well. The music did, though. Still great.

Cool simpling. Really enjoyed this.

nice Schoolhouse Rock sample but the orgy song kinda ruined it

A lot of fun. Too long. The beats are much more interesting than the rapping. The orgy skit tempted me to drop this to 2 but there is too much value here to do that. Best song: Me Myself and I

Solid solid record. I love their classic hip hop style beats, their chilled delivery, their feel for a hook and their sense of fun. It's long though, and although there are fewer frustrating pointless skits than some hip hop from this period, the game show thing is very annoying.

4/5 Really enjoyed listening to this on this Friday morning. Overall great vibes and a couple iconic songs. Will be adding a few of these to my library

Uma nova forma de trabalhar com hip hop, com elementos psicodélicos, esse álbum brilha

Not normally my thing, but there are some serious foottappers on this.

Jesus f. Christ, i thought I'd never live this down...

I love a skit in a Rap Album. Researching the efforts behind this album's creation is where I learned the term "sampledelia," which is still one of my favorite traits in music. It's like an audible collage (which also happens to be one of my favorite physical art mediums.) The amount of fun they're having on the album is just fun to hear. Feels like the pinnacle of late 80s/early 90s rap, where charisma was just as important as rhyme. Tracks like Jenifa Taught Me, and Do as De La Does shows the lasting impact disco has had on hip-hop, such fun danceable tracks. It's a challenge to review music that you can tell inspired so many later artists, because it sounds so familiar it's almost boring, immediately this album reminded me of The Pharcyde's later album Bizarre Ride II (and that album is more confrontational in its sound - it is very much of this sampledelia era) so in a way it played like something I had already heard 100s of times before.

this was really good and cool conceptually. I feel like it dragged on a little long but I liked the storytelling and tracks a lot. Fav songs: eye know, tread water

My first thoughts about this album were that this was probably interesting when it came out, cool jazzy influences, but hasn’t really help up into 2025. And then Transmitting Live from Mars and Eye Know came on, changing my mind about the album. In the end, a couple other songs have stood out to me - Say No Go, for instance - but overall my first impression wasn’t so far off from my final analysis. And you’ve got to be kidding me with De La Orgee.

A highly inventive and positive rap album. No one sounded like these guys and they would never sound like this again. This is the album that made me fall in love with Hip Hop.

Hip-hop's "Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band." Equal parts hilarious, irreverent, ambitious and groundbreaking. There was absolutely nothing like this in the rap universe until the three plugs from the Amityville suburbs of Long Island completely flipped the idea of what you could sample and rap over. Who else, in 1989, was sampling Otis Redding and Steely Dan on the same track? Or Hall & Oates and Johnny Cash, Michael Jackson, James Brown, the Beatles, the Monkees and Jefferson Starship on the same album? The legacy of the D.A.I.S.Y. Age is all the vibrant hip-hop that came after. That this album pigeonholed Posdnuos, Dave and Maseo as hip-hop hippies until "Stakes is High" completely recast De La's legacy is lame, but this album lives among the greatest ever. How many times did the Batmobile catch a flat?

“Every last viewer is tuned to the method / Known to be a method, no magicians, not a trick” The origin of skits in hip hop. The precedent for has-been rockstars to expropriate earnings from younger artists. An all-time classic situation of a group hating their lead single. And a pervasive, infectious joy in the creative freedom that open sampling and spoken poetry can provide. Peaks: Plug Tunin, Potholes in My Lawn, Eye Know, Buddy, The Magic Number

I adore this album. Great lyrics, great samples, great execution. Only thing I’ve ever not liked about it is the skits.

Take out the dumb skits and this is an all-timer

After a spell of mostly dreary albums, this came with a breath of fresh air. Some energy and solid beats even if it is a bit dated at times. Still, an essential old school hip hop album that deserves its spot in the book.

I don’t care for this so much. I don’t get it. All I really know is that they said “Ecoute”!!! I agree with the Wikipedia that it's not like any rap album you or anybody else has ever heard. Unfortunately, it just wasn't for me.

One thing better left in last century is sketches on hip hop albums. I never understood it- the funny skits weren’t funny on repeat listens, the serious sketches dragged on, the sexual sketches were painful. ¨3 Feet High and Rising¨ starts with a sketch and my soul started to sag. Cue ¨ (3 is) The Magic Number¨ and its vibrancy, its soul, its sense of funky fun and all is right with the world. This album, to me, is that magic transition period between 80s and 90s New York rap. There’s still a bit of the old school but the beats are better, the rhymes less formulaic, people are figuring out they can do whatever they want. Like any good NYC classic it puts you right in the middle of a certain time and place. However, as opposed to Mobb Deep’s pissy stairways and Wu Tang’s ninja apocalypse, De La Soul paints a sunnier urban vibe- cultured and positive while still being street-smart. It’s like a cool Sesame Street (and Sesame Street was always cool anyways). I don’t find the three rappers so distinctive- they’re good, fun to listen to, but not quite as distinctive as NWA or Wu Tang. I was never huge into the conscious rap, but the older I get the more I appreciate not getting a slop bucket of misogyny, homophobia and violence poured over me. Of course, then you get to ¨De La Orgee¨ and you walk everything back. Great jazzy NYC rap for (almost) the whole family. Best songs: ¨(3 is) The Magic Number,¨ ¨Eye Know,¨ ¨Tread Water¨

This is giving fun & playful energy throughout, with consistently interesting samples & beats. As far as hip-hop albums go, this one is particularly light-hearted and upbeat. Very enjoyable!

Fun upbeat songs with good beats/production, just too many songs that I would skip if not listening to the album through

Would have been a five star album if not for the number of filler tracks. Masterclass in sampling, Prince Paul is top notch. De La has a relaxed but crisp vibe that balances your focus between the music and lyrics perfectly.

This is a classic…it grew on me as I got through the album, but I feel a little guilty about how it doesn’t always totally hold my attention. Very unique vibe/beats, creative songs, but maybe some primitive production and the vocals are mixed quite low relative to other hip hop. Love “Eye Know” “Tread Water”, and “Potholes in my Lawn”, and of course “Me Myself and I” is a classic…great recognizable samples from Led Zeppelin, Funkadelic, Steely Dan, James Brown, etc. I appreciate the way this album perfectly captures a young, and sort of light, late 80s/early 90s NY hip-hop, and builds on music that came before it while maintaining its own identity. Also feel like it might be like 3-4 songs too long and (as with most hip-hop albums) i could do without some of the skits.

I think it's aged the worst of the jazz rap classics, but is also responsible for like all of my favorite hip hop, so....

Can dig it

Is there a 3rd alt hip-hop entity starting with the letters D-E-L with a song about how you need to stop stinking?

De La Soul has a distinct vibe, which I appreciate. But, similar to the Go Gos, it's a vibe that grows repetitive and tiresome midway through an album. (It's a very personal thing, I guess, how long one can tolerate a particular musical sound. There are plenty of very repetitive punk albums that I could listen to on repeat.) I enjoyed this album, but it's hard to imagine I'll ever choose to listen to it again. If I feel like listening to this rap sub-genre, I'll probably go with Jurassic 5 or Digable Planets, both of whom I find more interesting.

This actually aged pretty well. The game show interludes were moderately amusing. The music holds up nicely. The lyrics are...um...sort of par for the course. Probably won't make regular rotation, but no hip-hop ever does.

I'd of course heard of them, but didn't know any of this. Some catchy stuff. Too much talking, though.

5/5 - I needed to hear this because it’s a genuinely fun album that made me smile. I had heard the hits before, but skits aside, there were no skips here for me. Playful and goofy. I like it.

Soundtrack for shenanigans and chicanery.

I wonder sometimes how hip-hop artists make any money when most of their tracks are samples of other people’s work. That being said, this is a melodic and largely inoffensive piece of work with some recognisable (and I mean the tracks not just the samples) songs that I quite enjoyed. Well done hiphop (for a change). 4 But I did hate all the sketches in between songs. Why is that a thing in hiphop? It never works. Knocked down to a 3 because of that.


Alright. Interesting vibe and character but a little boring and repetitive.

Oh my god, what a fun album. Inwas aware of De La Soul, but honestly, thus is a fun rap album that made me enjoy rap. 5/5

It was chill Will I listen to again: 45%

I really don't understand the love that these guys get.These are nursery school rhymes.And i'm not talking about the content we don't need gangster rap.But what we need is how about some complex lyricism?I mean, a lot of these songs are just so boring tribe called quest.You know, had a lot of clean, fun songs too.But they were interesting.The topics were interesting.The schemes were interesting.The construction of the songs were interesting de.La soul did not hit those marks

Probably one of the most boring concerts I ever attended was De La Soul back in the mid 90s. Their style of laid back jazzy hip hop just never translated well to the live stage as far as I am concerned. Nevertheless, as far as background sound at home while tinkering on this or that, it works well. I always loved the track Me, Myself, and I. But they were never as fun or engaging as their contemporaries A Tribe Called Quest. 3/5 #190

Will listen again

Those beeeeeats. Starting off with a School House Rock mix immediately elevated this to a 5 star album for me. Then it just stayed good. Not necessarily a top genre for me generally but this was definitely a near perfect album (in my eyes).

Good stuff. Fun and upbeat with some classics. Skits are a bummer, but at least they're short.

Fairly enjoyable listen, although it doesn't quite hit fully for me

I think this is a 2.9 - I saved two songs from it but not all the way there for a 3.

It's bit long for my liking but the quality between the tracks more than make up for it. Here you've got 3 fellas bringing their charm, wit, and own twist on the rap genre as a whole. It's funny, corny (on purpose), vibrant, and an overall positive vibe to it. In stark contrast to what was trending at the time. The influence this had cannot be understated, it took me a bit too long to realize one of my favorite albums of all time "Wildflower" by The Avalanches was influenced by this album and it's beautiful to find and understand the connection. Apart from "De La Orgee" there aren't any bad songs on this album but in the spirit of being different and messing around I can sorta respect the creative risk. It was a pleasure. Top 5: Magic Number, Eye Know, Say No Go, Plug Tunin', Me Myself And I Honorable Mentions: A Little Bit Of Soap, Tread Water, and Jenifa Taught Me Worst: De La Orgee 4.50-4.75/5

The list comes bearing gifts once again in the form of hour-long conscious hip hop albums; this time it’s far nicer and more listenable than what I’ve had thus far. Perhaps it’s because De La Soul weren’t looking over their shoulder for rival gangs during recording. There really isn’t much to separate this from many other albums of its like other than its marginally earlier release date (there’s sub-minute skits, recurring motifs, and of course an unwanted minute-ish of sex sounds) but there’s something very clean-cut about this whole affair - and I think it’s because of how fun it is. You’ll of course recognise The Magic Number and Me Myself and I immediately, but it’s a few other tunes that really make this better than the average album of its kind, especially Jenifa and Eye Know, with a better Dan sample than Mr. West could dream of. I’ll stop the comparisons though and just note that I didn’t get bored at any point here, even being an hour long and honestly having a very similar sound throughout (save for some of the skits), 3 Feet High is a lot of fun and takes you away from it all, if that’s what you want.

Find me an album that's more fun. I'll wait.

STOP. PUTTING. WOMEN. MOANING. IN. YOUR. MUSIC. FOR. NO. PARTICULAR. REASON.

One of the most fun and unique albums on the list. The game show theme and joke tracks fit the music perfectly. Jam packed with great tunes and iconic hip hop. That being said, joke tracks do limit the number of relistens I can do, and this combined with the length means that I will rarely stick it on - so leaving this with an 8/10.

Not usually my type of music, unlikely to listen to it frequently, but really respect the idea behind it and the music itself

Fine. Some good songs with a lot of filler. 3.5

One of my hip hop favorites. I always enjoyed the grooves and attitudes from this group and from the Native Tongues collective RIP David "Trugoy the Dove" Jolicoeur

Really good. But doesn’t make me stop what I’m doing to listen.

Great album! I really enjoyed it. This is the Hip Hop that I like. The Kayne kind feels very meh. This, on the other hand, is funny, creative, with soul and a message. Loved it For me, 8.8 out fo 10 since not a biig fan of hip hop

F*^K YES!

Look I’m going to give this a five. The songs are great but it almost dropped down to a four because of the dumb skits between songs.

8/10 The best thing about De La Soul is that they don’t take themselves too seriously. Hip-Hop can, from time to time, become far too serious for its own good, with beef between different rappers, diss tracks and violence, particularly in the more gangsta rap side of the ledger. De La Soul are the antithesis of that. They’re having a good time, they’re making music that’s fun and has great grooves, and when they decide to rip on someone it basically boils down to the, pretty tongue-in-cheek, “you stink, have a wash”. It feels almost as fun to listen to as it must have been to produce. This success of this type of music often rests on the sample selection, delivery of lyrics and the production and, by and large, the quality of all three across this album is very high. There’s great melodic selection, some really funky grooves, and enough audio interest to reward closer listening. They also have great lyrical flows that don’t just stick to basic rhythms, but are also delivered with a melodic edge that helps tracks to really gel as musical compositions, rather than just sounding like rappers with a backing track. The production is also, by and large, excellent, with tracks moving between large scale sample collages, down to more subtle, lyrically focussed efforts. The little skits and pieces also help to tie things together and aid the balance of the album. They also reference back and forth to different tracks here and there, which helps to paint this as a complete work, rather than a selection of tracks. Unfortunately, however, there are a few lulls here and there, and some occasions when the momentum of the album slides just a bit too much for this to get full marks. As is so often the way with albums of this length, it could really have benefitted from a more judicious track selection, as this could easily have been a 10/10 album if it was 40-45 minutes long, rather than a very, very good album that’s an hour and change. Either way, I was glad to listen to this again, and I’m sure it’ll be on again in the not too distant future.. Intro - It’s an intro. Quite a cool way to introduce the group though and sets up the album as some silly fun. (3 Is) The Magic Number - Straight out of the traps with an absolute classic. The melodic edge to the rapping adds a musical edge that can often be missing in some hip-hop records. Sample use and scratching add some variety through the track, and the main hook is just excellent. Banger. Change In Speak - There’s an interesting offbeat lilt to the rhythm here with the two drum loops playing against one another. The sample choices and blends are great. The rapping is subtle and flows well, and just like that, it’s over. Cool Breeze on the Rocks (The Melted Version) - A little skit to continue from the intro. Not the original version, due to sample clearance issues. Can U Keep a Secret - Suitably silly. This is kind of like a stupid takedown of diss tracks, and I’m here for it. Jenifa Taught Me (Derwin’s Revenge) - It’s perhaps a little too stilted from a rhythmic point of view, but when they start layering up the samples, things start to flow a little better. It’s a bit of a classic really, and they again have some great hooks and memorable lines. Ghetto Thang - The flow of this is really great. It’s super smooth. It’s less hooky than other tracks, but the bounce of the groove is fantastic, and there are some great choices in the rhythmic flow of the rapping, with good variety in syllable use to drag the emphasis around. Transmitting Live From Mars - A nice little intermission track. A few great sample choices and it creates a very evocative little piece to prepare us for… Eye Know - Another Classic. It’s harmonically rich, the grooves are great and the rapping is top notch. Sample choice is excellent here and it’s super funky, but with a nice chilled edge. It feels kind of timeless really, like it could have been made yesterday. Take It Off - Another fun little interstitial track. You can just hear how much fun they're having and it really adds to the vibe of the album. A Little Bit of Soap - More comedy, more great sample selection. Tread Water - There’s a bit more urgency to the beat on this track It moves really well, but it’s perhaps a bit lacking in hook and variety compared to the real prime cuts on the record, but it’s got great groove, and it’s a very worthy album track. Potholes in My Lawn - Another classic, and this might be one of the silliest yet. Yodelling and Jew’s harp samples? Why not? This was the first hip-hop song played on Mars, weirdly enough. Musically, it’s a bit thin on prominent and consistent tonal samples, but it makes up for that with the scattergun silliness of it all. Say No Go - And we’re back to something more consistent in flow. It leaves the focus on things more toward the rapping here, but there are some great samples in there too, particularly the little lead guitar. A proper head bopper. Do as De La Does - This one’s pretty silly too. Another one where they’re just messing around and adding to the fun vibe of the album. It doesn’t do a vast amount other than that, but it’s still got a good body moving groove to it. Plug Tunin’ (Last Chance to Comprehend) - The groove to this is decent, but it lacks a little bit of the magic some of the other tracks and kind of plods along without ever giving enough of a hook, or displaying enough range to be vastly interesting. De La Orgee - Kind of takes things away from the silly vibe of the record for me. It’s largely been fun and games up to this point, and it just feels a bit jarring. There’s been more adult content before, but it’s not been as blatant and in your face as this. Buddy - This is better. Solid grooves, nice bass line, some solid tonal samples to give it musical interest and some nice passing of the vocal around the group. It’s not massively varied, but it’s decent. Description - Another little interstitial track. It’s got a nice vibe. Me Myself and I - Classic. So much vibe and so hooky. There’s some great production on the samples here to give this a unique flavour and the sample choice is perfect. Superb flowing verses and then a banger of a chorus. No notes. This is a Recording 4 Living in a Fulltime ERA (L.I.F.E.) - Less hooky, but this has a great vibe, and it grooves really nicely. Production is fantastic and there’s some really solid scratching on there too. The vocals have more prominence here than other tracks and it’s a cool juxtaposition in styles against the previous track. I Can Do Anything (Delacratic) - This is cool. More fun with solid beats. D.A.I.S.Y. Age - This is ok. It’s a little bland and stilted and doesn’t really go anywhere. Can’t help but feel this could have been given the chop.

Excellent album. 3 is the magic number, reminds me of my childhood.

#121/1001. What a fireworks for an album. I'm sure there is a Religion and a Church of De La Soul out there somewhere, where their lyrics, beats and samples are studied as meticulously as the Talmud. The Gospel of Good and the Bad and the Soul and the Hip Hop and Peace, the Da Inner Sound, Y’all. First time listening (?) to the whole album, these Inputs and Outputs of sound coupled together with the crate digging and humor by P.Paul and all make me understand much of the later and earlier music, potholes in the lawn accross the world. Classic.

A great hip hop album. Production is clean. Great rapping, extremely underrated stuff.

Umm….. Garbage, unlistenable, disengaging. These words describe what this album is. Talking about holding doo doo in hand, a song that’s just auditable porn, and beats that just sound like a tin man busker on the streets of Galway. This was by far the worst shit I’ve listened to up to date. Hard pass.

That was a very fun listen. Early lighthearted hip hop has such a sound and feeling to it that is hard to dislike. I forgot to take notes while listening to it yesterday so I don't have much to say.

De La Soul!!!!!!!!!! This is masterpiece. The fusion of jazz, rap, and even salsa. The way the lyrics flow from what song to the next telling an overall story of the album. The fact, that its kind of about nothing and everything all at once? Its silly, its serious, its flowing and raw. The samples and collabs are also super dialed. This is one that I can just have on repeat all day. In fact, I did do that twice today because it had so much fun living in this record. This record is a treasure.

Again, not a bad album. There are some good songs there. But overall, it's just not for me.

Feel good inc was theirs and this is their early stuff. Good background party rap.

good samples, good beats, multiple v good songs. had fun

Dated hip hop

H: you can tell immediately that this album is from the 90’s, solid story telling and overall good driving beat. 8/10 H fav song: Eye Know (this was a hard choice for me, a lot of good songs on this album) Z: such a fun hip hop album. The sampling must’ve been groundbreaking at the time— the song choices flowed perfectly with the upbeat, positive direction of the album (I recognized Hall and Oates and Steely Dan, among others). Mix that with eclectic lyrics and textbook storytelling of late 80s-90s hip hop, undeniable chemistry/flow between members of the group, and fun interludes (with the exception of ‘De La Orgee’) and you get a classic like this one. 8/10 Z fav song: Eye Know

Hip hop but poppy and fun.

Great beats, great samples, a whole lot of fun :)

Loved it.

436/1001 🌕🌕🌑🌑🌑

Such a counterpoint to the predominant sound in the rap genre, De La Soul is earnest and affable. Their cover of The Magic Number gives me a lot of nostalgic feelings. And I love that they're still making (great) music today, nearly 40 years later ❤️

Fun as hell

This is a fun album. Nothing really jumped out at me as something I'd throw on my playlist, so it's a 3.

Sit down any parent that complains about hip hop only being about drugs and violence and throw on this record. Incredibly fun listen, funny interludes, immaculate vibes. You can immediately tell they’re having a great time and that energy is infectious. Very similar to Tribe Called Quest in that regard. Me Myself and I is a top-5 mood booster of all time imo

Too much silliness abounds in this album to concentrate on it or take it seriously. The highs are pretty high ("Me Myself and I", sampling Steely Dan, the one with the yodeling, the wordplay throughout about "jenifa") but the lows (the skits, the orgee, some of the boring "yeah I'm so great" stuff near the end) drag it down. I respect the originality on display here, but taken at face value it sounds more like an experimental mixtape than an influential album that I'd want to listen to again.

absolute banger, 4.5

Phenomenal samples and what a groundbreaking album

Listened with my best friend who said this is what she listened to as a kid

solid classic Hip Hop album. wasn’t necessarily my style, but was still enjoyable!

Overall great album, lot of classics, but in my opinion, just a smidge too long. Funky, tons of cool samples, great rhymes.

Probably my favorite hip hop group of that era. Incredibly original and not afraid to push boundaries.

Old school! Never listened to the whole thing. I think I will stick with the hits. The skits we’re annoying.

When De La Soul's music finally became more widely-available streaming/digitally a few years ago, I ate this album up. I don't know a ton about the history of hip-hop, but I know this album stands as one of the most important, and it is still fresh. However, it still suffers from the skit and filler tracks of the time, though they aren't as annoying as others, and there are places when the album could have been trimmed as it is quite long. But the high points overshadow them. I can't say much that hasn't already been said about this album-- it's a masterpiece. Pretty much all the "major" tracks are bangers and would easily be on a best-of: "(3 Is) The Magic Number", "Change in Speak", "Ghetto Thang", "Eye Know", "Tread Water", "Potholes in My Lawn", "Say No Go", "Buddy", "Me Myself and I". So, some fat could be trimmed around these, but I'll overlook it.

I had a lot of fun listening to this album and sometimes joy is enough.

This is a great album. Found myself dancing unknowingly:)

Very solid, tons of bangers, a few classics…cartoony and kind of stupid at times, but really only in short bursts. Good to listen again after a long time.

When I saw this pop up this morning I cheered out loud. This is such a classic and I never mind going back and giving it a relisten. What a debut this was. It’s my 2nd favorite De La Soul album, behind AOI: Bionix.

This was such a good fucking time

Really like the beats and flow of a lot of this album. Hate the inclusion of a track that is just sex noises - but that’s art i guess? Probably would’ve pushed towards a 4 if some of this was trimmed down, but as an entire album experience that fluff brings it a bit down in my opinion.

Ugh I wanted this to be better! There’s some really fun stuff here, but there’s also a lot of boring stuff too. A little trimming would have done this album a world of good. At least the skits are just one thing instead of overlong misogynistic stuff like a lot of its contemporaries.

Cool cool cool ol skool progressive hip hop. These guys have Fun and -tip makes an appearance. No complaints.

2*. pas mon style

I enjoyed the listen, but conversely, I like other hip hop from this period better. One example would be Digable Planets.

I can see why this hits.

Hell Yeah.

# Album Name: 3 feet high and rising # Artist: De La Soul # Rating: 2/5 # Comments: Honestly, i was expecting big big things after reading the reviews. Firstly, the positives - the hits are fantastic. I love em. I can only imagine what it was like when they first hit. But sadly, this album suffers like a lot of american rap/hip hop with its stupid skits and ridiculously long track list. I mean 3 amazing songs out of 23 tracks?! This should have been cut down massively. I think it would have been much better. # Top Tunes: Me myself and I / Eye know / 3 is the magic number # Would I listen to it again? No. Just hits.

I don't listen to much of De La but I do know this album is a classic and legendary. I know this record is one of the best in hop-hop.

This album was a surprise. The beats are great and the skit stuff/joke songs were often actually funny. I found myself enjoying this immensely, and so it gets my second 5/5

Best ever

Really liked the sound of the album, but i was not particularly captured by any specific song. Kinda samey, whack lyrics. 7/10

A good record with some uncomfortable tracks sprinkled in. Favourite Track(s):Plug Tunin', Tread Water Least Favourite Track(s): De La Orgee

Stottersound! Weg damit!

Funky, freaky, silly and inventive.

Classics or Classics for a reason

Inte min grej

Well, unfortunately I was underwhelmed by the album. A few songs had some pop but the pop was the sample and the vocals only took away from the samples. I say unfortunately because I started enjoying music at about this time in 1989/1990. EPMD or NWA seemed to be way stronger lyrically and I hoped this was similar. Sounded like they had a lot of fun making it as 19-21 year olds but unfortunately it sounded like a bunch of 19-21 year olds. I wish I got it but didn't.

A 5 star album to me is one I get through without any skips. For this one, I’m going to ignore the urge I felt to skip through the few too many skits. I can appreciate them for their place in time. “Eye Know” is probably in my list of top 10 best hip hop songs of all time. Of course this entire album is just as good of a listen. Rhymes and flow smooth like butter, beats and music cool like a Saturday afternoon.

You could really feel that they had fun making the album. The vibe I get is of friends goofing around. I like that the album is so positive. I gave it a good listen, but to be fair I am not very good at hearing the lyrics to songs. I probably would need to sit concentrated with the lyrics in front of me to get the "intended" experience. I personally feel like the album has aged poorly. I get that it was influential and unique when it came out, but having listened to the things that come after this one it no longer stands out to me. I have also heard so many different spoofs of this style produced after this record that I can't take some of the songs seriously even though I tried. Some of the beats were good, but most of the album didn't really resonate with me. Honestly some songs just registered as noice. It did however just breeze by despite the runtime. A few songs I liked, including for example Eye Know, Magic Number. I am glad I listened to it and it was fun, but I will probably never feel the urge to listen again. Ultimately not for me.

Another 80's hiphop album, I am getting more accustomed to listening to albums of this genre. I read that this was their most critically acclaimed album and their most famous song "Me, Myself and I" was one of it's tracks. I enjoyed listening to it but it isn't one of my favorite hip hop albums. I like more 90s to modern hiphop but it was still interesting how hiphop has evolved throughout the years. As a sidenote, this album reminded me of Insane Clown Posse as its formatted as a game show in the beginning and end of the album. I found that pretty interesting.

3.5 stars rounded up What a fun album. We haven’t had enough of that on this list. I already had a fondness for De La Soul for their work with Gorillaz. I knew a few of the songs on this album but it was my first time listening to it in full. De La Soul are funny, eclectic, a little dorky, and a bit absurdist (“Everybody in the world, you have dandruff” lol) - a great mix in my books. There are 3 fantastic standout songs on this record - (3 is) The Magic Number, Eye Know, Me Myself and I. The songs in between aren’t quite as good, though I like Buddy too. Where it gets questionable are the recurring skits (did they invent this?) and random interludes that really push the length of this album. It definitely does run long. It could all get stupid and annoying - as we’ve heard with some other old school hip hop on this list. De La are endearing enough that it didn’t annoy me as much here. And they sequenced the album well - just when I might have lost interest, they pull out another good song. Rounding up for 3 great songs and the overall good vibes. You could throw this on for a fun chill house party and I think everyone would be happy.

Hmm... I remember liking this more last year. I don't dislike it now. But I have complaints. The first half of this album is good and really fun and includes one of my favourite rap songs (Eye Know). But the second half... has problems. Maybe last year I just listened up until Eye Know and was just so entranced by the song that I stopped listening to the rest of the record and instead put Eye Know on repeat for a few hours and walked out thinking "i'm a big De La Soul fan." But now as part of this exercise, I have listened to the album twice all the way through... and it is fucking long. It is an hour and 3 minutes long and in the back half it really feels like it. If it were up to me, i'd cut everything after Potholes in My Lawn except for Me Myself and I. That would leave a really strong 36 minutes of music (i did the math), which is a very respectable album. I'd probably give that album a 3.5 and round it up to a 4 because I love Eye Know so much. But this is not the world that we live in. We live in a world where this album is way too fucking long... like many albums on this list are. So why would I cut the back half of the album? 1) There are several mediocre tracks that don't add much to the album. Tracks in the first half deliver on these ideas much better. 2) There's a god damn sex noise song, De La Orgee. And based on the fact that this isn't the first 90s rap album with a sex noise song, it must be some sort of trend or right of passage for rap groups at the time. I have not yet found one that can actually deliver on the concept and make an enjoyable track or even a track that's subversive and shocking and taboo in a way that's interesting. So far they're either cringe, like on this album, orrr disturbing like on sex packets (if you know you know). The nicest thing I can say is the De La Soul version is better than the sex packets version... i guess. I'm glad this trend has died off since the millennium. Whoever started it, should be punished. 3) There's nothing less cool than someone who says "doo doo" or "dookie" instead of just saying "shit" like an adult. I swear this happens a few times on the album and I found it annoying. 4) There's no hooks in the back half. I listened to these songs twice and I don't remember them at all. The songs I liked... (3 is) The Magic Number - Great vibes. Fun instrumental. Catchy flows. Change In Speak - Great horns sample/grunt sample (sounds almost like James brown). The beat overall is really good. Jenifa Taught Me - I love the flow. I love how he says "jenny". I love the goofy adlibs by the other voice. The vocal sample in the beat that works as a little refrain is also cool. Transmitting Live from Mars - cool hazy lofi hiphop beat with french talking samples overtop. i dig it. Eye Know - Fuck I love this song. I love the guitar in the beat. I love the whistle that hits in the verses. I love the chorus. That vocal line "I know I love you better" and then the horn melodies. It's perfect. The lyrics are great. The flows are great. Incredible song. Take it off - Goofy, fun interlude track. A Little Bit of Soap - is that a Stand By Me sample?? Me Myself and I - a weird 90s funk instrumental. i dig it. I like that synth melody that acts as the hook going back with the "me myself and i" refrain. It's a good time. This is the only second half song worthy of this album. In general there's just a lot of variety in the first half, weird little interludes, a track where they just whisper shit, a gameshow skit. They're having fun, but also tackling serious themes. It's warm, hazy joy. It has a very summer in the city, everyone out enjoying the weather, having a good time vibe. Ultimately... because of the second half.... this is a 2.5 but i'll round up because of Eye Know.

Favorite songs: Tread Water, Eye Know, Me Myself and I, (3 Is) The Magic Number, Change in Speak, Ghetto Thang, Jenifa Taught Me (Derwin's Revenge), Say No Go Least favorite songs: Intro, Cool Breeze on the Rocks, Transmitting Live From Mars, Take it Off, A Little Bit of Soap, De La Orgee, I Can Do Anything (Delacratic) (fuck skits), Can U Keep a Secret 4/5

Wonderful album full of whimsy and joy. "fuckin lasagna heads"

Demented, in a good way. Truth be told, this record hasn't aged as well as I anticipated. Yeah, there are a handful of classic tracks on here - and much of the production remains uniquely fresh - but there are quite a lot of meandering, directionless fillers. In my head my immediate thought was '4 star record' but I'm not quite sure it holds up to that.

I know of De La Soul from the collaborations done with the band Gorillaz. This is my first introduction to the group's own music. I have always pretty consistently given albums from this era of rap fairly low ratings, and this is not an exception. It's a fun album, but it gets to the point where the tracks don't sound unique after a while. Also, in my opinion, a bit too long. I still appreciate the lyricism, but I can not get past my hatred of the skits. There's one in particular (you'll know when you listen) that is completely unnecessary and brought me to the brink of ranking this a 1.

that's a no from me

Of the golden age hip hop groups I think I've known about De La Soul the longest but listened to them intentionally the least, though not for any particular reason. I know and like 3 Is the Magic Number and Me, Myself and I pretty well, and I enjoyed the rest of the album just as much. 3.5/5

Great album. I could do without De La Orgy, but otherwise really great. It's a bit long, but not too bad. 4.25/5

Its fun hip hop from an era when it was ok to have a message, be funny and experiment with samples. Its a shame hip hop has moved so far away from creative mixing and actual lyrical content.

Great. Not an album thats just a collection of good tracks but an overall good album experience. Insane production, unreal this is from the 80s

I think this deserves a 5. Do I love every track? Of course not, it's a hip hop album in the late 80s and you had to have skits. Do I think it's a phenomenal cultural landmark with some amazing jams? I sure do. Eye Know a GOAT.

The album did have a kinda nice vibe to it and wasn’t the worst but did it really need to be 23 songs long? Not really. 3 stars

It's a good album but I'm just not really into 80s hip hop.

Fun and groundbreaking. Good combo.

Fun album. I've given 3s to better stuff, but such is my new grading system.

Felt like I was on speed all the way through it. I found it really good but also slightly annoying

It's a magic number 3

Wonderful album! I've listened to it before so re-listening is a treat. Comedic, fun, entertaining - it's a fantastic and classic album that makes you just want to bounce. Top Picks: Eye Know Ghetto Thang Tread Water Say No Go

Fun poppy hip hop. The vibe is infectious! One of my besties was a huge fan, RIP JWS.

It's a very 80s/90s sounding hip hop album but also a lot of fun. You can tell they really enjoyed making each song and playing around with their wordplay and the samples to make the poppy beats, and the vibe is infectious. Just like every other hip hop album on this list I don't like the skits. Favourites: Magic Number, Eye Know, and Me Myself and I.

Macht sehr viel spaß 4/5

We are really enjoyed this album.

Me, myself and I echt dope, aber der Großteil des Albums hat mich nicht überzeugt, nur bei nem Bruchteil mitgewippt. Häufiger einfach in die Leere gestaart :S

Ganz gut anzuhören, Skits sind medium. Aber keine 4 Sterne von mir

Really cool

I was pleased when this came up being a fan of 80s early 90s Hip Hop, yet never actually hearing this album in full. I had high expectations, with it being lauded as a classic. I was left colder than I thought I would be. Overall it has a nice feel to it and some good tracks, but just didn’t seem to hit with me. The skits are awkward bordering on cringe. That said, for a debut album it’s solid. Definitely finds its niche around half way.

Awesome! Look for more of them.

Old school hip hop - it was not enjoyable though, a lot of the songs were redundant and annoying. The "skits" in between didn't make any sense.

Ohhh.. This is soooo bad.

Heavy on the amen break, for magic number, but a great warm sound filling the space. This whole album has a warm enveloping feel without being overly nostalgic. 4 stars for sure. The vocal style sometimes gets to the stilted and forced rap that strated the genre ("Jenifa"), that's a little hard to listen to. The smoother rhythms and rhymes from "ghetto thang" are much improved.