Reviews (page 6 of 7)
my first rap album – still waiting to change my mind about this genre
So mediocre.
Hægt að þykjast vera kúl í 10 sekúndur í hverju lagi, en ekki meira en það.
2.5
Didn't catch me at all, even though Common is a good rapper and the beats sound competent. The songs don't seem to go anywhere and most of them are just too long, like the whole album. You don't have to fill the CD if you don't have enough ideas for it! One extra point for the 6th sense, that sticks out with a great beat by Primo.
Excited when new rap pops up but wasn’t for me - not bad by any means but just okay. Doesn’t age well with some of the slurs and references
This album was dull, with a mild sprinkling of homophobia, but at least it was unnecessarily long.
Common's rapping is a little better than his acting, but both are sort of mid.
Inte min musiksmak. Flera låtar med samarbeten med andra artister. The Light är den låt som känns bäst. Resten är sådär. Extranumret med Macy Gray också ok.
Like an old tired animal this album should just be led out to pasture to die peacefully. This “skits” were tired. The parents parts were old and the rapping was plodding and uninspired.
3/10 It was fine background music. Just boring and not my type of genre.
probs like 4.5/10 = after being criticised i will be more concise in these reviews. good to listen to in background but not enough memorable ones to revisit.
conscious hip hop not for me
This is quite nice
If this album wasn’t so long, it might have won me over a bit more. The problem is that, even before the halfway mark, it’s already too much "R&B-saxophone-sofa-avant-garde" and it gets tiring. At one point, I kind of liked some of the samples (or maybe it was actual instrumentation), but that was sooooo many tracks ago that I can't even pinpoint which one it was. And there are aspects of it I really dug especially in the tracks. But for the most part, I don't like this kind hip hop/rap. I can't even really put a finger on why, I just don't. I do kinda feel like this is an important album thematically and musically, but even somehow recognizing that did not equate to appreciation. Most of the tracks honestly made me feel uncomfortable. If I was more into this gernre as a whole, I could see myself rating this highly, but I really was not in the mood for this.
I found this to be a slog. Musically and lyrically uninteresting. Just nothing to come back to for me.
I thought I rated this already but I guess it didn't save. Didn't enjoy it that much because of how long it is. Its still a fine rap record but I liked the other Common one better.
Meh, I've never gotten into Common and this did nothing to convince me to change my opinion.
Somehow we get two Common albums in this list? This one is as enjoyable as his acting in Silo... totally painful. Sure, the jazzy production from guys like Dilla and Questlove is technically great, but it can’t save the record. It feels super bloated and drags on for almost 80 minutes of filler that’s a total chore to get through. Common’s "conscious" vibe just comes off as preachy, and his flow really lacks the energy to keep things interesting. To make it worse, the supposedly soulful message is undercut by some pretty gross homophobia and misogyny in the lyrics that hasn’t aged well at all. Even with the nice beats, the whole thing is a tedious, problematic slog that I was dying to finish. Definitely not a classic to me.
Kieltämättä tykkään tämän aikakauden rapistä. Mutta common ei koskaan ole ollut sitä, yksittäisiä biisejä lukuunottamatta.
Well it doesn't do much for me..........
dont get it
Meh
Desperately mediocre. Cannot think that anybody needs to hear this before they die.
This is my second common album. My first, I asked the question "what makes this stand out above other Rap/Hip Hop artists" now I am asking what makes this stand out to have 2 albums in the list! throw in a bit of homophobia and question it even more. that said it was a bit better than the first album i had. I still wont remember this tomorrow. In fact, I did not remember that I had already listened to an album of his. 6th Sense or Geto Heaven was the standout track, or maybe it was just because it was nice to hear Macy Gray. 2.5 stars
What a waste of pino palladino and questlove.
I feel bad when I score most hip-hop cause I just can’t do it. My wife has heard of this guy, but I had never. None of the musical part appealed to me and I’m not a lyrics driven listener, so this was a no go.
I’ve got one of his albums which I’ve probably played 3 or 4 times in 28 years! What does that tell you?
Started out really interesting instrumentally, but ended in what I thought was a pretty basic R&B place.
An unapologetically black album that has a beautiful second half. However, I don’t know if I would listen to the whole thing again. Parts of it also didn’t age very well.
The Light pulls out a 2 star rating.
Don’t like rap, but it wasn’t TOO bad
This is fine I guess but there were so many better rap albums that came out in 2000. For Common, I think Be is the only album they really need on this list. If we could do half stars it would be a 2.5 exactly mid.
I couldn't really get into it, the beats were good but I wasn't feeling his flow.
escuché mitad de disco. Acompaña, que se yo. No es rap pesado así que se deja. Pero no me dijo nada
I did not listen to this during a great moment of anxiety and it did help increase my anxiety. 2.5/5
Common is Stonekeeper... and Zendaya is Meechee
It’s not you, it’s me. I’ve tried and tried. My brain is not wired to enjoy the structural elements of this genre.
I gravitated to the track where the Soulquarians sound the most like a real band in a room — warm, spiritual, groove‑first. If the whole album lived in that pocket, it’d probably be a top‑tier listen for me.
Here we go, more hip-hop. As usual, I don’t know how to talk about hip-hop. Hell, I don’t know how to talk about metal, but I at least have a better frame of reference. I can only tell you what I like. I know Common, but I couldn’t tell you any of his songs. I do like his acting. He seems decent enough. This album came out in 2000, and during this time, I was probably into Kid Rock and nu metal, a period of my musical life I’d like to erase or at least refocus. This was Common’s fourth album and first major label release. Ooooh, now here’s something cool. This album was the catalyst for the formation of the Roots, who were known as the Soulquarians at the time. The Roots were definitely an upgrade in band names. Seems like this album saw, if not the creation, at least a huge collaboration with the neo-soul movement that started around this time. D’Angelo was a collaborator on this album. Now, I’m really interested in what this sounds like. Hopefully, not a huge amount of samples and a lot of funky real music. The album has 16 tracks and is over one hour and 15 minutes long. I’m betting we have our share of bits and interstitials in it as well, though, looking at song lengths, it appears that isn’t the case. Maybe Common realized the comedy bits were becoming hacky. Track 1 is Time Travelin’ (A Tribute to Fela) and I assume the Fela is Fela Kuti. I listened to his album Zombie and loved it. I highly recommend it. The music almost sounds like it’s just wafting through the ether as you’re walking along the beach. It’s far off, but right there too. Now we get a more familiar hip-hop beat coming through. Common begins rapping, but there’s an effect on his voice. It can make it hard to understand him. But years of headphones, earbuds, and loud concerts have taken a toll. The song turned into a simple hip-hop song, just a beat and a rapper. Though quietly, in the background, there is music. Track 2 is Heat, and this had a funky groove starting off. I like the music fine, but it does seem like the song is built around a sample. There’s a certain note that hits every couple of measures that really irks me. It just sounds like it shouldn’t be there. Track 3 is Cold-Blooded, and all I can think about is Charlie Murphy’s True Hollywood Stories with Rick James. Apparently, the song contains elements from the Parliament song Funkin’ for Fun. Common is a good rapper. He’s easy to understand, which I think is key. These days, I’m not so sure that’s as important. Track 4 is Dooinit, and I have to admit, I’m not into this. Hip-hop just isn’t my bag, baby. I don’t really hear anything that gets me fired up. Today, just might be one of those days. Track 5 is The Light, and it has a bit of Jay-Z’s Hard Knock Life to it for me. The song contains elements from the Bobby Caldwell song Open Your Eyes. It’s fine. Track 6 is Funky for You featuring Bilal and Jill Scott. I always loved Scott’s voice. She could belt it. I have so far been kind of disappointed with the music on this album, but I do like what is going on here. It’s kind of a cosmic hip-hop groove. This is one of the first songs to really kind of catch my ear. Track 7 is called Questions and it’s a song about questions. It’s kind of the 2000s version of Things That Make You Go Hmmmmm. It is a cool little song. The music on it is chill and laid back, with a nice electric piano playing. Two decent songs in a row. Track 9 is The Sixth Sense and this was a single. I have no memory of it. Common said this is “real hip-hop music from the soul.” I guess. It’s just more of the same with a sample repeating in the background over and over. Track 10 is A Film Called (Pimp), and it features Bilal and MC Lyte. I guess Common is a pimp looking for his trick, MC Lyte. Except MC Lyte isn’t into being pimped. The song is a bit goofy, but it’s fun. MC Lyte is great on this song. Track 13 is called Payback is a Grandmother and it’s about Common’s grandmother, amongst others, being robbed on a boat. It’s insane, but great. Easily my favorite song on the album. "There was a Hardy Boy mystery I tried to solve again Dude that broke in my crib, it wasn't involving him Four in the morning, my phone ringing I'm thinking, "Who the f*** is this, " on the other line screaming Told em, "Keep down, " but they was breathing hard It was my grandmother telling me that she had been robbed I told her hold (hold) tight (tight), I'd be right over Freezing but this situation made the night colder Knew this was the night (that what?) that she played poker With some friends in a club at the boat getting bub' Said she seen these thugs on the boat for a while Not gambling but every now and then they'd smile Then blow! They had Mag's And told everybody, ‘Put your s*** in the bag’” Brilliant. Adding this song to my singles list. Track 14 is Geto Heaven, and it features Macy Gray. Ah, Macy Gray. She blew up, then crashed hard, then just disappeared. The song is fine. Gray sounds like Macy Gray, which is to say, she sounds weird. Track 15 is A Song for Assata and it features Cee-Lo Green. I really enjoy Green’s voice. The song is about Assata Shakur, who was Tupac’s grandmother, though apparently some doubt that. Whatever the case, she sounds like one hell of a woman. Check her Wikipedia. She lived a life. I really enjoyed this song. Critics loved the album, and it was on most best-of-the-year lists in 2000. The album ended up going gold and sold around 800,000 copies, when album sales still existed. Now, me? It was all right. I just don’t know what to do with hip-hop most of the time. It’s not for me, but I like funny, I like cool. This album is cool and has a funny song, but a must-listen? I don’t think so. I’m sure hip-hop fans want to boil me in oil, but it’s okay, we all like what we like.
kalo sxetika. stin arxi apla mou fanike ligo vareto gt den sunuthizo na akouw tetoia fasi alla meta mou arese kai epsaksa gia ton tragoudisti
I preferred Be. I like his laid back delivery but found the production on this a bit too vanilla/ laid back and lyrically a bit cringe.
nothing special imo
This is #day641 of my #1001albumsyoumusthearbeforeyoudie challenge, and… here's to closing out another artist on the list, as this is my second and final record by Common. Honestly, I've no idea why this list needed two albums from him. It also just happens that this kind of soulful hip-hop isn't really my jam. Much like the previous time, this gets a 2 out of 5 for me. Looking forward to #day642.
okay i think is a rap album. not sure. doesnt sound that bad with the saxo the first song. up until song 3 the album seems cohesive the light is good the sixth sense song is good, reminds me of kanye west
It’s a crooner! Long, mainly boring. Probably a milestone in Elvis’s career, but 2 good tracks (In the Ghetto, Suspicious Minds) don’t lift the album as a whole above 2 stars.
This album had really good bones, but kinda annoyed me. The music and beats were very good, with nice jazz influences and interesting moments, however I really didn't like this guys flow. He seemed to take breathes at the oddest moments. Also the homophobia broke it for me too.
Okay so to start, the homophobic themes weren't it for me. The rhythm and flow very very lacking and it constantly took me out of the songs. I did like that this album had more jazzy tunes, but there was still a lot left to be desired.
This album had a few interesting tracks (A Song for Assata being the standout) but on the whole it was far too forgettable to be so long.
Overstayed its welcome.
Not my genre, but I appreciate this is well crafted.
Not my kind of music
The collection of people on Common’s major label breakthrough is like a who’s who of intelligent, socially conscious millennial hip-hop. With the amount of quality with all the people, this album has quality tracks BUT what with them being sooooo long they do occasionally seem a bit of a mess. This mess is also linked to how bloated this album is; it all gets a bit too much in one sitting – someone should’ve edited this down. Best Tracks: Heat; The Light; The 6th Sense
I went in thinking I would like this album, but truly meh
A reasonable example of chilled hip-hop/rap. Not my thing but easy enough to listen to.
Some good songs but mostly quite forgettable for me
Ohhhh, this was probably the first genuine let-down I’ve had on the generator so far. I had already listened to Common’s previous record on the list, “Be”, which I adored, and so I came in very much excited; that said though, not only is this a less ambitious and varied album than “Be”, but, despite it only being five years older, being vastly more dated in it’s homophobia and misogyny. Normally, I could just note and disavow such lyrics and move on, given the album’s age, but here, not only does Common’s more laidback and softer sound not complement this at all, but it’s often just straight up hypocritical. All in all, “Like Water For Chocolate” is mostly just a documentation of Common’s growing pains as an artist, still trying to figure out what his style and themes are; and like most albums in that vein, it’s just kind of a gimmick album looking back from who that artist is now. Also, it’s way too fucking long. When are the non-punk musicians gonna get the hint that an 1hr+ album runtime should be used very conservatively? ‘Cause 90% of the time, you /really/ don’t have enough you can do to warrant that.
algunos temas están buenos, y unos son muy hablados, no me coparon tanto, me gusta la estética de este muchacho, cambia mucho entre tema y tema la vibra
For a hip hop album, this was more "beats" than rap, which I enjoyed quite a bit. Otherwise it dragged. Just ok.
Not into rap. Also jeez man why are these rap albums so damn big holy shiet. The only good thing I got outta this is that it blocked the sound of my dad fighting with the annoying ass neighbours.
I liked the album cover, and the overall concept of the album sounds also interesting. However, musically speaking (and bearing in mind that I'm not a fan of hip-hop), I found this one pretty boring (the length is not helping either).
I can appreciate his talent, but not my cup of tea
Sounded good, but I guess I didn’t listen to the lyrics.
I just kept getting a lil bored
Good enough overall. But I wonder why everyone feels the need to have an Ike and Tina line.
A second Common record and still no Tupac. I feel like this thing is messing with me now. This one is chill outside of the homophobia but didn’t keep my attention like the other one and this one’s too long.
Com todo respeito, não gostei
The Light
170/1001 First listen. I’m not big into rap but this had a good flow and vibe to it. 4/10
there’s something about the production here that’s turning me off. this thing is really damn long.
2nd listen to this album this year. I just can’t get into it, although I think overall I prefer this album to ‘Be’
Man, this is loooong, and the length doesn't help with the fact that this is less than average.
Twice the length it should be, otherwise it would be fine. 2.0/5.0: Disappointing
This was 🤷♀️ Beats were good but I didn’t find myself caring too much about the rest of it
First song started and I was pleasantly surprised and was hoping the rest would follow but sadly it devolved for me after that.
First time listening to him but I think I might have heard him on other's people songs. The beats are rather nice but the songs are boring in general eeeh 2/5
I think this album has squandered potential. A lot of homophobic and misogynist lyrics that aged poorly, which isn't unexpected for old rap , but this is mostly a conscious rap album so its very paradoxical and contradicting to the entire narrative. The production is quite dated with a lot going on in the background, and the vocals are very muted in the mix. At 77 minutes the album is very bloated.
I was expecting to really love this album because Be is just so good, however I found it really underwhelming. My main issue is with how incredibly cluttered it is, so many spoken interludes, sound effects and background yapping, totally disrupted the flow of the music and distracted me, I don’t even think it added anything to the tracks except annoyance for me. The mixing was also… bad? The vocals sit so low that they get muddled in with the music, which seems ridiculous given lyrics are one of commons strengths. I do think maybe I have just missed the point of this album and it is supposed to be an emotional cultural piece with a lot of ambition, however as a listening experience, it was poor.
It was alright.
didnt actively listen to the lyrics of this, and some other reviews wrote about some homophobic + misogynistic tones so eh. easy to listen to though, jazzy feel. not a stand out
This is the second Common album I have listened to this year. I think I prefer this one… it’s got some good tracks on it but as an album it’s too long…. 2.5
On the positives, good delivery, some great backing tracks, and some glimmers of humour, but on the downsides, it just doesn’t stand out that much and covers many of the same preoccupations of hip-hop
There's a lot of problematic framing in these lyrics. I like the flow, but it outdated itself fast.
It's a rap album, a common rap album
Common has a great voice. I enjoy hearing him speak. I don't enjoy speaking music (rap).
I really don't have much to say about this. Long, straightforward, narrative raps, uninventive, pedestrian backing.
4/10 Waaaay too long - shows a real level of delusion to think you have so much to say it'll take 80 minutes. Cos Common really doesn't have anything new (to my ears) to say. A rap album elevated slightly by some decent backing music, but lyrically it is tiresome
Starts okay, goes on way too long.
I thought Common was a poor man’s Mase or Puff Daddy protege. But this album makes me feel like he was sort of stuck in the 90’s with his delivery. This isn’t the type of hip hop I like nor can I find much interesting in it. The vocals seem muffled. The bass fails to hit. The samples are really few and far between. I think this is political rap. It’s meant less for selling out and more for a message in a time where that sort of mattered. It doesn’t matter to me. I’m not impressed.
Slow hip hop. I was not so keen.
Didn't do anything for me
That was pretty bland rap that hasn’t aged well. Must confess I didnt make it to the hour mark.
Solid 2 from someone who isn't a fan on rap, but there are decent beats in this album. The second star is literally from the beats. Had they been crap, probably half a star.
Classic rap album, some nice songs on here but too long for me. Can’t listen to the same sort of beat for that long.
this was solid but it just dragged on for too long - too much of the same thing over and over
Not bad, but what’s with the N Word? Fuck this chump. The beat is there, the spew is ass.
I've never listened to this album (83).
Rap/hiphop starts behind the 8-ball with me, because it’s so lyric-dependent and I focus much more on the music. This also was overly long in my opinion which knocks it down a bit more. More of a jazz/soul groove which was nice but pushed it to the background
really not my thing
Didn’t resonate with me unfortunately. I can tell the it’s talent here though.
I wish more of the album had been like A Song For Assata.
Ahh the era of overstuffed records. This is like at least 30 minutes too long. Common is fine and the beats are fine. But this is just soooooooo long.
Ne, ...
I just do not like this genre much, so I don’t think it is particularly fair for me to rate it. But I am anal enough that it is hard for me to skip an album. Records that I don’t like but that I feel still have some value, get two stars from me, so there you have it. I did like Common on Hell On Wheels, however, so there’s that.
Gear: HEDD Audio HEDDphone Two Artwork: ️🏪📸✳️ Production: 🎧😘🤌 Music: 🎛️📣😬 Rating: 🍫🍫(🍫)/5
I guess it’s fine for those who like this genre. I’m not into hip hop and rap, so I get bored and loose interest pretty quickly.
Rap is not my thing. While I appreciate the skill and heartfelt lyrics, I'm clearly not the audience for this. So, I won't comment on that. What I did enjoy here is the super smooth, jazzy funk music bed. Class musicians for sure. That part was enjoyable. The weakness for me is (as with most albums recorded in the CD era) it's too long. Overall album length plus the nonstop explicit rap lyrics, I won't be coming back to this.
164/1001 Common - Like Water For Chocolate Heard before? ❎ Revisit? ❎ There are undoubtedly some good lines in here, along with some interesting jazz influences, but feel too few and far between. Over the course of an hour and twenty, it's just far too long to sustain my interest.
3 - BAD
I don’t know much about Common, but this sounds dated today and I think it would have sounded dated back in 2000. Groovy but I never really grooved with it.
It was finally time for hip-hop again — and not the old-school variety I’ve mostly encountered so far, but something more modern, more expansive. And to be fair right away: my usual complaint doesn’t apply here. This album actually contains music. Real instruments, real musicians. Pino Palladino turns up on bass — a man whose résumé borders on the absurd — and several tracks feature proper drummers. Sonically, there’s ambition and breadth. And yet my appreciation remains limited, for one very obvious reason: this album is far too long. At 83 minutes (including a remake), it demands an almost supernatural level of inspiration to justify its own existence. Even Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, created by Billy Corgan at his creative peak, doesn’t fully manage that trick. Common certainly doesn’t. The result is exhaustion. The length flattens everything. Very little stands out because everything just keeps coming. If forced, I’d single out “A Song for Assata” as a genuine highlight, along with the remake of “Geto Heaven.” The big hit, “The Light,” I actively dislike — the R&B crooning smothers the track and drains it of urgency. Elsewhere, there’s heavy borrowing from George Clinton’s Parliament-era funk, which is hardly a bad lineage. Tracks like “A Film Called (Pimp)” and “Cold Blooded” wear that influence openly, even sampling Parliament directly. But influence and ambition aren’t enough. After three and a half listens, the album becomes a kind of sonic slurry — talented, well-intentioned, but ultimately overwhelming and shapeless. That’s the real disappointment: there is talent here, clearly so. It’s just buried under sheer excess. This could have been a much better album at 45 minutes. At 83, it’s simply too much of itself.
DNF. Meh.
Day689 - a swing and a miss
Some good stuff but didn't love it.
Hard to get past a major prejudice with this one: the one thing I know for sure about Common is that Barack Obama is a big fan. I think if an artist exists in a subversive genre, and the president of the united states likes their art, that artist is doing something wrong. That aside, I liked this alright. Cool jazzy stuff, love a Femi Kuti appearance. A 2.5 but I have decided to round it down due to the President thing.
Common is a great lyricist/poet but I find most of his music forgettable
In a determined effort to appreciate the finer points of hip-hop I somehow struggled past Dooinit to reach The Light, which I found myself able to treat with something approaching respect. But then, sadly, I dissolved into a puddle.
Cool vibe if you don't listen to the lyrics. Otherwise uncool.
Tvekar lite mellan att tycka det är lagom najs eller tråkigt, men det är för långt o ibland ba oskön vibe, eller så fattar jag bara inte grejen.
Han den coola från Silo! Inte dåligt men hann definitivt tröttna inom dessa nästan 80 minuter.
5/10
Top track: Geto Heaven Part Two
Not my usual fare in terms of genre. The production and jazz elements were nice but there were some elements I just had a really difficult time getting into.
The slight jazz influence is nice, and many of the beats and samplings are excellent, but I'm not at all a fan of most of the lyrical content.
Better than the usual wannabe gangster shit from Wu-Tang but having said that I’m never going to play this again.
Some good jazzy beats but nearly nothing memorable about this album at all.
Can't say I needed this.
Not great. But not as bad as the usual US gangster rap stuff I've listened to. The usual mysogyny and racism of course. I didn't notice the length of it as I was working - so maybe I was only half listening? Lucky for Common perhaps.
Too long. Some misogyny and homophobia which is pretty “common” in rap (see what I did there?) so not surprising. I don’t see myself listening to this again.
The Light
It's fine, but another one of those artists where you go "Grand - what, they have MORE THAN ONE ALBUM on this list? Why?!"
mm not my thing
Listen, I love Hip Hop, but Common is not a good rapper
The last few songs were decent. Rest of the album doesn’t really hit. I also wanna take this time to apologize to The Refugess for ranking The Score a 2. Should have been a 3 for sure.
When I was younger I loved this album but listening to it now, it does grab me the same way. There’s maybe 3 tracks I love but it does not stand the test of time in my opinion.
Rap caviar. Some good writing but a lot of it stated to sound the same after Al while.
Mediocre
I'm not really into this type of hip hop. I prefer the 80s/early 90s hip hop that was more energetic and used really clever samples. This isn't that. I liked the Fela Kuti tribute, and I feel there are some pretty hefty subjects being tackled here, but I just just couldn't get into it at all.
I really struggled through this one. Elias said that maybe I can't really get into rhythmic music as often and I think he's right. But also, what in the world is that grating effect they put over Common's voice in 50% of the songs on here? Surely this album did not need to be so long, either. I will say I found myself nodding along at some points, so I'll throw in a star for that. But mostly I felt like nodding off.
Now that is some socially conscious rap. Wow, that's also a long album. I immediately saw the runtime and thought about those long 90's albums, where they really tried to fill up the whole CD. About half way through this, I was thinking that it may live up to the runtime, but by the end, I was back to thinking that it couldve used some editing. Production and beats were incredibly, unsurprisingly given that J.Dilla and Questlove were behind them. A good amount of questionable "feminism" and lots of homophobia. It was a different time. Ultimately, its a good listen, production is great and certain tracks are classics. However, as an album, its a bit too long, and I dont think it fully holds up in the way that the BlackStar album, or D'Angelo albums do.
Didn't really get into this at all. Quite background-y. Maybe if I knew more about hip-hop I would be more impressed?
5/10
have you ever been listening to your rap mix and thought 'wow, i really wish some common would shuffle in right about now'
not for me
J’aime pas trop street 80
Some sort of rap, listened to most of it, nothing to shout about. Won’t be playing it again
Rap
Album 894 of 1089 Common - Like Water For Chocolate (2000) Rating : 2.5 / 5 Hip-hop isn’t usually my go-to, but I try to approach each listen with an open mind. There were parts of this one I appreciated - the tone and feel of the beats gave it a good groove, and the production had a smooth flow. That said, the lyrical side didn’t stand out for me, and a lot of it felt familiar compared to other albums I’ve already heard in the genre. Not a bad listen at all, just not one that connected with me in a lasting way.
428/1001
This one’s tough. The Soulquarians’ production is incredible - warm, soulful, and locked-in. “The Light” and “The 6th Sense” are classics, and “A Song for Assata” is powerful. But then you get hit with jarring moments of misogyny and homophobia, which clash hard against the album’s conscious, liberation-focused vibe. It’s a record that sounds amazing, but it’s hard to enjoy because of those contradictions.
Judge Sims in the before times
There's some good beats on here but Common's flow doesn't do it for me.
так поступово-поступово починає тебе занурювати, дуже класно, дуже качає, не агресивно, але напористо. було приємно почути оригінали деяких семплів, які я чула в треках інших жанрів. не люблю слухати про феготів і оце все, тому текстами не пройнялась, тому можу оцінити тільки музику.
Eh not bad but not all that interesting. I liked the Spotify radio that came on after this more than the actual album. 4/10
Not my genre
the quethtionths
Common is lame af
Pretty forgettable. Sadly, Kanye still remains the best rap artist I’ve heard on this project.
One problem I have with nearly all hip-hop/rap records from that time is how the lyrics are often socially critical, exposing racism and other issues. At the same time, they include homophobic, misogynistic, ableistic, and fat-shaming lyrics. On top of that, all they then add is that idiotic gangsta stuff. Great beats, samples, and production cannot level that sh*t out. Running times of +1 hour make it even worse. That said, Common is a bit better than most, but still too much.
19/07/2025 Found this album quite boring. Never heard of this guy, and I can't imagine he'll pop up again anytime soon. At least I hope not.
I like the jazzy sound but I checked out when the homophobia came in
I’m starting to form a new rule when I rate these albums: if I get a rap or hip-hop album that is over an hour long, the highest I will give it is a 2. Every single rap album that has gone on for over an hour always, fucking always, loses my attention. Unless it brings it S-game, not it’s A-game. And honestly, this album brought its C-game. It’s not complete dog shit, but for its size, it’s nothing to write home about. Most of the songs are painfully average and some are just corny as hell, A Film Called (PIMP) and Payback Like A Grandmother especially. It drags on for way too long for what it provides. The only saving grace this album has is that I like that it’s more jazzier and smoother than some other rap albums. Otherwise this would be sitting next to The Chronic among my least favorite albums. Favorite track: The Light Other hits: Nag Champa (Afrodisiac For The World)
Just came up flat and well common.
Meh, never was big on Common
First impression pre listen: The hip-hop albums on this list have a tendency to be long and bloated. This one seems to veer towards that trend too. For me personally can hip-hop be pretty hit or miss depending on the production. I'm not overly familiar with this artist, but at least I know his name. Hoping the quality justifies the runtime. Individual track notes: Time Travelin' (A Tribute To Fela) I just reviewed both Fela and Femi. A fun conicidence. I was not expecting something so jazzy. The reverby background vocals add a psychedelic twist. Good groove. Don't love the vocal effect. A bit of a boring rapping style. The lyrics contain some interesting references. Decent. 3.5/5 Heat The beat is alright. Common has some good energy on this track. Not exactly the most interesting track. Average. 2.5/5 Cold Blooded Really don't like the hook. Sounds kinda goofy. I like the production, but Common's performance isn't really anything to write home about. Average. 2.5/5 Dooinit I guess the first verse has some heat to it. I like that he calls out other rappers. Cringe slurs. The hook is pretty okay. Has some interesting points about the culture here and there. Fine. 3/5 The Light Great beat. Love the sample for the hook. Some decently romantic lyrics. Pleasant enough. Feels comfy. Decent. 3.5/5 Funky For You The beat, the sampling and the general production is amazing. Sure there's some solid commentary in there, but Common is so boring as a rapper that it's hard to care about it. Love the ending. There's some great experimentation there. Love the vocals. Decent. 3.5/5 The Questions Great beat yet again. Horrible hook. I'm sorry, there's probably something in there that could be interesting, but it didn't manage to keep my attention. Boring. Dislike. 2/5 The Travelin' Reprise Honestly really cool. The jazzy pshychedelia is really infectious and hypnotic. I like the horns a lot. Good. 4/5 The 6th Sense Almost every beat on this album so for has been really good. Great vocals on the hook. The lyrics shift between great and dumb on a dime. Drags a bit. Cringe skit at the end. Average. 2.5/5 A Film Called (PIMP) Unlikable premise. Decent hook. The production is amazing. Boring performances. The female rapper is about as boring as Common himself. Average. 2.5/5 Nag Champa (Afrodisiac For The World) Zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Some cringe homophobic lyrics too. At least the beat is pleasant. Dislike. 2/5 Thelonius Spiritual lyrical miracle adjacent. Who cares. Dislike. 2/5 Payback Is A Grandmother I'm fully checked out at this point. Yeah the production is good, but there's just very little to grasp onto musically. Dislike. 2/5 Geto Heaven Part Two Good feature. Solid message with some decent lyrics, even if its a bit straight forward. Kinda catchy. Fine. 3/5 A Song For Assata Great jazziness. Great storytelling. Harrowing story. Fantastic chorus though the performance is a bit cheesy. Simple and compelling concept that is easy and satisfying to follow along with. Love the ending sample. Good. 4/5 Pops Rap III....All My Children Another great beat. The spoken word is really smooth on top of it. Feels like a solid poetry session. Good message. Decent. 3.5/5 Final Review: What Common lacks in personality and interesting deliveries he makes up for in lyricism. At times he does come across as a bit arrogant in a "look how much deeper and mature I am than these other fools way". But mostly he sticks to interesting messages and some solid storytelling. I don't like the homophobia though. And while the lyrics can be interesting in a vacuum, he also happens to be the most boring rapper to ever walk the planet. Taking himself seriously beyond measure. He approaches the beats very similarly when it comes to structure, and his flows aren't very diverse. You don't really see him taking any risks or showing much personality. And don't get me wrong, he's good at his schtick, but it does run a bit dry around the halfway point in the album. The album is saved from being a total snoozefest by some truly amazing production by Dilla, Questlove and Poyser. The jazziness, psychedelia and hints of RnB make the beats dynamic and fresh sounding, and the way they've implemented the samples is stunning. Everything is placed incredibly well, and it completely saves the album from being a total disaster for me. It's almost like Common is the least interesting part of his own album, and I feel there's at least a hint of truth to that as even the features often overshadow him. I do feel like even with the great production that the album drags quite a bit and I don't really think the runtime is even close to justified. It had me completely checked out at some point due to how bloated it is. I'm being a bit harsh with this one, but I'm likely never gonna return to it. 2/5
This was way too long. Really didn’t enjoy the lyrics. I did like the actual music a lot of the time. Three 6+ min songs Five 5+ min songs Why?
Just sounded like generic rap to me. It was ok as background music, but probably won’t get another spin.
bloated
So long, so pointless. I suppose if the artistic process behind the music is setting up a drum machine and some vague keyboard sounds you can pump out over an hour of music reasonably quickly. Every so often something sounded pleasant because the sample was interesting but mainly it was turgid.
Basic decent rap album. Nothing overly consequential.
Eh
Nice grooves, bad lyrics
This is a bit of a drag. Way too long.
Better than the later Kanye produced album I've heard. It has its moments where it's on for sure. Unfortunately lots of filler though, and it really makes it drag a lot of the time. Could have easily made this a shorter and more powerful album.
Forgot to rate, then forgot I listened to it until I played it back a second time. So I guess that wraps it up.
Not my normal genre but trying to open my ears a bit more to different genres. In my honest opinion I didn’t enjoy it that much, but dint skip it either.
Common has never clicked for me. Still hasn't.
This is album is not terrible, but why does it have to be soooo long? I pretty much got the point midway through. This is a common (hehe) problem with hip-hop, they just overstuff their records to the brim. At least there are no cringy skits/interludes on this one.
Never did like Chicago rap. Too mellow and this album is not different. All the beats sound the same and it’s way too long
Great samples and beats but not my thing
Gros ronflement.
For lang, for mange fillers. Beatsene er rigtig fede, men synes de var federe på den anden Common plade vi havde. Han er ikke en særlig spændende rapper, men han er bedre til at rappe end han er til at være skurk i John Wick 2
Interesting beats and use of influencing styles, but again… I hate the lyrics
sound is cool but rap is not my type.
No le di su oportunidad escuché 2 temas y me aburrió lo siento
This was just another one
I remember this being pretty huge. Didn't really grab me.
I’m halfway through the project, give or take, and I now know I just don’t really get on with rap or hip-hop. I’m sure this is fine, but I don’t get it and didn’t enjoy it.
point9.
Two tracks on here that I found okay, so 2 stars or D.
some sweet ones but lots of duds and too long
Not really my vibe
This is when rap became a bit more melodic and it wasn't just talking, but I am not a huge fan of the songs from this album, although it was alright having it in the background. If you pay more attention to it, it would probably make more sense, but it's a bit meh.
The beats are competent. The production is solid but isn't anything exceptional. Common's flow isn't particularly distinctive and his lyrics aren't memorable.
Álbum repleto de ese sonido "jazzmatazz" que marcó la transición de siglo en el rap americano, y un clásico dentro de ese estilo. Funky a la vez que calmado, funciona muy bien como música de fondo. En general, un álbum muy sólido e influyente, con una producción excelente, pero demasiado largo. Además, la voz es súper monótona y acaba cansando. No puedo darle mejor nota porque no creo que lo vuelva a escuchar en su totalidad.
I like the lyrics, but not the music. 2.5/5.
Never heard of Common, this album seemed pretty standard for the hip hop at the time. I guess a lot of the themes went over my head as the wiki seemed to think they were far deeper than I picked up. Not sure a film called pimp is really a "send up of his own conscious image". There were some decent sections here and there but overall not for me.
Ok
Too long, not enough variety
Nah, not for me
Same topics and same inherent problems as most solo rap albums on this list. Not impressed.
So a lot of these tracks seem to have the lyrics completely disassociated from the underlying samples. It's a somewhat unpleasant and tediously long album. 2.5* and I can't round up.
surprisingly bad! i knew I didn't like modern Common but I figured there must have been some good era of Common, that does not seem to be the case though. leads off with a weird down tempo jazzy interlude that's both aggravating to listen to and insultingly labeled as "a tribute to Fela" (big swing and a miss from Femi) and pretty much continues along those lines
In the first two tracks, Time Travelin' and Heat, the clear standout is the basswork. You might as well lose the vocals entirely because the bass is so darn great (particularly when combined with the light, muted guitar riffs). The rapping is fine. Pretty monotonous and droning, as per the genre. But those backing instrumentals... man. Much jazzier than I'm used to for late-90s/early-00s hip-hop. Lots of Dorian mode (the best-sounding mode). That chopped-up electric guitar sound on Cold Blooded is fantastic. Just imagine that song as an instrumental. With some minor editing, this music could reach the heights of Floyd jam sessions. Unrelatedly, my favourite track on the album is Geto Heaven Part Two (mostly for the abundance of great instruments like the piano, harp, flute, and violin). And my favourite part of the album is Common pronouncing "questions" as "kwustiss". As many fellow reviewers have pointed out, the lyrics are fairly homophobic. This is, for our purposes, bad. I don't tend to pay lyrics much attention unless they're particularly bad, yet I was paying much attention to songs like Dooinit. Which I suspect also contains some racist poetry about halfway through its runtime. (Only need a drop of sexism to complete the holy trinity of rap! But, judging by the unusually pro-women lyrics at the end of The 6th Sense, it looks like Common covered their tracks.) Speaking of runtimes, the album is too long to really justify. If you've got 77 minutes of material, either release two albums or cut out the less interesting half. Another interesting element is the abundance of very sudden jumps into what sounds like a completely different song about a minute before each track ends. Now, if you have a fade or otherwise reasonable transition, I can understand it. Even hip-hop interludes, when found at the end of songs, typically don't leap straight into a skit but fade into it gradually. I guess Common isn't a typical rapper. But that doesn't make him better. 2/5 Key tracks: Cold Blooded, The 6th Sense, Geto Heaven Part Two
I'm conflicted about Like Water for Chocolate. On one hand, Common crafted quite the album; he pays homage to Fela Kuti and discusses a political activist's wrongful imprisonment. He holds nothing back in his lyrics, which really hit you in the gut. On the other hand, the album is very long and because of the many collaborations and directions Common went in, it isn't terribly cohesive. I nevertheless appreciate what Common did here. At the end of the day, I didn't enjoy Like Water for Chocolate as much as Be, which contained more soul than just straight hip hop. 2.5
I definitely struggled when it came to staying present with this album, and the album's length did not help matters, either. There was quite a bit of funk-driven hip hop on this album, which I can appreciate, but overall, this just never seemed to grab me.
Blind album and know the artist from another album on the project. I had a lot of the same feelings for this album as his last, but it was different in some ways that I feel I would not make. Less appealing.
I wasn't super into this. I'm not very familiar with Common, but I don't think I'd revisit this record.
Too long and I didn't care for the hooks :( 77 minutes! I liked Pops at the end though. 2.49/5
2.5
This was such a pain to get through. Over an hour long but not a single memorable song on the whole album, which is surprising because I mostly liked the last common album. Felt like the whole thing was just filler
Just re-read my review of Be while listening to the opening tracks. Yeah we will see if this remains interesting for 78 minutes. The music is decent, can't say I'm particularly impressed in the raps. But there's a fair bit of Fela and Femi in here, which you know, you can't argue with. All the stuff in the middle about pimping might have had irony or a strong message or it might have been simply garbage but it lost me in the middle. Aaaand, nothing after that grabbed me and the jazz seemed dialled back, so I really lost interest. Song for Assata was quite good to be fair. But too little too late.
..
I generally dig Common's work, 6th Sense is one of my favorite hip-hop songs of all time, but listening to this album front-to-back in 2025 was a confounding experience. It is jarring to hear someone who is so clearly in tune with and supportive of the struggle to liberate oppressed people causally use slurs. I mean there is a tribute track to Assata Shakur on here for fuck's sake, and the album cover itself plus countless other lyrics I could point to that makes the glaring homophobia seem even more bizarre and out of place. It bums me out to rate this so low, but I also see the argument for giving it a 1 despite all the redemptive qualities.
Liked the intro
I've tried Common in the past, just not my vibe. It was an interesting listen but still not my thing. I gather the message is a good one but too much N word and generic rhythms with a shallow bottom end to catch my attention. It's a popular album with a ton of listens from top to bottom. The biggest tracks were "The Light" & "The 6th Sense", neither of which I'd ever heard. It sounds older than 2024, the music was just weak and not compelling enough for me to dive in and enjoy. Not my genre, not by groove so it's hard to rate this one.
Don't mind the style, don't like the attitude.
Nope, sorry, not for me - I can appreciate the work that's gone into it, but don't like the sentiment behind most of it and just don't want to listen.
Sounds like Eminem
I'd like an instrumental version of this album that was about 30 minutes shorter. Some seriously purile lyrics in there. was looking forward to this one after listening to and enjoying Be.
same old stuff
The beats are sick, I am not a real big fan of his raps or voice. It was probably of it's time, but definitely some overarching homophobia and similar things. Beats 5/5 raps 1/5 = prolly a 2/5
Like water for passing.
as muck
I wanted to like this album, but its just not doing it for me. I've never really listened to Common before, maybe I'll come back to him later, but this album felt like a slog to get through.
Tiene buenos samplings y algun que otro tema bueno, no es malo, es normal; prefiero mil veces mas el album "Be" del 2005 del mismo artista. Mas Corto y mejor producido.
I think I listened to this album when I was younger a few times but I only remember a few of the tracks. A little to ‘jazzy’ for me at times.
Good background music, but not really into rap/hip hop
This is well-crafted, but I just don't like listening to rap music sry
I really did not like this album much at all. And there are aspects of it I really dug especially in the tracks. But for the most part, I don't like this kind hip hop/rap. I can't even really put a finger on why, I just don't. I do kinda feel like this is an important album thematically and musically, but even somehow recognizing that did not equate to appreciation. Two songs I did like... "The 6th Sense" and "A Song for Assata" they did struck a chord in me. The most of the rest honestly made me feel in comfortable. If I was more into this gernre as a whole, I could see myself rating this highly, but I really was soaked in a negative reaction to this. (4.85) ★★
Hip hop study beats to study and relax to. And by relax I mean get irritated to and switch off very quickly. Shame because I did want to like this more because of the talent involved but the rapping wasn’t anything special and the production behind it was super headachey and annoying.
#441. Not particularly interesting. 2/5: meh
I guess I'm just not a huge Common fan. Oh well. 4/10
Common isn't one of my favs...don't completely understand his critical acclaim. 2/5
Really disappointing, especially after listening to ‘Be’ again.
It wasn’t too bad as background music. 2*
Decent.
the instrumentals and samples sound really fresh and good, but the rapping is just lame and boring. also not important, there was plenty of better hiphop before 2k NNN
Nope
There were some bits that were sort of OK. And an awful lot that was plain terrible.
This sounds dated even for being 24 years old. Some of the beats are decent but the raps are boring and corny. I also disapprove of him fighting John Wick.
The production is amazing, I love Common's voice and flow, and this album starts and ends phenominally. But I just can't get into the middle of this album at all. Pretty much all the songs after the first song and until "Payback Is a Grandmother" (minus "Dooinit" which is also great) are just crap to me. Can't connect to them, weak choruses, not really saying much. But when Common is telling a story oh man does he really shine. Kinda struggling to rate this, is it a high 2 for its inexcusable bloat? Or a low 3 for its shining moments of glory? I don't know. I'm going with a 2, since I already know "Be" is going to be a 4 or 5
I didn't hate it but I didn't like it either. Rap is just not my thing. I got bored with this very quickly.
Tedious…
This could have been a four star album if it had been around half as long. It started to drag around the halfway point for me, and that drag just went on and on, until I really got sick and tired of listening to this.
cool but not for me
I did not care for the Common. It insists upon itself
Unimpressive. Did not hold my attention.
Muck
It was fine. 2/5
This has the potential to be all positivity rap. What’s the over under on “come together as one” being said? I’m taking the over. Early to Mid-2000s rap has a special place in hell regardless, but like anything. We will give this a chance. Jazz tribute to start. Probably an instrumental. I wish we were listening to jazz. Nah this is so lame. Stop. It’s like accidentally discovering your younger teacher is an amateur rapper on the side. This thing blows. We’ve even lost the musicality. Oh it’s returned slightly. And fade. 77 minutes of this, eh? Let’s hope “heat” actually brings something resembling that. I assumed that this album would be heavy lyrically. There would be plenty of time where the lyrics carried everything. The lyrics are fine. Honestly, they’re on the bad side of fine. It’s not that good. He has very little authority in his voice. The flow is middling to bad. This is lukewarm at best, pal. Next. Thi- Thi- This is RAHZEL. SSX TRICKY reference in my own mind is distracting me from the 2004 snap beat. Mixed with Common attempting to sound intimidating, this is another journey through substitute teacher rap. It’s just so cringeworthy to me. “Cold blooded, *ah huh* hardcore” Dad, stop, you’re embarrassing me. Also, I don’t know where rahzel even is. I just want to hear him ask me to do an uber trick one last time. Ok, a better flow. Some level of aggression to the beat. Chorus? Disgusting. Hahahahaha homophobic slur. Sign of the times I guess. Ugh. I hate that this is the best song so far. Oh here we go. This one is about to close the gap between men of all creeds. Oh no it’s a love song. Duuuude. You can’t be like “I won’t call you a bitch” when you did two song ago and also mentioned a “circle of f**ots” like 60 bars ago. Get outta here. The beat is ok here. I think common is so lame and that hasn’t changed here. Holy hell this is so ham-fisted. “Hey girl, sex is cool but you know what, you’re my equal.” Bro. This isn’t a revolutionary thought. Whoa guys. He treats women like humans. Quick. Somebody get this asshat a medal and a girlfriend STAT. You’re not Mos def. This is so 2000s. Stop saying “ah”. It sucks. Funkaaay. Yeah this would fit in real well at like a white millennial woman’s 40th birthday. The rhyme scheme is just meh. I really wanted cool lyrics from this because I thought that’s all we could get. They’re just ok. One or two decent lines on this one. Beat is ok but too much dumb shit surrounding it. I kind of like the r & b break near the end. That’s not bad. Not rap, but that’s probably a good thing. We’re getting an actual Mos Def feature. Mos Def and Mos Def - sugar Free are on the track. Let’s see. When Mos Def isn’t rapping, people should be asking “where’s Mos Def.” I am asking. The chorus actually has some energy so that’s a nice change. Oh boy, talking about being a “sexual intellectual” with a girl who says “I look 20 but I’m 15.” Fuck you. Mos def is better in every way. Even with a dumb verse about saying never and Jerry Seinfeld observations about ID. Reprise. Chance to reflect on how unlikeable this album is. It’s like hold music while you await some horror when the phone is answered. I know writing rap isn’t easy, but these rhymes are always so predictable. Pastor rap. Listen. The lyrics are annoying. Full stop. I wish it was cooler. I’m not trying to hate this, but he’s just not the best writer and his delivery is just so weak. Dude, common included an actress pretending to ask for his autograph. First time for everything. Hold on. Bad lyrics, but this beat is better. MC Lyte is so refreshing here. God. So much more ferocity and intention. This one is good. Cool instruments. Common should just back out like that scene in 8 Mile. Too long and too much common, but hey. Best one so far. And we return to the cold, empty abyss of Common raps. ZZZZZZZZZZZZ. Wake me up if MC Lyte comes back. Homophobic bars woke me up. What a loser. This one is ok. It’s fine. Man this is all so mediocre. Is this a song about crazy grandmothers? Or a PSA about not robbing grandmothers? Jesus. The beat is good. This one is somehow decent. Ugh. I guess I like the joke songs. Noooooo. A really cool intro ruined by more of the same, pandering, oddly sexual, lame poetry. This is one of the worst so far. Oh common, I can sympathize with dealing with “crap rappers.” Maybe he said crab. Ignore the facts for my bad joke. Please . Man. This song is pretty good. The laid back actually works here and I feel like this beat matches common rather than having him strain to be tough and cool. He usually sounds like a mouse trying to scream over a beat, but this one fits him perfectly. Yeah this one is excellent. Fantastic lyrics, great energy. Gets a touch melodramatic at the end but hey, Best performance from common by a god damn planetary span. Common’s dad appears. Why? End on the good song. I want a Time Machine to request this be omitted. This is dumb. 2.5 HIGHLIGHTS: Dooinit, A Film called (PIMP), Payback is a Grandmother, A Song for Assata.
im going to show my age and say that I know common as an actor, not a rapper. I’ve tried to listen to common before and just wasn’t the biggest fan.
gratuitous use of the “n word” and tons of misogyny… nothing new for this genre of music.
I only listened to it once, so some of the nuance in the lyrics may have been lost, but I wasn't impressed. There are a few good beats on this album, and I thought "A Film Called (PIMP)" was a novel track, but none of this was enough to make up for the average rapping, surface level insights, and blatant homophobia.
Musical guest on Chapelle’s Show-ass album You just KNOW he was wearing a little newsboy cap while recording this
Toooooo loooooooooooong!
I don’t like hip hop but I’ve heard worse.
A common and monotonous hip hop album about the same three subjects as always.
Okay, but not for me. Also found it to run a bit too long
I couldn't get into this
Common would be better if he acknowledged that he's rhyming over a beat. It's like he writes his rhymes before he's heard the beat, and then just says says them regardless of how it flows over the beat. He was one of the early rappers to flow off-beat, and it became popular and then rap fell off a cliff. Rhymes and beats should fit like puzzle pieces. I will die on this hill.
This was a bit of a slog for me and it’s hard to say why. I liked the beats, and to some extent, the flow. I found myself not knowing what he was saying a lot of the time. Maybe I’m just out of the loop. Nothing really grabbed me here. Oddly enough, my favorite track was the outro with his dad talking.
Somewhat enjoyed parts of this but it sort of lost me at the skit where Common beats up a woman. Get that he's poking fun at himself, but it's still weird to listen to. Some of the music's nice.
I love rap and hip hop and this one just falls very flat for me. The first song was a very poor start at an album. It sounds like it was recorded underwater. Not good.
Man...that one particular interlude was extremely off-putting, wasn't it? You all know which one. It really ruined an album I otherwise mostly enjoyed.
Eh
I wasn't a big fan of this album.
It's American hiphop.
Rap, don't like it and bad language too 2 stars
It was pretty good
i dislike all the coarse language
Funky, but overstayed its welcome.
I liked the music, but the vocals never quite seemed to match.
some good some bad mostly listenable but i couldnt get into the groove
The rise of the Soulquarians, eh? It’s more like the evolution of the Native Tongues collective, yeah? I liked this more than Mama’s Gun (which put me to sleep), but I like it less than some of the other Soulquarians’ output (like J Dilla, Questlove, or Mos Def). I did enjoy the self-reflective notes of many of the songs. I just wanted more catchy hooks.
Better than the previous album from Common. A little more diversity amongst the songs, and a Black Panther history lesson. I don't really have any objections, but nothing here made me want to put it into my playlist either.
Just not my thing.
Like some reviewers below, I liked the soul/funk groove, but the raps are misogynistic and homophobic. It's the reason why I just don't like rap from this era.
Boring…
It's OK at times I think. I just don't care for it.
I like some of the beats and grooves, but nothing really landed as being earth shattering. Pretty run-of-the-mill in my opinion.
Homophobia don't fly with me.
Common is an artist I haven't listened to a lot but am lead to believe he is very intellectual and deep with his lyrics. This is the second Common album I've had to review and it came off corny and contrived lyrically like the first. I enjoyed the beats but the album was a little long overall.
Really nothing special or memorable
Interesting samples but ruined by the nigger this, nigger that rapping
Nothing really popped out at me here
Not that good
I find Common albums vibey but unmemorable most of the time. A couple good beats but overall nothing that stuck out.
I'm not a the world's biggest hip-hop fan but I'm open to the possibility of liking some. This album is not it for me. Common seems to be providing a lot of commentary on race and gender issues but it doesn't resonate with me. Must have been under a rock in the early 2000s because this was the first time I heard "The Light" - a vulnerable and sweet love song, but not enough to save the album for me.
Boring
2-3
Fine. I wouldn’t listen twice.
It's okay. I felt like the whole first half of the album was missing something.
I almost like The Sixth Sense
Music is all vibes, lyrics are decent and intelligent at times, but subject matter is down right trashy.
I can intellectually appreciate Common, but this album felt like a slog to me.
This album is exactly a year older than I am :). There's also a song where he slaps a woman? Its been over a week since I listened to this and I don't quite remember what my opinion was, I don't think I liked it that much
Jazzy, laid back rapping. Cool. Not for me, though. Common is an exceptional composer, however.
Definitely some good samples. Loving the jazz elements. Not a fan of his rapping. The best songs were Geto Heaven Part Two and A Song For Assata. I was hoping the features artists would lift the album above a 2, but it wasn't enough. I was disappointed by how they treated Jill Scott's vocals, because I quite like her.
Not my style of album but I did like Time Travelin' and it's reprise.