G. Love And Special Sauce

This album holds a special place in my heart because my dad and brother used to listen to it and I still have their copy on CD. I never liked it that much, but ok re-listening I think I can see what the appeal is. To a point.

Ii remember when this came out and Cool Beverage got a fair amount of airplay. The album is okay. Playful mix of blues/jazz/rap. A lesser version of Soul Coughing.

Bluesy, folksy, groovy. I'm okay with it. Easy background music. 3+.

sure

на любителя

extremely horrifying combination of name and genres, but the actual listening experience was not repulsive thankfully lol, even mostly good id say. a lot of it comes from the wide and respectable spread of sample choices, which combined with the efforts of the rhythm section lend some good swing that elevates g love's slacker rock white rapper thing. upon hearing the first song i was wondering whether this was an inspiration for (or rip off of) beck, but mellow gold came out the same year. even soul coughing's debut came out the same year!! where the hell did all these guys come from. g love's gotta be the weakest of these three (the record overstays its welcome, which reveals the limitations of his style), but it would be a mistake to Totally dismiss this out of hand

the band is killer, sometimes the vocals kill it a bit though way too long for what it is

This was fine. It very much sounds like something from the 90's. 3.0

Without besmirching their skill and talent, is this really real? GLove and Special Sauce? C'mon, for real? :)

A couple good songs.

Reminds me of Beck and lots of other 90's fusions of rock and hip-hop. It sounds like Citizen Cope may have been influenced by this type of music. I don't really think it was anything special though and think Rage Against the Machine does a better job of fusing these two genres.

I don't know, I can't seem to find enough interest in this album to actually review it. The music is fine, and it's well produced. I don't really care for the vocals, but they aren't horrible. I think my issue is that everything seems to develop slowly, so I just end up getting bored every time I put on a song. Nevermind, the longer I listen to this, the more I dislike the vocals. Somewhere between crooning and rapping is crapping, and that's what he is doing with his vocals 3/5 This album would be better as an instrumental

I got way more into this the further it went on. You see a bunch of highly upvoted 1 star reviews calling it cringe, and then you hear those kind of drawling vocals coming in, and you do start to wonder. I thought I'd be more annoyed by them, but actually I'm not that much. After a while I kind of got into the vibe of what he was doing. I like the laid back, casual flow of this album with those nice bass lines running through it. I feel like it'd be cool to hate on this kind of thing, but if you actually just go with it then you can have a pretty decent time. 3.5 rounded down.

It was alright. Definitely too long Rating: 2.7

Quite good. I think it would grow on me if I kept listening. It sounded very early 90s like a chill Fun Lovin Criminals vibe.

Albumi #65, 02.10.2024 G. Love and Special Sauce on mielenkiintoinen genreyhdistelmä bluesia ja räppiä. Albumin mielenkiinto piileekin tässä epätodennäköisessä kombinaatiossa, joka on vieläpä hieman "vetelällä" otteella soitettua.

I enjoy the sound, but something about the vocal effect makes this all feel like music for a commercial to me.

Prima achtergrondmuziek

Didn’t listen

"G. Love and Special Sauce" is the debut album by American rock band G. Love & Special Sauce. Rock band may be a stretch but I'll go with it as their Wiki-genre description is blues and rap, probably more apt. The album was produced by Stiff John and Special Sauce. The bandmembers are G. Love (Garret Dutton- lead vocals, guitar, harmonica) and Special Sauce who are Jeffrey Clemens (drums, percussion, backing vocals) and Jimi "Jazz" Prescott (string bass). Drums, bass and G. Love's vocals open the album in the Guitar Slim blues classic "The Things I Used to Do." Love has this rap and singing combo going in his vocals. Sloppy guitar slashes. They have a nice groove going though. They slow it down a bit in "Blues Music." The music is Mississippi delta blues and the rapping is straight forward. A good example of their rap-blues fusion. The guitar gets more melodic in "Baby's Got Sauce." The rhythm section is almost soulful. His baby has the special sauce. The pace picks up in "Cold Beverage." A slide guitar. Another guitar with a blues edge, an almost slopppy version of Jack White. Not bad. Simple lyrics as he needs a cold one. Piano is added to "This Ain't Living." Ohh, a more jazz-rap fusion and a De La Soul vibe. Defintely, the most serious song ( maybe only) lyrically as the topic is poverty. "Shooting Hoops" start out old school with a Robert Johnson-esque bluesy guitar intro. We're talking about basketball. MJ, Magic, Dominique and Dr. J are mentioned....the song is dating itself. This album is loose, laid back, slow and chill. I found the rap-rock-blues fusion fairly unique. The lyrics and themes are mostly simplistic- beer, garbage and basketball. The rap style is loose but fits with the music. There are some guitar jams but it's mostly playing along with the rhythm section. I really liked the added piano and jazzy songs; they could have done more of that. It's another CD-era album and could have been trimmed. Overall, it's a decent listen; their rap-blues fusion worked for me.

Interesting, but I was not really excited about hearing the next song. Just okay with everything in it.

Didn't think this was as bad as others are saying! Kind of dated but the lyrics are quite cute and it's inoffensive to have on in the background. Their name is awful though.

This is a mid Beck album.

Time machine

Probably ahead of its time and not bad but I was bored by the end.

I rather enjoyed the flow and feel of this. I think some of his later work is better, but this was enjoyable.

This was fun for a while, but an hour dragged.

a soothing, sometime interesting, sometimes boring record. the mix of blues and hip-hop was quite cool, but nothing too groundbreaking. it feels like a filler album, and probably not one that will stick with me for long.

Bass line in the first song was dope. Seems like an enjoyable album so far. Don't love the vocals in all the songs, kind of a lazy rap.

My brother really liked this at the time and it didn’t do much for me. Still didn’t.

3/5. This is a good album to nod your head to and the vocal cadences are fun, switching between blues, soul, spoken word, and rap. It is mostly blues instrumentation with simple drums, bass, and guitar. The vocals are the unique part here, with a slow and flowing rhythm, never staccato. I enjoyed the first half of the album, but then the second half sounded exactly the same, like it was alternate takes of the same songs. I wanted to like this more than I did but I did enjoy it for the most part. Just a little too long I think. Best Song: The Things That I Used To Do, Garbage Man, Baby's Got Sauce

No conocía ni el disco ni la banda. Empieza con un estilo Fun Lovin' criminals o Beastie Boys. Me guardo: Blues Music, Baby's got sauce y This ain't living.

That was.... a lot. If you played almost any of these songs I'd be like "that's pretty good" but I don't know that I'd have a huge appetite for more. As an album, it's a lot of kind of the same thing. Is he recording all of his vocals through a megaphone, or does his voice just sound like that? Extra star because you can tell they said "this is a little light can you put down a couple more tracks" and the result was a song about cold drinks and a song about basketball

I don't think this breaks the mould in any way. At times it gets a decent groove on, but on the whole this doesn't get past pretty good.

3.5/5

It’s like Twiglets. It’s awful but I just can’t seem to stop.

This is fine; it sounds like so many other bands I heard at bars and fraternity parties in 1994. The Special Sauce is better than G. Love’s vocals and lyrics. Maybe I’m just not that big a fan of Philly… There are better options from the early-mid-90s in this college rock meets jazz/funk genre that I would pick for this list - Blues Traveler, Dave Matthews Band, Cake, Govt Mule, and Rusted Root all come to mind. 3⭐️

It was ok. Basically Bob Dylan does hip-hop.

This was a funky one, in a good way. Reminded me of Sublime in some ways. Great to get the variety but it wasn't super memorable.

Pretty cool album! It's got that semi-tropical white boy tinge like some Sublime or Sugar Ray or something, and it mostly works really well. Quite a few hits on here that I'll keep, while the rest of it kind of faded into the background for me. But it's a nice not-quite-rock album (not sure what genre they'd call this), feels like summer. Favorite tracks: The Things That I Used to Do, Blues Music, Baby's Got Sauce, Cold Beverage, This Ain't Living. Album art: Very unassuming, just a shot of some guys at a diner it looks like. But it's got the summer scumbag feel, is this what Chet Hanks means by white boy summer? 3.5/5

A lot of dudes with soul patches have played air bass to this. Some of it was alright though.

they brought a lot of the mild sauce but a bit of the xtra spicy hot & tangy chunky pepper blend new formula is mixed in

Doesn't hold up as well as I hoped, but still an easy 3.

I feel this has a specific time and place, so I’ll respect its placement on the list except… G. Love and Special Sauce is the actual name… not like a one-off mock project, but the actual name he chose…

这种blues rap真容易睡

Surprising choice. Nice album but never really got fully into it. I do like the laidback sound and the 2-sequence Fatman - This Ain't Living is great.

Fun - chill bluesy music

Great stupid summer fun - delighted to discover that I still know 80% of the words to "Cold Beverage" . This isn't consistent enough to play through as an album but there are some good playlist tracks in here for an easy breezy vibe.

Emphatically casual. This would be a very attractive style if the overall musical quality were higher. As it is, most of the songs sound like they've been thrown together by a college band.

better than i expected kinda chill, not creative. id rather listen to sublime

Not bad, but woefully lacking in variety and dynamism. Every track is just a repeating blues riff with the same lackadaisical not-quite-rapping vocals, to the point that you might not even realise the song has changed. I liked the rhythm section and found the sound very nostalgic and 90s. Made me want to whip out my SEGA Dreamcast.

Pleasant and chill, but nothing note worthy

Felt like a bit of a copy of Fun Loving criminals, fairly unmemorable though

If it was instrumental it would get 4 stars, with vocals 2.5

The music is groovy, funky, jazzy and smooth. The double bass is awesome, but the vocals doing some 90's hiphop swag thing kind of ruin it.

It’s ok

This sauces won't change your life but it would be nice on some fries.

Nice instrumentals, not a fan of the vocals

I always lumped these guys into the jam band scene, thanks to a coworker who was all about that vibe and constantly raved about G. Love & Special Sauce. So, I wasn’t exactly eager to dive into this album. But from the very beginning, I realized I had totally misjudged it, and it was way better than I expected. What really hooked me about this album was its funky, raw energy. It’s laid-back and groovy, with a strong jazz and blues feel. The production is stripped down and unpolished, giving it a vibe that feels almost like a live performance, which I loved. However, there were some aspects I didn’t vibe with. The rapping and lyrics felt sleazy, simplistic, and fell flat for me. Honestly, I think I would have enjoyed the album more if they had dropped the rapping altogether. All in all, I’d say it’s worth a listen. Even though there was one element that didn’t resonate with me, I can’t ignore the other parts that were genuinely enjoyable.

I appreciate its unique and refreshing brand of '90s music. Kinda reminds me of mag.lo and Cheekface. I didn't feel it as much as the mentioned artists tho.

Nothing to hate here, but nothing mind-blowing either.

I bought this album from a neighbour's garage sale. Probably should have listened to it a bit more than I did. It is quite fun and I can see this special sauce flavouring a bunch of music that followed.

I only know G from a couple of songs he recorded with Jack Johnson, and now I can hear where Jack got a lot of his influence, especially those echoey old snare drums. Anyway this was cool.

OK.

I did not like this at first, but along a lazy afternoon it kind of grew on me as a lazy afternoon kind of album.

Random but quite good

More nostalgic than good.

Cool music, sounds very live, but for me let down by the vocals & songs. Interesting mix of styles and genres though, which is probably why it made the list.

It’s Sunday afternoon, it’s sunny, and you’re walking down the street in sliders. You also probably have sunglasses on. These guys would get along with Jack Johnson probably. Favourite tracks: Garbage Man,

Cool, laid-back album. Consistently decent but nothing that blew me away. I liked the blues/hip hop influence and the drums and bass lines were nice. Dragged a bit towards the end - could’ve done with the last 4/5 songs being cut. Favourite track: This Ain’t Living

Chill enough, I guess, but essential? Not to my ears. It sounds like if some dude showed up at your campfire with a guitar and asked if you'd ever heard a white man rap. The lyrics sound like the deep thoughts a surfer would jot down between bong tokes. If I'd found this album at age 19, I'd probably love it. All in all, the sloppy flow gets a little samey, and also just goes on far too long -- removing 20 mins from this album would go a long way.

3.5

I would have liked this more if it was all Special Sauce and left the G Love in the car. His voice and style were grating but the music was great that was behind it. And for that... ***

Discount Beastie Boys.

Liked it

What kind of genre is this? Blues-rap?

Super chill, bit repetitive

I was surprised to see this one listed, but it is a unique sound from a unique band. I’ve never been able to get into G. Love despite liking many of their contemporaries and associated artists. Their debut is okay - it’s not great musically but there is a vibe on several songs that is appealing in the right setting. Baby’s Got Sauce is fun abound probably my favorite track. It’s feel good music made for beach festivals and opening for Dave Matthews Band - and if that’s wrong I don’t want to be right. That said, I’m rarely going to listen to this in my day to day, and I tried listening while working and it’s definitely not the right music for that. I haven’t seen them live, but my guess is they’re a band that is best experienced in person than on record.

Pretty interesting, especially for 1994! Doing White Stripes stuff like a decade before the White Stripes is respectable business

Ooooohhhhh BABY!!!! Some real funky shit right here! Loved it!

1994 appeared to be prime time for G. Love to deliver his Special Sauce. The alchemy of rap, alternative and jazz prove to be an effective combo that would appear kind of weird and somewhat off-putting to those looking on the outside yet for those looking in, there's plenty to discover and become enchanted by. White rappers at that time had a bad rap (hehe) but G. Love makes up for it by staying in his lane and not attempt to demonstrate anything cheesy or damning. It helps that Special Sauce are on top form throughout. It may encapsulate what the early 90s were about but this could do with a little more current day reevaluating. Favorites: The Things I Used to Do, Garbage Man, Baby's Got Sauce, Rhyme for the Summertime, Cold Beverage, Fatman, This Ain't Living, Walk to Slide.

I listened, I forgot

In isolation, individual songs are quite catchy. As a whole album though, it just feels like one long blur. Pleasant enough, and not without merit, but without anything really standing out to grab your attention.

Interesting.

Like the rhythm ...but they all started to sound very similar

I'm a big fan of both hip hop and blues, so I thought I would like this more. I did enjoy the first few songs a lot, but the songs all started the sound the same after a while. Cold Beverage is a slapper. They seem sort of like a one trick pony. Loved the style though, cool combination fo genres.

Reminds me of a more meandering Sublime that mixes in more blues than rap. I also understand why you can always find an album of theirs in a thrift store or $1 dollar bin at your local record shop (2.5/5)

This was very long. What it did was fine, but could've been cut in half.

favourite song: babys got sauce very 3/5 album. neat.

Just ok. Some fun sounding stuff. Not bad but not up there as top albums for me personally

3.7 - At my high school, there were a few distinct stoner groups, floating casually outside of my geeky, theater/debate team orbit. One stoner group fixated on Phish and other jam bands, another was comprised of recent Russian emigrés, and there was also the jock stoners. Within that mix, a sub-group of more goonish stoners overlapped with the jocks and jam band enthusiasts. These goons were fun-loving dudes. They were usually accompanied by a few groupie chicks and made appearances at all the house parties, as far as I can tell. But these dudes went a little harder, mixing their kind bud with whippets and Malibu and cough syrup. Most had had some run-ins with police, but managed to keep a clean record before they all spread out to their various New England liberal arts colleges. These are the dudes I associate most with G. Love. They were good-humored guys so I'm glad they were listening to cool music. I've always liked the few cuts I've heard off this joint, especially "Cold Beverage." "My Baby's Got Sauce" is more of a novelty but a winning one that gets the ladies smiling. Other standout: "This Ain't Living."

3.75

There’s definitely a place for bar band music in the world. But, is there really enough space on a limited list of absolutely essential albums for it? I don’t feel like I have a better understanding of the world after having listened to this, I don’t feel like I understand any musical trend, better understand where any specific artist got any ideas. I just feel like having a drink, ignoring the band and just talking with friends. It’s fine, it might be worth throwing on at a party, but it’s definitely not worthy of a spot on this list

Started off as a real banger but it started to wear on me about 20 minutes in. Won't trash it, but won't return.

Not bad 3.5/5

This is a VIBE. 3.49 stars.

Primus wannabes

Not bad. Reminds me of Beck or Grandson if they had more blues. 3.17

Similar to acts like Sublime or even at times the White Stripes, this album is an inoffensive take an a niche sub-genre of blues rock that feels more trip-hop than blues, with repetitive beats and a rap-like flow to the singing to ensure even the least interested listener is bobbing their head. However, this album here leaves a lot to be desired in an already aged genre, as the CD era strikes again and takes this decent twenty minute concept of an album and stretches it to nearly an hour, with no variation to warrant the time spent. You won't hate your time here, but you'll most likely not gain anything either.

Enjoyed the first half hour but it got repetitive and dragged through the second half. Nice flow and sound tho.

Yeah this was alright, an interesting concept mixing rap and bluesy music.

A bit ridiculous but enjoyable.

Hard not to like it.

ekki slæmt. skemmtileg lög inn á milli. held þetta hafi samt verið uppspretta ýmislegs ills.

It’s different but I didn’t love it. Not bad but probably wouldn’t go back to it

Decent fusion

Represents an interesting time in the 90s. Liked it more after listening to it for a bit definitely grew on me.

Like a shit early Beck

Me recuerda mucho a la canción de Beck: Loser.

Fine ni bother

Not bad

This trio of vocals/guitar, acoustic bass, and drums lives on chill vibes, moving between hip hop, alt rock, blues, and jazzy sounds. It’s really all about the feel, less the content and meaning or moving instrumentals. Songs are alright - most have a nice groove but pretty insignificant lyrics or catchy melodies. The vocalist is also alright, he has a smooth casual delivery but doesn’t do much to impress. This band sounds best when they fall apart a bit and sound like shit. Somewhat enjoyed this but it also didn’t impress either. Runs a bit longer than it needs to. Not sure if I’ll come back to it, but if I do it’ll be more as background music than close listening.

I enjoyed the sound. Nothing special though.

Songs start great, but all feel the exact same. Album should have left more on the cutting room floor. Top tracks: Blues Music, Walk to Slide

It was alright, nothing much stood out here but it wasn't bad or anything.

Has a certain louche charm

Unique sounds and some real head bopping grooves.

Very humorous that this is on here in place of many other hip-hop classics but I will admit that it’s groovy to a non-negligible degree. Not too convinced about the rhymes though

A middling 3 - not exactly my style but not bad. Songs started to blend together eventually though

Greet

Fun but not my style.

колледж радио, окей. но не для меня!

It‘s interesting, but I don‘t like it very much. Too closely to Hip Hop for me. But some songs are very good.

This could go up or down a star. The music is great but those "white college kid rap vocals" sure are something. Sometimes it fits sometimes it really hinders some tracks.

C'est une très bonne idée de mélanger le rock et le hip-hop, il doit sans doute y avoir beaucoup d'adeptes de ce style musical (zéro, pas une seule personne).

Nouvel album de merde de la part de notre Robert national, mais au moins on commence à être à jour sur le générateur de misère.

Genres: Blues, Hip-Hop & Rock. Hoe kan dat nou weer werken? Maar dat doet het best redelijk. Op zijn best klinkt het als een mindere versie van Gorillaz, dus verder niet heel bijzonder.

Not really what I expected, but this was interesting. I like the instrumentation more than the vocals. It's a fine listen, but not sure anything particularly stands out.

Pretty cool. I could like this album

Fun bluesy rap-hop from Philly. A good listen and doesn’t seem prone to aging.

Cold Beverages was a radio staple for awhile. The album is fine. Kind of a nostalgia trip for me.

Meh. You couldn't live around the Philly area in the 90s and not hear them all the time. And it's fine to put on in the background, it's nice and chill and doesn't take much to listen to it, but it's not something I'm going to actively put on again.

Not my cuppa.

bbq music

Hip hop

Some of it was fine other parts meh not really for me ?

I can only pan this so much as it's generally good-natured dumb-foolery but really the whole fake patois blues-ish thing ain't aged well.

Decent stuff

I honestly thought these guys were a local Detroit area band, because it seemed like they were playing at bars and clubs around here all the time. I'm sure I saw them at least once, although I can't remember anything about it. Turns out they're from Philly and they weren't just some bar band. Who knew? Anyway, on to the music. It has a nice, relaxed groove to it. Nothing earth-shatteringly unique, but nice. 3 stars.

This was just strange. It's not strictly jazz, not precisely blues, not exactly hip-hop (Wikipedia lists it, so...), and it doesn't look like any experimentalism mixing everything. Being so, it's pretty hard to evaluate it. It's not annoying to listen to it, but it's also not eye-popping. Yeah, I think I got the perfect three stars...

Been a fan ever since I saw Cold Beverage on Rage one nineties night. Had not played this album for quite a while & I must say I’d forgotten how ramshackle the band was. Sometimes they make my old post-punk Sydney faves Lighthouse Keepers, Particles & Cannanes sound professional, which they were not. The drummer sounds like he’s using kitchen utensils. But I really enjoyed revisiting this. I’d forgotten how much I enjoyed the roll-call in Blues Music - more than a dozen legends, from Blind Lemon Jefferson to Jimmy Smith to Woody Guthrie. By the time they played Woodsock 99, the band were a lot tighter. I remember seeing G. love on Rockwiz - he duetted with Megan Washington on The Velvets’ What Goes On. Google it.

I remember Triple J playing 'Blues Music' on regular rotation when it was first released, and I enjoyed it at the time. But I never felt the need to buy a copy, and I haven't given it a second thought since that time. A couple of fun tracks here (Baby's Got Sauce, Cold Beverage, Blues Music), but the "white boys playing bluesy backing tracks with some quasi-rapping" was a bit played out in the 90s: Beck, Fun Lovin' Criminals, Urban Dance Squad, Soul Coughing, and probably a bunch of others. G. Love and Special weren't the first or the best or the most interesting or most successful of any of the purveyors of that thing. The funky and badly recorded blues thing has certainly been done a lot (this feels like a slightly more laid back Hound Dog Taylor to me). I don't mind the lo-fi recording; it really helps give this a bit of sorely needed grit. I feel like the hip hop influence here allows G. love to cover the fact that he is struggling to come up with a good melody. It's just not his thing. And the album is at least 20 minutes too long. If this was 35-40 minutes of the strongest material, I would probably be a bit more positively inclined towards this. I'd happily listen to any of the stand-out tracks on a mixtape or if it came of the radio (especially Cold Beverage, which is the strongest song on the album), but I would much rather listen to a whole album by Beck, Soul Coughing or Urban Dance Squad. 2.5 stars, rounding up.

Kinda fun, kinda sloppy, kinda bluesy bit ultimately not my kinda thing..

These drums and the bass! So great. But G. Love isn't the best songwriter. Lots of the stuff sounds the same and the style gets tiresome. Sure, this is way better than other alternative hip hop that steps into country territory. But it's not good enough. Less would've been more.

pre good

Haven't thought about G. Love in a very long time, probably because I would always just kinda tolerate when "Cool Beverage" come on the radio, but there is some nice, mellow stuff on here that I enjoyed, especially "Baby's Got Sauce" and "Fatman". Actually, I came around on "Cool Beverage" on this listen also. This isn't an album I'm likely to revisit in full (it really loses steam at the end for me), but I did add those tracks to some playlists, so I won't be forgetting about G. Love again in the future.

Huh, not what I was expecting based off the band name, but it wasn’t bad.

It was ok.

5/10. Ehhhhh. I had a cold beverage to drink when they had that song about cold beverages, so that gets it an extra point

This is so college radio. 6/10

Reminds me of the white stripes. Overall pretty good

Sounds like college

Just a dude talking about random stuff, like cold beverage or playing basketball with friends. Don't take the record too seriously and it's fine to listen to in the background.

Kind of reminds me of Beck.

Dig it. hadn't previously heard.

Garden variety hip. Nothing that makes a re-listen worth the time

Oui pas pire, c'était quand mpeme nice mais bon, ca se ressemble quand meme gros du ébut juqu'à la fin. Je sui sun peu essouflé de faire des reviews de ces album,s. Je ne sais plus trop quoi dire. C'est correct mais je n'ai pas été époustoufflé .3

Nothing special. All the tracks were very similar. Felt like it dragged on a bit.

TIL G. Love and Special Sauce did the Milk and Cereal song. Anyway, this is a new one for me. This is definitely something my friends in High School would have listened to, but it's a bit too laid back for me to listen to actively. Feels like something to have in the background when chilling outside on the patio or at a barbecue. The influences are obvious when compared to other similar acts of the 90s, like Sublime and Beck. They're not quite at the same level, but still not bad.

I've never been a big g. Love fan but it was an A-ok listen.

I like the chill vibes but it got boring after a while

Decent, not amazing to me.

Sleazy kind of mellow pop/rock album. I dig it in a way, but the album is too long and too samey to keep me interested. 6 out of 10

meh

Nice sound

It’s a cool experiment, but idk if it’s a hugely successful one, in that it combines rap and blues, but both sides are kind of substandard. This was probably the coolest thing on earth to some teenagers 30 years ago but it’s only a curio to me. C

Fav song: Cold Beverage

Very nostalgic and not as bad as I’d expected!

S'alright. Solid bluesy jam band vibes. Feels a bit like a Beck rip-off but it's alright for all that.

Pas degueu mais un peu quand même

Not a bad sound, but gets tired fast.

Another record I thought I would dislike, but after listening (for the first time), it actually kept my interest and most of it I enjoyed. Kind of a hip-hoppy, bluesy sound that reminded me a bit of Beck and the grooves kept this album listenable...in small doses Definitely not something I would have seek out, but I guess it must be influential or maybe it's something in the special sauce got this on the essential list.

My question is, does he sound like that when he talks normally? Very specific era of music that has a “you know it when you see/hear it” vibe. Lots of nostalgia.

I think this is as bad as it sounds, but also I'm not sure. I liked the instrumentation.

G love- Cool instrumental. Like the sludgey blues grooves. Love the sound of the fat upright, trashy drums, and sloppy guitar. Not a fan of his voice or rapping. So many words but he never really says anything. Some cool dissonances. Also like that all the songs have endings. Surprised to see this album on this list I guess it’s more important/ influential than I thought?

Really like the bands playing on this, kind of a cool sloppy blues feel. The vocals I’m not super crazy about. Enjoyed listening but probably won’t go back

Everything that has been said about this is true and 3/5 is kinda the correct score for something that's groovy but not the most original.

This is some generic 90s cool white guy stuff. “G. Love” is a ridiculous name and comes with it some really low effort lyrics. He may not be doing anything ground breaking but the combination of his laid back lyrics with the mix of the funky and jazzy instrumentals make this an okay album. It’s chill and laid back with just enough funk. 6.0/10

I first heard this in college because I had a friend who happened to be a big G Love fan - that would have been about 15 years after this came out. There are a some gems here, namely "Baby Got Sauce" and "Cold Beverage." Many of the others seem undercooked, very repetitive in terms of structure and themes, which had me thoroughly worn down by the end of the hour. I do admire their laid back style, and G Love obviously has one of those unique voices that you could recognize anywhere. In the end, it's a good band to know about but the album might be better for background mood than front to back listening.

Pretty laid back, competent but kind of empty rock for me. I can see ppl getting into it tho

Album is too long and overstays its welcome. 40 minutes is a good album length. In direct contrast to yesterday's Linkin Park "Hybrid Theory" this is light guitar, roots blues, skiffle, rockabilly drumming and lethargic rapping about generally positive, albeit bland subjects. A rootsy bluesy version of Fun Lovin Criminals? Surprisingly infectious, but still way too long!

Á þriðja lagi var ég alveg komin í gírinn. Góð plata.

Only problem is, it's too long. It's not particularly good at any of the genres it blends, but I like the blend. Favorite song: this ain't living.

Loved it even it first came out.

Gostei da utilização da bateria e a pegada acústica. Bom Blues.

Glove

Sucesión de canciones instrumentalmente muy sencillas, únicamente con una guitarra. Mezcla de cantautor americano joven con algún estilo country y tranquilo. No me ha aportado nada, aunque se escucha bien

Beat Beck to the punch musically by a hare and by a mile skill-wise. Hits just the right amount of slacker against soloist to yield some arrangements that feel startlingly fresh and prescient. Some of the grooves are not my thing (I hate Beck for a reason after all), but this still managed to beat my expectations and provide a great listen

One wants to like this more than one actually does, but it just sounds tired today. The modest ambitions are likable, for instance, as is the organic and overall DIY vibe, and it's just about as cool can be, but really not much else, musically, just kinda pretty good and sub-memorable. Would one say it's watered down even, only quasi cool? Beastie Boys-lite? Yes, one would. Nor is the retroactive comparsion to White Stripes so favorable for this lot (granted WS were aiming higher and for bigger impact). The rapping/singing only sorta works and the playing stays in the same vein, throughout. The coolest thing might be the band's name, and the triumph might be primarily attitudinal; the triumph is legit as far it goes, as the presentation seems credible and authentic, the problem being that attitudinal triumphs go not very far; musically, this is ultimately pretty meh. And as for making it safe for white rappers (not to mention unleashing Jack Johnson onto the world and/or facilitating the likes of Sublime), is that really such a public service?

Rating: 6/10

It's like if Beck and White Stripes we're sewn together. unfortunately, even though it does what it does very well, it gets so dang samey and tired by the end of its bloated track list.

This dude has never appealed to me.

It’s fine. A bit drowsy.

G. Love gets play on radio margaritaville so I already had some familiarity. I enjoy the sound, this more of the same

After a lifetime of hearing them being listed as 4th tier guests at 3rd rate music festivals around metro Detroit, it was nice to finally hear what the special sauce was. It was fine! Kinda rappy bluesy lazy music.

Hard to even pinpoint what genre this is supposed to be mainly, not bad but way too long and too uneventful

I don't know why this album cover and title is so familiar. The music certainly isn't. It's fine.

Average 3/5

En muistaakseni ole tällaisesta bändistä ennen kuullutkaan. Rento meno ja pitää joskus ihan ajan kanssa kuunnella uusiksi kun jono on saatu kurottua kiinni.

Aina hienoa ku taustat on oikeilla instrumenteilla soitettuja. Hauskaa ja rentoa meininkiä

There's definitely style, but it gets a bit repetitive.

Ok so based on the cover and title, here is my grand prediction: this is going to be a PG-rated version of Fun Lovin' Criminals/Everlast. PRETTY MUCH NAILED IT. A bit jazzier, but overall I'm satisfied with my guess there. I imagine this is what happens when you give a poor kid a scholarship to a music school, or when rich a music school kid gets into weed a few years too early. 3/5.

i liked it! v chill although maybe a bit same-y. unsure if this is really an album u need to listen to before u die though?

Started out fairly solid, and never really deviated from solid. Some cool hip-hop sounds to begin and moved a bit more towards blues. Good listen, nothing spectacular to me though.

I'll probably be seeing these dudes in OC later this year. I have no clue what I expected from this. Kinda thought it would be more Jack Johnson-ey? Realized I only said this because he covers a song by them. Digging the first 2 songs though. Blues Musak is solid. Pretty interesting rekkid. Definitely a different type of hip hop and honestly pretty surprised this came out in 94. I think I'll see them. I can see it being Citizen Cope-like.

Best lekker die swampy funk, maar iets teveel van hetzelfde.

dit kon ik boven verwachting goed hebben! 2x gedraaid zelfs. Mooi open geluid.

Ik houd hier wel van. Net geen vier sterren omdat ik het iets teveel van hetzelfde vond.

Enjoyed what they were getting at, but there were a lot of duds. High 3

Disco raro, muy de guitarra acústica y voz rota. Safa.

allez +1 pr la jolie voix

Una mezcla de hip hop con blues, es extraño, no me gustó mucho

vrlo loš znak prije slušanja: nema torenta za ovaj album na rutracker.org, a oni obično imaju fakat sve živo i jako su strastveni oko svega toga. mislim da vrlo često imaju i znatno manje popularne cd-e, tako da ovo nikako ne sluti na dobro... našao na jednoj drugoj stranici, skida se, vidjet ćemo... da, uglavnom je zakurac

I grew up in the Philly area in the 90's so I've had enough of this band to last a lifetime.

I get the feeling that whoever wrote this book is about my age. I remeber these guys from the 90s where they had one hit, but honestly they are pretty irrelevant (and weren't even relevant back then). It has some charme (especially their hit Cold Beverage), but the white boy raps are just too much for me.

Mira, no está mal a nivel músicos pero bro QUE ABURRIIIDOOOOOO

Well, it's OK. Not a lot of variety in this album, and I'm far from clear why this is considered an album I must listen to!

My copy of the book refers to G. Love & Special Sauce as a break away from the stigma revolving around Vanilla Ice when it comes to white hiphop. As a certified quirked up white boy myself, that didn't happen in this album. It's the lamest hiphop I've listened to in my experience with this challenge.

This album should not have been included in this list. "This Ain't Living" is nicely done, but, beyond that one track, there's not here much that's particularly interesting. And "G. Love" sings with an affected blues-rock style, which I find annoying.

I've never really listened to this record before. The early songs draw through line between hip hop and the earlier history of the talking song found in folk, blues, and country music, although later songs sound more conventionally hip hop. I thought of this sound as associated more with Beck's Loser but this came out at about the same time as that song. The backing band is pretty talented and I probably would listen to an instrumental record from them, but I really don't like the vocals and that's enough for me not to return to this album.

Listen, it's fine. It's OK. But I didn't like it and it's too long, but it didn't offend my ears. I wasn't grooving, so I'm gonna give it a 2 instead of a 3.

Probably always best to avoid the special sauce.

i can tell he's trying really hard to sound like bob dylan or lou reed. but it's lowkey not working. this also sounds like lin manuel miranda in hamilton. couldn't bear listening to the whole thing, sorry.

This sounds like the blues version of what RHCP did to funk and what Sublime did to reggae. Maybe if Beck and Black Keys had a baby. Not actually sure why this is on the list.

Not my thing.

i think i saw guy open for jack johnson back in the day and i'm sure i had a good time but this is almost unlistenable

This album sounds like smoking weed out of a lightbulb in high school.

Not a very good special sauce

I missed this the first time around, not sad about it.

Well, that's some shitty college radio rock from the 90s. The music is dull, the singing is bad, the "rapping" is terrible. Somehow, it's not the worst thing I've heard on this list so far. 1.5

Easy folk

can music be punchable?

Ok so I am completely unfamiliar with this but I have seen the cover like a million times. I am already turned off by the name and the cover. G Love and Special Sauce is up in the running for the worst band name of all time. Top 3 at least. And the cover is super contrived and stupid. Something a 13 year old would think makes him look cool. Ok. So I appreciate the laid back sound on this album. But it's just not good. Baby's Got Sauce may now be the worst song I've ever heard. Like, what the hell man? Who thought that was a good one and decide to include it on the record? However, great bass throughout which oddly doesn't sound out of place. I was glad when this was over, 2.25/5

Sounds if the Beastie Boys and RHCP had a child. Its okay and diverse, but would not listen again.

Майже не запамятовується

Not for me

With that name it was either going to be great or terrible. It's not great.

A punishing 57 minutes.

I don't know what this style/genre of music is, but I do not like it. His vocal delivery pissed me off more and more as time went on.

Dinoland U.S.A. was never really 'beloved' at Disney's Animal Kingdom at Walt Disney World. Didn't seem to fit in a Disney theme park - it was more like something you'd find at a regional park, or even a traveling carnival. It didn't matter how many times the Imagineers said 'Do you realize how much time and work and money it took to make it look like this?' Park guests saw it for what it was supposed to represent - a cheap roadside attraction - and expected more, and better, for their own dollars and time. Anyway. This album is the Dinoland U.S.A. of the 1001 albums, and I am a park guest who sees what G. Love and the boys were doing and wants more out of his time.

Have managed to nearly get to 50 without hearing or knowing about this album. Terrible name and pretty terrible album. Probably just scraps a 2 as not quite an ear bleeder. Maybe if I knew more about them I would dislike them more.

Let's get the good out of the way first. Nice sounding drums, though maybe ease up on the constant rim shots. And some interesting guitar parts. Ok, the rest. The uninspired vocals are the same on each track. Hot some low-fi distortion on top, right some middle school rhymes, and then put no effort into announciating anything. It all comes off as trying way too hard. And sadly you can hear how it has gone on to influence so many 90s/2000s acts and not in a good way. I can imagine minding my own business at a party and having a guy named Grant come up and lecture me on good this group is before heading off to request the DJ plays Sublime, but none of that obscure shit they do, only What I Got.

Like Fun Lovin' Criminals, but less fun, more criminal and thus boring.

Surprised myself… not into it. lol I think the lead singers rap-talk delivery is monotonous and unintelligible. After about halfway through I found I’d rather be listening to Sublime’s 40oz to Freedom or a Cake album, or perhaps something from a band that more fully embraces the funk… elements that this album tentatively touches on here and there. A few standout blues inspired tracks earns an extra gold star from me, otherwise, the style and delivery are just too unresolved. Though, I suspect this band is probably a fun watch in person

The Arc of 'must be nice to be a man and making boring music just because you can' goes on and is going to wreck.

2.5

I liked this a lot more when I was a teen.

The music can be quite nice. The vocals are wank.

Not good

Lame

I liked it at first but it started getting repetitive

Sounds a lot like mid-90s Beck. Some decent stuff but not something I'm likely to revisit.

Not my vibe, but I think my boyfriend would maybe like this? Maybe not though

Meh

At first I thought it was a little cool for being different than most other bands on the list. That thought lasted for 3 songs and then the annoying vocals got the best of me. The rest of the album I listened to out of duty. If RHCP were slightly more annoying they would sound like this

The faux blues sound was pretty alright, but this vocalist was just not doing it for me. Not a fan of half rapping/half singing unless you can actually rap or sing.

Quickly wears out any good will it earns.

No Standouts

Uninteressante Musik der 80er einer Gruppe die nicht verstanden hatte, des Jazz nicht mehr gefragt war.

wow...what a collection of 'songs'? Just when I thought I was nearly through the album, I was only halfway. It's not unlistenable but it's not good. I really need to buy the book to see what all these musical professionals were considering when selecting this for my music bucket list.

In the genre of Jason Mrazcore. Listenable but sounds almost like a joke that would get Adrien Brody banned from SNL. You can’t tell me “Shooting Hoops” is not some sort of bit.

Just had Fun Lovin’ Criminals a few days back, now this one. Just another album for white college dudes who are annoying AF. Real hip hop heads ain’t listening to this shit.

All the songs here are incredibly similar. The thing is, the lyrics in general are boring. The vocals are incredibly monotone. The instrumental bases aren’t that entertaining. The only outstanding song here is “This Ain’t Living”, not only thanks to its social commentary but mainly because there’s another guy rapping and singing l, instead of the main singer. Overall this album is incredibly forgettable and monotone.

I don’t get how this is on here. What a bland and boring record.

Laid back 90'er-vibes. Men ikke noget, der hang ved, og nåede ikke hele vejen igennem pladen.

I barely made it through this absolute stinker of an album. A bad version of so many genres. White kid from Society Hill and private school rapping over half assed blues/reggae.

Close to one star but I found some enjoyment in 'Blues Music' after a couple of listens.

like a budget version of Beck.

Meh. Not sure I had to hear this in my life. Too long. Some of these guitar stuff was interesting at least.

It's a nice enough album, but I'm not sure why it's on this list.

I grew up with this album. It's not bad but should not be on this list

I'm familiar with G Love through his collabs with Slightly Stoopid and Jack Johnson and enjoy him there. But..what the hell is this? These are hardly songs, they almost feel like a couple guys just hanging out and jamming/freestyling. Not a lot of structure. The thing is, I actually quite enjoy this style/music. But this feels unfinished. And why in the world is it on this list. Also terribly produced.

Not my sort of thing, too sloppy and mediocre. It feels too tryhard to be sloppy. This Ain't Living Was my fav song and first listen but that's about it

Honestly it wasn’t that bad but it still wasn’t good enough for me to die without hearing it

Blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah blah. The drums are well-recorded.

Não achei nada de especial, faltou alguma coisa e não sei bem o quê. Não foi mau, algumas músicas até achei que tivessem boa vibe mas nada demais.

Lol, this band name/album title. Truthfully, I'm not sure what to make of this album. The vocals were not good, but the rap/blues combination is what intrigued me. G. Love & Special Sauce created a unique sound that's catchy! But as their debut album, their sound is unrefined and could use some development. A good start, for what it's worth.

This funky alt-y hip-hop rock business sounds like an attempt to capture and repackage the magic of bands that did similar sounds, namely Red Hot Chili Peppers and Beck. Ultimately, they fail to capture the spirit of either of these bands and the album just kind of falls flat.

Not entirely devoid of creativity but very boring. All the songs basically sound the same and it gets pretty old pretty quickly. I can't imagine ever wanting to hear this album again but because it's not total crap, I can't give it a 1/5 but a part of me wanted to. It still does. G Love likely has a really great record collection.

Not in albums I have to listen before I DIE, not at all. Nevertheless...

Honestly this album just made me want to listen to Cake

2 why is this even on the list??

An album that would be better if it was 30 minutes shorter

dope

Solid rythm section. Not crazy about the G. Man tho, and the album is about 30 minutes too long.

The only way this could be worse is if G. Love had an English accent. It’s not terrible music, it’s just trashy music. It’s not Mellow Gold by Beck and it’s (mercifully) not Fun Lovin’ Criminals but it is deeply 1994. I’ll give it a 2 based on the fact Cold Beverage is a song I know. This would have made a solid mini-album.

Honestly a bit grating in a very Beck-ish way. The early 90s was a ripe time for this kind of music and I'm glad I was too young to get it. Not horrible, per se, but lame.

not so special sauce hah. it's one of those albums your friend shows you and you listen to a few times, but not memorable

I hate this

first time listening to this. for as much incredible music that was made in the 90s, feels like the bar was pretty low for some of the more popular acts. this one didn't resonate with me and I thought it was kinda boring tbh.

Got on my nerves after a few songs.

It's got that 90s whiteboi fake swagger than bands like Sublime utilized. I'm trying to imagine the type of person that would be big into this, and I can't help but think of my dad. Born in the 70s, went to college in southern California and was a cop.

Dave Matthews plus Phish. Idk what this is

Didn't do much for me. Was this big locally?

Average music played by average musicians for average people. This panders to the average unevolved music listener. Put this on at a party as inoffensive background music. This one should be removed from the list. Probably should sit somewhere around 6,000-10,000.

Not necessarily bad, but pretty boring and too long. 30 minutes would have been okay, but an hour is too much.

This album sounds pretty fricken, glonky dude. The last song on this album was absolute garbo. Sounds like me playing guitar and singing when I’m absolutely black out drunk and incapable of standing. This group’s sound got really old to me real quick. First songs I enjoyed listening to though, pretty chill stuff. Nothing special though idk.

might as well be a 1

Not really bad, but very boring and occasionally annoying. Like a white guy pulled out a guitar and said hey guys, mind if I get a little funky, uh huh huh.

non mi sento di dire che è brutto ma jesus per niente il mio genere che due coglioni