The Source September 1996 issue featuring Suge Knight

This was a pretty hefty issue to scan at 3 ½ hours. Looks like The Source was starting to challenge Vibe magazine around this time with a magazine full of ads. And it will only get worse for me (if I continue). Anyway, even though Suge adorns the cover, I didn’t care about his opinion then or now. So I’ll let you read/debate his version of the story behind Dr. Dre’s departure from Death Row. More importantly, this issue was about A Tribe Called Quest, to me. If you didn’t know already, Tribe is my favorite (not greatest) group of all time. By the time Beats, Rhymes and Life was due to come out, I was going out of my mind. For the first time in years, I didn’t have any of their unfinished demos to listen to and I was impatient beyond the norm. How the hell would they top Midnight Marauders and The Low End Theory? I was still dealing with the minor letdown called It Was Written and just couldn’t imagine my favorite group screwing up their chance at musical greatness. Or they could they? Then I heard the rumors that they were not getting along and recording vocals separately, which was unheard of back then. And then the rumors about some new guy (Jay Dee) helping to produce the tracks. But, I rationalized, how could that be when Q-Tip was pure genius producing the previous two albums? Something told me that none of this would bode well and lo and behold when I bought the CD (with the underwhelming 3-D cover)…it killed me after the first few listens and still to this day hasn’t fully grown on me. The mood and energy of their music was sucked almost completely out and was/is the reason why their music had always been great. It’s still awkward, annoying and just plain off somehow. During the recording, Consequence should have been sent out for Chinese food and juice at every possible chance but his annoying a** just wouldn’t go away. For all his gifts, Jay Dee didn’t seem to fit properly into the Tribe dynamic at all. And I still don’t know if Ali Shaheed even contributed much. For a full year, I wished that Q-Tip had holed himself up in the studio and produced that album by himself. If ever I was let down by an artist, it was then and I still haven’t forgiven them for that. Of course, then came The Love Movement… And lest you forget, My “Low End Theory” Theory discussed the pain of that dreaded 4^th album for some of my favorite groups.  Also, don’t forget to see this video of Q-Tip discussing his entire career.

Record Report:

A Tribe Called Quest – Beats, Rhymes and Life (4 mics)

Crucial Conflict – The Final Tic (3.5 mics)

Above The Law – Time Will Reveal (3.5 mics)

Real Live – The Turnaround: A Long Awaited Drama (3 mics)

Xzibit – At the Speed of Life (3 mics)

Ultra – Big Time (3 mics)

Blahzay Blahzay – Blah, Blah, Blah (3 mics)

Source September 1996 issue and fat tape

 

~Vincent~