People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Albums:
Top
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
- Artist: A Tribe Called Quest
- Rating:
- Release Date: April 17, 1990
- Total Time: 64:17
- Genre: Rap
Review
One year after De la Soul re-drew the map for alternative rap, fellow Native Tongues brothers A Tribe Called Quest released their debut, the quiet beginning of a revolution in non-commercial hip-hop. People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm floated a few familiar hooks, but it wasn't a sampladelic record. Rappers Q-Tip and Phife Dawg dropped a few clunky rhymes, but their lyrics were packed with ideas, while their flow and interplay were among the most original in hip-hop. From the beginning, Tribe focused on intelligent message tracks but rarely sounded over-serious about them. With "Pubic Enemy," they put a humorous spin on the touchy subject of venereal disease (including a special award for the most inventive use of the classic "scratchin'" sample), and moved right into a love rap, "Bonita Applebum," which alternated a sitar sample with the type of jazzy keys often heard on later Tribe tracks. "Description of a Fool" took to task those with violent tendencies, while "Youthful Expression" spoke wisely of the power yet growing responsibility of teenagers. Next to important message tracks with great productions, A Tribe Called Quest could also be deliciously playful (or frustratingly unserious, depending on your opinion). "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" describes a vacation gone hilariously wrong, while "Ham 'n' Eggs" may be the oddest topic for a rap track ever heard up to that point ("I don't eat no ham and eggs, cuz they're high in cholesterol"). Contrary to the message in the track titles, the opener "Push It Along" and "Rhythm (Dedicated to the Art of Moving Butts)" were fusions of atmospheric samples with tough beats, special attention being paid to a pair of later Tribe sample favorites, jazz guitar and '70s fusion synth. Restless and ceaselessly imaginative, Tribe perhaps experimented too much on their debut, but they succeeded at much of it, certainly enough to show much promise as a new decade dawned. ~ John Bush, Rovi| People's History of the United States (1999 Album by Howard Zinn) | |
| People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm [Japan Bonus Tracks] (1990 Album by A Tribe Called Quest) |
Related Videos:
Top
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
Wikipedia on Answers.com:
Top
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm
| People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 |
||||
| Studio album by A Tribe Called Quest | ||||
| Released | April 17, 1990 | |||
| Recorded | 1989-1990; Calliope Studios Battery Studios Dumb D.J. Towha's DewDrop Inn (New York, New York) |
|||
| Genre | Alternative hip hop Golden age hip hop Jazz rap |
|||
| Length | 64:15 | |||
| Label | Jive/RCA Records 1331-J |
|||
| Producer | A Tribe Called Quest | |||
| A Tribe Called Quest chronology | ||||
|
||||
| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Robert Christgau | B+[2] |
| Entertainment Weekly | A−[3] |
| RapReviews | (10/10)[4] |
| Rolling Stone |  1990[5] |
| Rolling Stone | 2004[6] |
| The Source | [7] |
| Stylus | (favorable)[8] |
| Trouser Press | (favorable)[9] |
| Yahoo! Music | (favorable)[10] |
People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm is the debut album by the alternative hip hop group A Tribe Called Quest, released April 17, 1990 (see 1990 in music) on Jive Records. Though the album was well-received critically, it had little mainstream appeal. The album did earn the band a devoted following, however, within the alternative hip hop community. People's Instinctive Travels was praised for its lyrical inventiveness and bizarre sense of humor, mixed with socially aware and literate message tracks. The record was given the perfect rating of 5 mics in The Source in 1990.[11] It is one of three A Tribe Called Quest albums included in The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums.[12] It also was certified gold by the RIAA on January 17, 1996.
Critical reviews were generally positive, but many felt that the group's effort was immature and unfocused. John Bush of allmusic writes "Tribe perhaps experimented too much on their debut, but they succeeded at much of it, certainly enough to show much promise as a new decade dawned".
|
Contents
|
Track listing
| # | Title | Time | Performers | Samples[13] |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Push It Along" | 7:42 |
|
|
| 2 | "Luck of Lucien" | 4:32 |
|
|
| 3 | "After Hours" | 4:39 |
|
|
| 4 | "Footprints" | 4:00 |
|
|
| 5 | "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" | 4:06 |
|
|
| 6 | "Pubic Enemy" | 3:45 |
|
|
| 7 | "Bonita Applebum" | 3:50 |
|
|
| 8 | "Can I Kick It?" | 4:11 |
|
|
| 9 | "Youthful Expression" | 4:52 |
|
|
| 10 | "Rhythm (Devoted to the Art of Moving Butts)" | 4:01 |
|
|
| 11 | "Mr. Muhammad" | 3:33 |
|
|
| 12 | "Ham 'n' Eggs" | 5:27 |
|
|
| 13 | "Go Ahead in the Rain" | 3:54 |
|
|
| 14 | "Description of a Fool" | 5:41 |
|
|
Timing misprints in liner notes
- "Bonita Applebum" – 3:50 (Notes mistakenly claim 4:11)
- "Can I Kick It?" – 4:11 (Notes mistakenly claim 4:52)
- "Youthful Expression" – 4:52 (Notes mistakenly claim 4:01)
- "Rhythm (Devoted to the Art of Moving Butts)" – 4:01 (Notes mistakenly claim 3:33)
- "Mr. Muhammad" – 3:33 (Notes mistakenly claim 5:27)
- "Ham 'n' Eggs" – 5:27 (Notes mistakenly claim 3:54)
Accolades
The information is taken from AcclaimedMusic.net[14] and other website links below.
| Publication | Country | Accolade | Year | Rank | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| ego trip | USA | Hip Hop's 25 Greatest Albums by Year 1980-98 | 1999 | #9 | ||
| Les Inrockuptibles | France | 50 Years of Rock'n'Roll | 2004 | * | ||
| Les Inrockuptibles | France | The 100 Best Albums 1986-1996 | 1996 | #60 | ||
| Mixmag | UK | The 100 Best Dance Albums of All Time | 1996 | #36 | ||
| Mucchio Selvaggio | Italy | 100 Best Albums by Decade | 2002 | #21-50 | ||
| Pop | Sweden | The World's 100 Best Albums + 300 Complements | 1994 | #101 | ||
| Record Collector | UK | 10 Classic Albums from 21 Genres for the 21st Century | 2000 | * | ||
| Robert Dimery | USA | 1001 Albums You Must Hear Before You Die | 2005 | * | ||
| Technikart | France | 50 Albums from the Last 10 Years | 1997 | * | ||
| The Source | USA | 100 Best Rap Albums of All Time | 1998 | * | ||
| Zundfunk | Germany | The Best Albums of the 90s | 2000 | #24 | ||
| (*) designates lists that are unordered. | ||||||
Album singles
| Single information |
|---|
"Bonita Applebum"
|
"Can I Kick It?"
|
"I Left My Wallet in El Segundo"
|
Album chart positions
| Year | Album | Chart positions | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Billboard 200 | Top R&B/Hip Hop Albums | ||
| 1990 | People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm | 91 | 23 |
Singles chart positions
| Year | Song | Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks | Hot Rap Singles | Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1990 | "Bonita Applebum" | 56 | 4 | - |
| "I Left My Wallet in El Segundo" | 9 | - | 49 | |
| 1991 | "Can I Kick It?" | 8 | - | - |
Personnel
- A Tribe Called Quest - Producer, Mixing
- Tim Latham - Engineer
- Ali Shaheed Muhammad - DJ
- Bob Power - Engineer
- Q-Tip - Vocals
- Anthony Saunders - Engineer
- Dr. Shane Faber - Engineer
- Jarobi White - Performer
- Phife Dawg - Vocals
- Ari Marcopoulos - Photography
- Lucien - Background Vocals
References
- ^ Allmusic review
- ^ Robert Christgau review
- ^ Entertainment Weekly review
- ^ RapReviews review
- ^ [1]
- ^ Rolling Stone review
- ^ The Source review
- ^ Stylus review
- ^ Trouser Press review
- ^ Yahoo! Music review
- ^ Matty C (May 1990) Original Album Review. The Source.
- ^ ~~~~ www.rocklist.net ~~~~
- ^ www.the-breaks.com, AKA The (Rap) Sample FAQ
- ^ "People's Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm at AcclaimedMusic.net". http://www.acclaimedmusic.net/061024/A792.htm. Retrieved December 23, 2006.
External links
|
||||||||||||||||||||
This entry is from Wikipedia, the leading user-contributed encyclopedia. It may not have been reviewed by professional editors (see full disclaimer)
Post a question - any question - to the WikiAnswers community:
Copyrights:
AMG AllMusic Guide: Pop Albums
Copyright © 2012 All Media Guide, LLC. Content provided by All Music Guide ®, a trademark of All Media Guide, LLC. All rights reserved.
Read more
Mentioned in
Cliff Samaniego
(Pop Artist)
Classics
(1996 Album by Tribe Called Quest)
Starting from Zero
(1990 Album by Groove B. Chill)
Q-Tip
(Rap Artist, '80s-2000s)
Michael DiBella
(Holiday Artist)
» More