A Tribe Called Quest By Mark Ronson's Playlist
Mark Ronson
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- Mark Ronson
A Tribe Called Quest are the greatest hip-hop group of all time. They were the first to be embraced by thugs, girls, nerds, jazz dudes, mothers, politicians and the all-important "alternative" hip-hop audience, which later became labelled "the backpackers" (today, the bread and butter audience of everyone from MF Doom to Kanye). All that aside, musically and lyrically, they stand alone. They were the Radiohead of '90s hip-hop, every album they changed their sonic drastically yet never losing the things that you loved about them – the grumpy rasp of Phife's voice, the way Q-Tip sleepily weaved his poetry in and out of those sharp-as-nails snare drum hits, Ali's wide-as-a-house zigga-zigga's. They influenced me and they influenced countless others of your favourite artists from Outkast to the Roots. Here are just 11 of my favourite Tribe records (if you can, you should buy them all though. Honestly). - Mark Ronson
- 1. "Hot Sex" by A Tribe Called Quest: "The first 12" single I ever bought, the day after I got my turntables."
- 2. "Check the Rhime" by A Tribe Called Quest: "Played it more times in DJ sets than I care to remember."
- 3. "Steve Biko (Stir It Up)" by A Tribe Called Quest: "The first track off of their third album, Midnight Marauders which completely changed the sonic of east coast hip-hop overnight. Basically everyone had been sampling and looping two or four bar drum patterns up until that point. Tribe changed the game, rhythmically and sonically, by chopping up their own kits and programming their own individual beats. Then, everyone followed suit."
- 4. "Midnight" by A Tribe Called Quest: "Q-Tip just did a remix of this for 2008, the original is amazing though."
- 5. "Vibes and Stuff" by A Tribe Called Quest: "The sample is from Grant Green's 'Down Here On the Ground', a beautiful piece which you can also get from iTunes."
- 6. "Rock Rock Y'all (feat. Punchline, Wordsworth, Jane Doe & Mos Def)" by A Tribe Called Quest: "Tribe were also respected for introducing the mainstream to hip-hop's best up-and comers from Busta Rhymes to Consequence. This track features a young Mos Def."
- 7. "Lyrics to Go" by A Tribe Called Quest: "Q-Tip always professed an equal love for 'Prince and Stevie/Marvin Gaye, Led Zeppelin and Biggie', so the samples they used were from all across the board. This one combines a Minnie Ripperton passage with some '60s psych-rock guitars."
- 8. "Scenario" by A Tribe Called Quest: "To be honest, I've played it at so many clubs, weddings, radio shows, office parties, that if I never had to hear it again, it would still be playing in my head for the rest of my life. Nevertheless, it is an utter classic. Probably one of the top ten hip-hop dance floor tunes of all time."
- 9. "I Left My Wallet In El Segundo" by A Tribe Called Quest: "First single off the first album. I once had the honour of DJ-ing Tip's birthday party. When I dug into the crates to play some of the very early stuff (such as this one), he came over and politely asked me to change the music."
- 10. "Oh My God" by A Tribe Called Quest: "One on the ever-increasing growing roster of songs by this same name. This was before the Kaisers or me and Lily's cover of the Kaisers. It actually has nothing to do with either. Except when Busta Rhymes did his rap on the remix of me and Lily's version (also available on iTunes), I asked him to revisit his 'oh my god, yes, oh my god' rap from the hook of this one."
- 11. "Find a Way" by A Tribe Called Quest: "Tribe were one of the few rap groups who were able to make beautiful melancholy soundscapes, yet the beats were so heavy, they never lost the head-nod factor. This is a lovely record off of their final album, The Love Movement."
£10.89 Mark Ronson
Name Artist Time Price 1 Hot Sex A Tribe Called Quest 2:45 £0.99 View In iTunes 2 Check the Rhime A Tribe Called Quest 3:36 £0.99 View In iTunes 3 Steve Biko (Stir It Up) A Tribe Called Quest 3:11 £0.99 View In iTunes 4 Midnight A Tribe Called Quest 4:25 £0.99 View In iTunes 5 Vibes and Stuff A Tribe Called Quest 4:17 £0.99 View In iTunes 6 Rock Rock Y'all (feat. Punchline, Wordsworth, Jane Doe & Mos Def) A Tribe Called Quest 4:17 £0.99 View In iTunes 7 Lyrics to Go A Tribe Called Quest 4:09 £0.99 View In iTunes 8 Scenario A Tribe Called Quest 4:10 £0.99 View In iTunes 9 I Left My Wallet In El Segundo A Tribe Called Quest 4:06 £0.99 View In iTunes 10 Oh My God A Tribe Called Quest 3:28 £0.99 View In iTunes 11 Find a Way A Tribe Called Quest 3:23 £0.99 View In iTunes Total: 11 Songs
