Released May 13, 1991 Length 73:30 Release date 13 May 1991 | Recorded 1990–91 | |
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Studio Calliope Studios (Brooklyn, New York) Similar De La Soul albums, Hip hop music albums | ||
De La Soul Is Dead is De La Soul's second full-length album, which was released on May 13, 1991. The album was produced by Prince Paul, whose work on 3 Feet High and Rising was highly praised by music critics. The album was one of the first to receive a five-mic rating in the Hip hop magazine The Source. The album was also selected as one of The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums in 1998. The album's cover refers to the death of the "D.A.I.S.Y." (Da Inner Sound, Y'all) age, or a distancing from several cultures including hippies and the mainstream hip-hop. It is considered among many as one of the best albums of the 1990s. Rolling Stone ranked the album at #87 on its list, and Pitchfork Media ranked it at #63.
Contents
Overview
De La Soul's first album, 3 Feet High and Rising, is widely regarded in the hip-hop community as a classic, leaving this, the follow-up, something of a poisoned chalice. The album's title is in reaction to the group being labeled hippies following its debut release. The album cover, a broken pot of daisies, signals the end of the D.A.I.S.Y. Age. In an attempt to shake this label off, De La Soul's second album is significantly edgier than its first release. Despite the fact that it clearly did not want to be labeled as hippies, the group also did not want to be labeled hardcore. The album's 13th track, "Afro Connections at a Hi-5 (In the Eyes of the Hoodlum)," is an ironic attack directed at the emerging gangsta movement of the early 1990s.
The album features a series of separate, ongoing skits. The intro to the album features Jeff, a teenaged character who was not played by Chi Ali as often thought, who was introduced in the B-sides to "Eye Know" and "Me Myself and I": "Brain Washed Follower," "The Mack Daddy on the Left," and the rare "Double Huey Skit" (all are featured on the Limited Edition Bonus CD of the 2001 3 Feet High and Rising remaster). In a parody of old children's book-and-record read-along sets, Jeff finds a cassette tape copy of a De La Soul album in the garbage. Bullies appear, beat up Jeff, and steal the tape. Ensuing skits feature these bullies harshly criticizing the songs on the album. Mista Lawnge of Black Sheep provides the voice of the lead antagonist, while P.A. Pasemaster Mase voices the other bully who gets ridiculed and abused by Lawnge for his admiration of the album. Throughout the skits, the sound of the signal that lets the reader know that it's time to turn the page is heard. In the end, they throw the tape back in the trash, exclaiming, "De La Soul is dead." The album also introduces a fictional radio station called WRMS that plays nothing but De La Soul music.
The lyrics are again heavily praised for their intelligence and seamless infusion with almost endless references to pop culture. The album's strength further stems from the production of Prince Paul.
The song "Pass the Plugs" features the lyrics "Arsenio dissed us but the crowd kept clapping." This refers to the group performing on The Arsenio Hall Show, where Arsenio Hall introduced them as "the hippies of hip-hop." The group then performed "Me Myself and I," which explicitly states that they are not hippies. The credits for the show also began to run over the performance before the group was finished, contributing to the perceived lack of respect.
In 2008 the album was re released on vinyl. This version did not contain the CD bonus tracks.
Track listing
All tracks written by P. Huston, K. Mercer, D. Jolicoeur, V. Mason; additional writers credited below.
Samples
The following is a list of songs and sound footage sampled in the songs on De La Soul Is Dead.
Intro
Oodles of O's
Talkin' Bout Hey Love
Pease Porridge
A Roller Skating Jam Named "Saturdays"
WRMS's Dedication to the Bitty
Bitties in the BK Lounge
Skit 2
My Brother's a Basehead
Let, Let Me In
Afro Connections at a Hi 5 (In the Eyes of a Hoodlum)
Rap De Rap Show
Millie Pulled a Pistol on Santa
Who Do U Worship?
Skit 3
Pass the Plugs
Not Over Till the Fat Lady Plays the Demo
Ring Ring Ring (Ha Ha Hey)
WRMS: Cat's in Control
Skit 4
Shwingalokate
Fanatic of the B-Word
Keepin' the Faith
Skit 5
Songs
1Intro2:14
2Oodles of O's3:33
3Talkin' Bout Hey Love2:27