Be

1	Be (Intro) 2:24
2	The Corner 3:45
3	Go! 3:44
4	Faithful 3:33
5	Testify 2:36
6	Love Is... 4:10
7	Chi-City 3:27
8	The Food Live 3:36
9	Real People 2:48
10	They Say / John Legend 3:57
11	It's Your World, Pts. 1-2 / Kids 8:33

Barnes & Noble

"Classic" may be an overused word, but in the case of Common's sixth studio album, Be, it's a fitting descriptor. Helmed by hip-hop's top producer of the moment, Kanye West, the disc features some of Common's best work in years. Gone are the experimental rhythms and jarring riffs of 2002's Electric Circus. Here, the Chicago native goes back to basics with boomin' bass lines and thumpin' drums courtesy of West and Detroit producer J. Dilla. These sonic gems inspire Common to pen poetically honest lyrics about life and love. On "Faithful," featuring crooners John Legend and Bilal, Common illuminates a man's struggle to resist temptation, and on the melodic "Love Is," he explores various definitions of the "L" word. Be isn't limited to matters of the heart, however, as grittier tracks like "Chi City" and "The Food" prove that the veteran mic wrecker can still hold his own in any rap battle. Common also shows he hasn't lost the knack for storytelling he showcased on earlier albums such as Resurrection -- most compellingly on the conceptual "Testify," which vividly retells the tale of a woman watching her lover go down for a crime he didn't commit. With no skits and limited guest appearances, this is a stellar disc that allows this eclectic MC to outshine his peers and to just Be. An instant classic. Anslem Samuel

All Music Guide

Electric Circus cost and won Common some fans. It was very exploratory, especially so for a rap album released in 2002, containing developments -- some of which soared, some of which sank -- that few longtime followers could have foreseen. Listeners either felt Common was picking up fresh, new inspirations, or that he was just being distracted by a whole lot of ill-fitting nonsense. With Be, it seems the MC has realized that not every album that's sprawling and eclectic is as good as Electric Ladyland or Songs in the Key of Life. More notably, he might've been struck with the fact that a high percentage of excellent albums are around 40 minutes in length and are built on a unified sound. Be is highly concentrated, containing 11 songs and involving two producers and a small number of guests. It's a 180 degree turn from Electric Circus, and in a bizarre way it's both a progression and a back-to-basics move. Kanye West and Dilla are key to the album's steadiness, rooting the sound in '70s soul and soul-jazz. That's no shakeup, but the two producers deserve some form of award for stringing together a consistent sequence of productions that is never monotonous, dull, or all that flashy. Even lead single "The Corner," heard well before Be's release, falls into the fabric of the album on first listen, as if that were where it belonged all along. Lyrically, Common comes back down to Earth -- the narratives are sharp as ever, the gripes are more like observations than screeds, and the eccentricities need to be teased out rather than swatted away. Be isn't likely to be referred to by anyone as groundbreaking, but it's one of Common's best, and it's also one of the most tightly constructed albums of any form within recent memory. Andy Kellman

Rolling Stone

His sixth and best disc.... West is the producer Common has been waiting for all of his career: He makes Common both catchier and edgier at the same time. Nathan Brackett