The Low End Theory

1	Excursions 3:53
2	Buggin' Out 3:38
3	Rap Promoter 2:13
4	Butter 3:39
5	Verses from the Abstract 3:59
6	Show Business 3:53
7	Vibes and Stuff 4:18
8	The Infamous Date Rape 2:54
9	Check the Rhime 3:36
10	Everything Is Fair 2:59
11	Jazz (We've Got) 4:09
12	Skypager 2:13
13	What? 2:29
14	Scenario 4:10

Barnes & Noble

On their debut recording, People's Instinctive Travels on the Paths of Rhythm, A Tribe Called Quest created a magical mystery tour through hip-hop psychedelia. On The Low End Theory, they settle down to probe the inner workings of hip-hop and their role within it. Musically, the album is well known for its innovative merging of jazz bass lines (some supplied by legendary bassist Ron Carter) with hip-hop beats, but the real breakthrough is in the way Q-Tip, Phife Dog, and Ali Shaheed Muhammad work their lyrical flow around this atypical hip-hop rhythm section. Primary rapper Tip tackles complicated issues on "The Infamous Date Rape" and "Excursions," while he and his colleagues play with pointed humor on "Rap Promoter," "Buggin' Out," and "Skypager." The trio cuts loose with some old-school freestylin' on "Scenario," also featuring Leaders of the New School (yes, that's Busta Rhymes and his old pals). Offering introspection, range, and imagination, The Low End Theory is one of the best hip-hop records ever. Martin Johnson

All Music Guide

While most of the players in the jazz-rap movement never quite escaped the pasted-on qualities of their vintage samples, with The Low End Theory, A Tribe Called Quest created one of the closest and most brilliant fusions of jazz atmosphere and hip-hop attitude ever recorded. The rapping by Q-Tip and Phife Dawg could be the smoothest of any rap record ever heard; the pair are so in tune with each other, they sound like flip sides of the same personality, fluidly trading off on rhymes, with the former earning his nickname (the Abstract) and Phife concerning himself with the more concrete issues of being young, gifted, and black. The trio also takes on the rap game with a pair of hard-hitting tracks: "Rap Promoter" and "Show Business," the latter a lyrical soundclash with Q-Tip and Phife plus Brand Nubian's Diamond D, Lord Jamar, and Sadat X. The woman problem gets investigated as well, on two realistic yet sensitive tracks, "Butter" and "The Infamous Date Rape." The productions behind these tracks aren't quite skeletal, but they're certainly not complex. Instead, Tribe weaves little more than a stand-up bass (sampled or, on one track, jazz luminary Ron Carter) and crisp, live-sounding drum programs with a few deftly placed samples or electric keyboards. It's a tribute to their unerring production sense that, with just those few tools, Tribe produced one of the best hip-hop albums in history, a record that sounds better with each listen. The Low End Theory is an unqualified success, the perfect marriage of intelligent, flowing raps to nuanced, groove-centered productions. John Bush