The Roots

Well , it ain’t a secret that the roots are one of my favorite groups , as our journey continues here’s another album of them that made this period what it is today .

Phrenology (album)

Phrenology is the fifth studio album by American hip hop band The Roots, released November 26, 2002, on Geffen Records and MCA Records. Recording sessions for the album took place during June 2000 to September 2002. It was primarily produced by members of the band and features contributions from hip hop and neo soul artists such as Cody ChesnuTT, Musiq Soulchild, Talib Kweli, and Jill Scott.

Although it did not parallel the commercial success of the band’s previous album, Things Fall Apart, the album reached number 28 on the US Billboard 200 chart and sold steadily, remaining on the chart for 38 weeks.^[2] On June 3, 2003, it was certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of 500,000 copies in the United States.^[3]Upon its release, Phrenology received universal acclaim from music critics, who praised its musical direction and lyrical themes, and it was included in numerous publications’ year-end lists of the year’s best albums.^[4]

Producers :  DJ Scratch, The Grand Wizzards, Kamal Gray, Tahir Jamal, Omar the Scholar, Questlove, Karreem Riggins, Scott Storch, Zoukhan Bey

reference & more information :  https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Phrenology_(album)

Track listing + Album Listening 

• Information is adapted from the album’s liner notes.^[7]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
87.	“Phrentrow” (featuring Ursula Rucker)	Ahmir Thompson, Ursula Rucker, Omar Edwards	Questlove, Omar the Scholar	0:18
88.	“Rock You”	Tariq Trotter, George Spivey	DJ Scratch, The Grand Wizzards (co.)	3:12
89.	“!!!!!!!”	Thompson, Benjamin Kenney, Leonard Hubbard	The Grand Wizzards	0:24
90.	“Sacrifice” (featuring Nelly Furtado)	Trotter, Thompson, James Gray, Hubbard	Kamiah Gray, Kamal Gray (co.)	4:44
91.	“Rolling with Heat” (featuring Talib Kweli)	Trotter, Thompson, Gray, Kyle Jones, Talib Greene, Karl Jenkins	The Grand Wizzards	3:42
92.	“WAOK (Ay) Rollcall” (featuring Ursula Rucker)	Thompson, Gray, Hubbard	The Grand Wizzards	1:00
93.	“Thought @ Work”	Trotter, Thompson, Hubbard, Gray, Kenney	Questlove	4:58
94.	“The Seed (2.0)” (featuring Cody ChesnuTT)	Trotter, Antonious Bernard Thomas	Questlove, Cody ChesnuTT (co.)	4:27
95.	“Break You Off” (featuring Musiq)	Trotter, Thompson, Hubbard, Gray, Jones, Kenney, Jenkins, Taalib Johnson, Jill Scott	Kamal Gray	7:27
96.	“Water”	Trotter, Thompson, Hubbard, Gray, Kenney, Tahir Williams	Tahir Jamal, Kelo Saunders (co.), The Grand Wizzards (co.)	10:24
97.	“Quills”	Trotter, Karriem Riggins	Karreem Riggins, The Grand Wizzards (co.)	4:22
98.	“Pussy Galore”		Scott Storch, Zoukhan Bey	4:29
99.	“Complexity” (featuring Jill Scott)	Trotter, Thompson, Hubbard, Gray, Scott, Edwards	The Grand Wizzards, Questlove (co.), Omar the Scholar (co.)	4:47
100.	“Something in the Way of Things (In Town)” (featuring Amiri Baraka)	Thompson, Kenney, Amiri Baraka	The Grand Wizzards	7:16

Unlisted tracks
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	Untitled			0:20
2.	Untitled			0:20
3.	“Rhymes and Ammo / Thirsty!” (featuring Talib Kweli)	Trotter, Thompson, Greene	The Grand Wizzards	8:00
4.	Untitled			0:07

 • (co) Co-producer

Sample credits and notes

• “Thought @ Work” contains elements from the composition “Apache” by The Sugarhill Gang, “Jam on the Groove” by Ralph McDonald, and “Human Beat Box” by The Fat Boys. According to Questlove, recording artist Alicia Keys“drop[s] in” on the track.^[7]
• “Water” comprises three parts, noted in Questlove’s liner notes as “a. the first movement / b. the abyss / c. the drowning”, and contains elements of “Her Story” by The Flying Lizards.^[7]
• “Quills” contains elements of “Breakout” by Swing Out Sister and features guest vocals from Tracey Moore of the Jazzyfatnastees.^[7]
• “Pussy Galore” contains elements of “Because I Got It Like That” by the Jungle Brothers.^[7]
• Tracks 15, 16 and 18 are silent blank tracks.^[1] Track 17 is divided into two untitled songs, identified as “Rhymes and Ammo”, originally from Soundbombing III (2002),^[31] and “Thirsty!”.^[32]

 

Common

Common is one of my favorite MC’s , a true lyricist and veteran , here’s another album of his from that time .

Electric Circus (album)

Electric Circus is the fifth studio album by Common, released December 10, 2002 on the now-defunct MCA Records. The album was highly anticipated and praised by many critics for its ambitious vision. However, it was not as commercially successful as his previous album, Like Water for Chocolate, selling under 300,000 copies. An eclectic album, Electric Circus featured fusions of several genres such as hip hop, pop, rock, electronic, and neo soul. “I wasn’t feeling hip hop,” the rapper remarked. “So my motivation for that album were other genres of music, like Pink Floyd and Jimi Hendrix. It wasn’t hip hop.”^[1] This was Common’s second and last album for MCA, and the label’s final release prior to its absorption into Geffen Records.

Producers:	Questlove (also exec.) Common (exec.) Derek Dudley (exec.) James Poyser (also assoc.) J Dilla(also assoc.) Pino Palladino The Neptunes Karriem Riggins Jeff Lee Johnson

Track listing + Album Listening

http://www.deezer.com/us/album/9149183

Writing credits by Allmusic.com.^[25]

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	“Ferris Wheel” (featuring Vinia Mojica and Marie Daulne)	Lonnie Lynn Ahmir Thompson James Poyser Vinia Mojica Marie Daulne	?uestlove Poyser	2:48
2.	“Soul Power”	Lynn James Yancey Thompson Poyser	J Dilla ?uestlove[a] Poyser[a]	4:38
3.	“Aquarius” (featuring Bilal)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Yancey Pino Palladino Erykah Badu	?uestlove Poyser J Dilla Palladino	4:54
4.	“Electric Wire Hustler Flower” (featuring Sonny Sandoval)	Lynn Poyser Yancey	Poyser J Dilla	5:54
5.	“The Hustle” (featuring Omar and Dart Chillz)	Lynn Karriem Riggins Omar Lye-Fook Dartanian Donaldson	Riggins	4:20
6.	“Come Close” (featuring Mary J. Blige)	Lynn Pharrell Williams Chad Hugo	The Neptunes	4:35
7.	“New Wave” (featuring Lætitia Sadier)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Yancey Lætitia Sadier	?uestlove Poyser J Dilla	5:08
8.	“Star 69 (PS With Love)” (featuring Bilal & Prince)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Yancey	?uestlove Poyser J Dilla	5:30
9.	“I Got a Right Ta” (featuring Pharrell)	Lynn Williams Hugo	The Neptunes	4:54
10.	“Between Me, You and Liberation” (featuring Cee Lo Green)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Yancey Palladino Thomas Callaway	?uestlove Poyser J Dilla Palladino	6:23
11.	“I Am Music” (featuring Jill Scott)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Yancey Palladino Jeff Lee Johnson Jill Scott	?uestlove Poyser J Dilla Palladino Johnson	5:21
12.	“Jimi Was a Rock Star” (featuring Erykah Badu)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Yancey Palladino Johnson Badu	?uestlove Poyser J Dilla Palladino Johnson	8:32
13.	“Heaven Somewhere” (featuring Omar, Cee Lo Green, Bilal, Jill Scott, Mary J. Blige, Erykah Badu and Lonnie “Pops” Lynn)	Lynn Thompson Poyser Palladino Lye-Fook Bilal Oliver Scott Mary J. Blige Badu	?uestlove Poyser Palladino	10:24