Brand Nubian - Everything Is Everything 2xLP

Elektra (1994) 

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for twenty-five plus years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

I have a complicated relationship with Everything is Everything.  I've never been one of those who thought the group was useless after Grand Puba left, but it's impossible to overstate how large he loomed over their first album.  The other thing is that Everything Is Everything is home of what is probably my favorite Brand Nubian song, "Word is Bond."  Ever since I saw the video for the first time in 1994 the rhyme "I push the Cadillac DeVille and still we real / I drive a garbage truck / and not give a" really hit me as being particularly clever.  Not just because they don't actually say "fuck" but still make you say it to yourself in your head, but I also dig the imagery of Brand Nubian driving around in a garbage truck.

The problem is that after "Word Is Bond," which is the first track on the album, the rest of Everything Is Everything just pales in comparison.  In general the rest of the production is too slow with far too much reliance on sappy R&B style beats.  Lyrically, Lord Jamar and Sadat X still have the goods, but it's a real chore to get through 2 LPs of, frankly, boring beats.

Still, "Word Is Bond" is so good that I did need to get this LP in the collection.  Combine with the groups first two albums, and that's really all I need from the Brand Nubian discography (Plus the first Grand Puba solo record).  While Puba eventually rejoined the group and they released some other records over the years, nothing ever really piqued my interest.  Like so much of the hip hop I love, 1994 seemed to be the last year that Brand Nubian was able to produce anything that really caught my ear.

Brand Nubian - Everything Is Everything (YouTube Music full album playlist):

https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mY5n0qgYBLejQaUqxGT-czuI9M2jCMLaQ

Brand Nubian - In God We Trust 2xLP

Traffic/Elektra (2004, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop. In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life. During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music. As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for 25+ years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

In God We Trust was the second Brand Nubian record and their first after the departure of Grand Puba.  Despite losing their best lyricist, Brand Nubian was able to to pump out two pretty strong records during a very competitive and innovative era of hip hop.  It speaks volumes about the talent of Lord Jamar and Sadat X.  They really stepped up to the plate when the spotlight was shone directly on them.

The main single from this album was "Punks Jump Up To Get Beat Down" and it was a staple on Yo MTV Raps in '92 and had some different verbiage in the final verse than the album version has.  Putting aside some ill advised slurs, it is a song with a solid beat and strong vocal interplay between the two MCs.  It's the song that made me buy the album in the first place and I still have nostalgic feelings towards it despite some problematic verbiage that hasn't aged well.

The rest of the album is strong when it's upbeat.  Even though this is the shortest of their first three albums, it still feels like it goes a little too long and probably could have benefited from a slightly shorter track list.  I know I would be fine with cutting a few of the interludes.  After All For One, this is the second strongest Brand Nubian release as a whole album.  Even though my favorite Brand Nubian song is from their third album, that's the one where things started to move in directions I wasn't into as much.

Brand Nubian - In God We Trust (Full album playlist):
https://music.youtube.com/playlist?list=OLAK5uy_mHxiMw84c5_RvutybQj_dc2An-uVlhHlM

Brand Nubian - One For All 2xLP

Traffic/Elektra (2004, Reissue)

Every Wednesday, in honor of Ed Lover Dance Day from Yo MTV Raps, I take a break from rock and roll to write a little bit about hip hop.  In the late 80s and early 90s hip hop ruled my musical life.  During this often called 'Golden Era' I discovered so much incredible music.  As I am slowly replacing the CDs I've had for 25+ years with vinyl copies, I'm going to talk about some albums that had a really important impact on me during some very formative years.

I don't exactly remember when or where I heard of Brand Nubian for the first time.  Like so many other artists of the era, I can't fathom it not being from Yo MTV Raps, though it's possible that the legend of the five mic review in The Source was one of the first times I was made aware of them.  I distinctly remember being drawn to singles from each of the groups albums that were released between '90 and '94, but I'm not sure which one I heard first.  I figure it was probably the title track from the first Brand Nubian record One For All, but there is a chance that I originally picked up this CD after the group's second album In God We Trust.

All these years later, I can say with certainty that One For All is my favorite Brand Nubian release.  Although Lord Jamar and Sadat X held down the fort admirably on their next two records, the group was never as potent as they were when Grand Puba was part of the act.  His laid back, nasally flow is a perfect mix with the funk and R&B fueled beats.  However he was never better than when he was able to play off of Jamar and Sadat.  The three MCs together have a chemistry that is undeniable.

Considering that this record came out in 1990, the production feels ahead of its time.  This is one of those albums that really changed the game when it came out and it holds up unbelievably well all of these years later.  The next two Brand Nubian records were really strong and I love Grand Puba's debut solo album, but when everyone was still together on One For All, that's when the magic really happened.

Brand Nubian - "One For All":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=u6n7ZXxGbio

Brand Nubian - "Concerto In X Minor":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nBM2C97Mdhg

Brand Nubian - "Drop The Bomb":
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dKVWWwZ0eyU