Be Bop or Be Dead | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1993 | |||
Genre | Rap, jazz | |||
Label | Axiom [1] | |||
Producer | Bill Laswell | |||
Umar Bin Hassan chronology | ||||
|
Be Bop or Be Dead is the debut solo album by the American musician and Last Poet Umar Bin Hassan, released in 1993. [2] [3] Hassan had spent many of the preceding years isolated from his group and his music while dealing with drug and personal issues. [4] [5] The album was a commercial disappointment. [6]
The album was produced by Bill Laswell. [7] Laswell reached out to the Last Poets after the group had performed in a scene of Poetic Justice; only Hassan returned to the studio after the first day of recording sessions. [8] Bernie Worrell, Buddy Miles, Aïyb Dieng, Bootsy Collins, Foday Musa Suso, and Abiodun Oyewole were among the musicians who contributed to Be Bop or Be Dead. [9] [10] [11] A total of 15 musicians played on the album. [12]
"This is Madness" and "Niggers Are Scared of Revolution" are remakes of Last Poets songs. [13] "Malcolm" is a biographical song about Malcolm X. [14]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [15] |
Calgary Herald | A [16] |
Chicago Tribune | [17] |
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide | [10] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10 [18] |
USA Today | [19] |
Trouser Press called the album an "acidic, jazz-centric" project, writing that it "is filled with riffs on jazz legends and autobiographical notes on the successes and failures of black nationalism." [9] The Washington Post concluded that "its most moving pieces offer mature reflections on life, love and the deadly seductions of the street." [8] The Washington City Paper panned the Last Poets remakes, but admired "'Personal Things' and 'Bum Rush', [which] recall the more traditional sound sculptures of early Last Poets, with a lone voice riding over a predominant mix of African-based instrumentation—dousongonni, kora, chatan, congas, and berimbau." [13] The Chicago Tribune opined that, "if Hassan has an overriding message, it is for African-Americans to learn to love themselves, while his poems confront the obstacles, both social and psychological, that prevent that from happening." [17] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette declared: "The attitude is punk, but the voice is black and impatient." [20]
Vibe determined that, "outside of the remake of 'Niggers Are Scared of Revolution', the album just doesn't work ... [Hassan] has been in a cultural time warp for the past two decades." [21] Billboard deemed the album "an incomparable treatise by a true pioneer of our modern oral tradition." [22] Newsday stated that the songs "concern the energy of bebop jazz, Malcolm X, pop music, love, honor and 42nd Street ... 'Bum Rush', a didactic yet sympathetic look at the urban dilemma, observes, 'There's always the streets. From shoeshine boys to big time to trick or treat'." [23] The Calgary Herald called Hassan "as powerful as ever," writing that "his anger, his call for revolution, has not diminished over the years." [16] USA Today missed "rap's catchy rhymes and syncopation," noting that Hassan "speaks over driving backbeats or jazzy rhythms." [19]
AllMusic wrote that Laswell "virtually recreated the Last Poets tapestry, except that this time there's an electronic overlay as well as a percussive one ... [Hassan's] voice hasn't been dulled by the years." [15] The Spin Alternative Record Guide labeled Be Bop or Be Dead "a triumphant return to the inspiration and intensity of the Poets' first two albums." [18]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Niggers Are Scared of Revolution" | 5:23 |
2. | "AM" | 7:59 |
3. | "Bum Rush" | 5:29 |
4. | "This Is Madness" | 5:27 |
5. | "Malcolm" | 6:23 |
6. | "Pop" | 4:41 |
7. | "Love" | 6:07 |
8. | "40 Deuce Street" | 3:48 |
9. | "Personal Things" | 4:30 |
10. | "This Is Madness (Metal Mix)" | 5:33 |
Be Bop or Be Dead | ||||
---|---|---|---|---|
Studio album by | ||||
Released | 1993 | |||
Genre | Rap, jazz | |||
Label | Axiom [1] | |||
Producer | Bill Laswell | |||
Umar Bin Hassan chronology | ||||
|
Be Bop or Be Dead is the debut solo album by the American musician and Last Poet Umar Bin Hassan, released in 1993. [2] [3] Hassan had spent many of the preceding years isolated from his group and his music while dealing with drug and personal issues. [4] [5] The album was a commercial disappointment. [6]
The album was produced by Bill Laswell. [7] Laswell reached out to the Last Poets after the group had performed in a scene of Poetic Justice; only Hassan returned to the studio after the first day of recording sessions. [8] Bernie Worrell, Buddy Miles, Aïyb Dieng, Bootsy Collins, Foday Musa Suso, and Abiodun Oyewole were among the musicians who contributed to Be Bop or Be Dead. [9] [10] [11] A total of 15 musicians played on the album. [12]
"This is Madness" and "Niggers Are Scared of Revolution" are remakes of Last Poets songs. [13] "Malcolm" is a biographical song about Malcolm X. [14]
Review scores | |
---|---|
Source | Rating |
AllMusic | [15] |
Calgary Herald | A [16] |
Chicago Tribune | [17] |
MusicHound R&B: The Essential Album Guide | [10] |
Spin Alternative Record Guide | 8/10 [18] |
USA Today | [19] |
Trouser Press called the album an "acidic, jazz-centric" project, writing that it "is filled with riffs on jazz legends and autobiographical notes on the successes and failures of black nationalism." [9] The Washington Post concluded that "its most moving pieces offer mature reflections on life, love and the deadly seductions of the street." [8] The Washington City Paper panned the Last Poets remakes, but admired "'Personal Things' and 'Bum Rush', [which] recall the more traditional sound sculptures of early Last Poets, with a lone voice riding over a predominant mix of African-based instrumentation—dousongonni, kora, chatan, congas, and berimbau." [13] The Chicago Tribune opined that, "if Hassan has an overriding message, it is for African-Americans to learn to love themselves, while his poems confront the obstacles, both social and psychological, that prevent that from happening." [17] The Pittsburgh Post-Gazette declared: "The attitude is punk, but the voice is black and impatient." [20]
Vibe determined that, "outside of the remake of 'Niggers Are Scared of Revolution', the album just doesn't work ... [Hassan] has been in a cultural time warp for the past two decades." [21] Billboard deemed the album "an incomparable treatise by a true pioneer of our modern oral tradition." [22] Newsday stated that the songs "concern the energy of bebop jazz, Malcolm X, pop music, love, honor and 42nd Street ... 'Bum Rush', a didactic yet sympathetic look at the urban dilemma, observes, 'There's always the streets. From shoeshine boys to big time to trick or treat'." [23] The Calgary Herald called Hassan "as powerful as ever," writing that "his anger, his call for revolution, has not diminished over the years." [16] USA Today missed "rap's catchy rhymes and syncopation," noting that Hassan "speaks over driving backbeats or jazzy rhythms." [19]
AllMusic wrote that Laswell "virtually recreated the Last Poets tapestry, except that this time there's an electronic overlay as well as a percussive one ... [Hassan's] voice hasn't been dulled by the years." [15] The Spin Alternative Record Guide labeled Be Bop or Be Dead "a triumphant return to the inspiration and intensity of the Poets' first two albums." [18]
No. | Title | Length |
---|---|---|
1. | "Niggers Are Scared of Revolution" | 5:23 |
2. | "AM" | 7:59 |
3. | "Bum Rush" | 5:29 |
4. | "This Is Madness" | 5:27 |
5. | "Malcolm" | 6:23 |
6. | "Pop" | 4:41 |
7. | "Love" | 6:07 |
8. | "40 Deuce Street" | 3:48 |
9. | "Personal Things" | 4:30 |
10. | "This Is Madness (Metal Mix)" | 5:33 |