De La Soul's '3 Feet High and Rising' is regarded as one of the classic Hip-Hop rap albums of all-time. Its release took hip-hop in another direction with its relaxed style, and sampled like not other band had sampled before. It sold remarkably well on both sides of the Atlantic, although it is only recently that the band have approached similar heights once again.
When '3 Feet...' was created, Pos, Mace et al were all still teenagers, and each track was based upon a number of samples with (extremely laid-back) rapping layered on top.
In fact, it was the sampling which got De La Soul into trouble. Their track 'Transmitting Live From Mars', sampled a song by 'The Turtles'. This resulted in a successful legal action being mounted, and as a result, a hefty chunk of the album's royalties were taken away from the band and their record company. Bearing in mind the track itself was less than a minute long, it seems a harsh price to pay, especially as the process for clearing samples nowadays is much simpler than it was back then.
A number of singles were released from the album, with 'The Magic Number' being the most successful, achieving Top 10 success in the UK. This was no mean feat in the 1980's for American rap acts. Other successes included 'Say No Go' and 'Me, Myself and I', which came complete with its own comedy high-schoolesque video.
'The Magic Number' is arguably the stand-out track, although each and every one has its own quirky appeal. After all, how many albums can you name with songs dedicated to armpit hygiene ('Little Bit of Soap') and dandruff ('Can U Keep a Secret?)?
De La Sol always played heavily upon their image, and their day-glo style seemed to crop up everywhere subsequently, from Monie Love to early TLC. Although it seems a little dated in parts, '3 feet...' is still an essential purchase, and has wider cross-over appeal than many of its comtemporary rap albums which were around at the same time.
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How does it compare to the artist's other releases
Outstanding
How does it rate alongside the competition
Outstanding
Cover / Inlay Design and Content
Outstanding
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