The Main Ingredient (Pete Rock & CL Smooth album)

The Main Ingredient
Studio album by Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Released November 8, 1994
Recorded 1993–1994
Genre Golden age hip hop, jazz rap
Length 76:13
Label Elektra
61661
Producer Pete Rock & CL Smooth
Pete Rock & CL Smooth chronology
Mecca and the Soul Brother
(1992)		 The Main Ingredient
(1994)
Singles from The Main Ingredient
  1. "I Got a Love"
    Released: 1994
  2. "Take You There"
    Released: 1994
  3. "Searching"
    Released: 1995

The Main Ingredient is the second album by Pete Rock & CL Smooth, Released on November 8, 1994. It would become their last album together.

Music

Characterized by sultry soul and jazz samples, The Main Ingredient saw a more polished sound than the duo’s debut, building on the praise that they had already garnered. The album is notable for its snappy, crispy drums and extensive use of vocal scratches. Although missing a centerpiece on the scale of "They Reminisce Over You (T.R.O.Y.)", the album contains some of the duo's best known work, in the form of tracks such as the upbeat "In The House", and the catchy "Sun Won't Come Out", which features a lush vocal sample from the song of the same name by Harvey Scales.

Continuing a theme initiated by Mecca and the Soul Brother, brief instrumental interludes are placed at the beginning and end of songs. With the exception of just a few tracks, this feature is recurrent throughout the album. In addition, The Main Ingredient saw Rock fleshing out and defining his trademark production style, which is now recognized for often containing smooth basslines, swirling horns, filtered samples, and spacious grooves. The production on this album proved to be influential upon a legion of latter day producers.

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
Allmusic[1]
Q Magazine[2]
RapReviews(9/10)[3]
Rolling Stone[4]
The Source[5]
Tiny Mix Tapes[6]

Though overlooked at the time of its release, the album has since been re-evaluated with high critical acclaim. Allmusic's Stanton Swihart called it "an album that is far more focused" and "just as good as the first record, perhaps an even more satisfying single listen." Swihart described Rock's production work as "among some of the most seductive in hip-hop", and CL as "lyrically on point, spitting out intellectual rhymes and narratives that are just as propulsive and engaging as the music."

"I Got A Love" was the album's lead off single, followed by "Take You There" and "Searching", released in 1995. That same year, the duo appeared in a well received Sprite commercial; however, they soon announced their breaking up citing creative differences, although both parties have since admitted that an unstable working relationship was the main cause of their split. The album was a favorite of the late producer J Dilla, who played it while meeting with Pete Rock to record Slum Village's "Once Upon A Time" for the album, Fantastic, Vol. 2 in 1998.

Track listing

# Title Performer(s) Time
1 "In The House" 5:27
2 "Carmel City"
  • C.L. Smooth
 3:52
3 "I Get Physical"
  • C.L. Smooth
 4:54
4 "Sun Won't Come Out"
  • Verses: C.L. Smooth
  • Chorus: Pete Rock
 4:24
5 "I Got A Love"
  • C.L. Smooth
 5:04
6 "Escape"
  • Pete Rock
 5:14
7 "The Main Ingredient"
  • Intro: Pete Rock
  • Verses: C.L. Smooth
  • Chorus: Pete Rock
 5:17
8 "Worldwide"
  • First verse: Rob-O
  • Second verse: Pete Rock
  • Third verse: Rob-O
  • Fourth verse: Pete Rock
 3:02
9 "All The Places"
  • C.L. Smooth
 5:39
10 "Tell Me"
  • C.L. Smooth
 4:17
11 "Take You There" 4:47
12 "Searching" 4:45
13 "Check It Out"
  • C.L. Smooth
 3:57
14 "In The Flesh"
  • Intro: Deda and Pete Rock
  • First verse: C.L. Smooth
  • Second verse: Rob-O
  • Third verse: Deda
  • Fourth verse: Pete Rock
 5:48
15 "It's On You"
  • Verses: C.L. Smooth
  • Chorus: Pete Rock
  • Outro: Pete Rock and Grap Luva
 5:21
16 "Get On The Mic"
  • Verses: C.L. Smooth
  • Chorus: Pete Rock
 3:50

Samples used

Source: Rap Sample FAQ[7]

In The House

Carmel City

I Get Physical

Sun Won't Come Out

I Got A Love

  • "Ain't Got The Love (Of One Girl on My Mind)" by The Ambassadors (from the 1969 album "Soul Summit")
  • "Groovy Situation" by Mel & Tim (from the 1969 album "Good Guys Only Win in the Movies")
  • "Cool V's Tribute to Scratching" by Biz Markie (from the 1988 album "Goin' Off")
  • "Just Rhymin' with Biz" by Big Daddy Kane

Escape

The Main Ingredient

  • "The Harlem Buck Dance Strut" by Les McCann (from the 1973 album "Layers")
  • "North Beach" by George Duke (from the 1974 album "Faces in Reflection")
  • "Psychedelic Shack" by Albino Gorilla (from the 1970 album "Detroit 1984")
  • "Submission" by Tyrone Washington (from the 1973 album "Roots")
  • "Just Rhymin' with Biz" by Big Daddy Kane
  • "Sound of the Police" by KRS-One (from the 1993 album "Return of the Boom Bap")

Worldwide

  • "Do the Funky Penguin" by Rufus Thomas (from the 1973 album "The Crown Prince of Dance")
  • "Check The Rhime" by A Tribe Called Quest (from the 1991 album "The Low End Theory")

All The Places

Tell Me

  • "Keep Dreamin'" by Stan Getz (from the 1977 album "Another World")
  • "You're Getting A Little Too Smart" by The Detroit Emeralds (from the 1973 album Detroit Emeralds)
  • "Don't Tell It" by James Brown (from the 1976 album "Bodyheat")
  • "Just Rhymin' with Biz" by Big Daddy Kane
  • "Louder Than a Bomb" by Public Enemy (from the 1988 album "It Takes a Nation of Millions To Hold Us Back")
  • "On the Hill" by Oliver Sain (from the 1972 album "The Main Man") (outro)

Take You There

Searching

  • "Searching" by Roy Ayers Ubiquity (from the 1976 album "Vibrations")
  • "I Got Soul" by Bama - The Village Poet (from the 1972 album "Ghettos of the Mind") (outro)

Check It Out

In The Flesh

It's On You

  • "Outside Love" by Brethren (from the 1970 album "Brethren")
  • "The Awakening" by Ahmad Jamal (from the 1970 album "The Awakening")
  • "Never My Love" by Tom Scott (from the 1968 album "The Honeysuckle Breeze")
  • "Strictly Business" by EPMD (from the 1988 album "Strictly Business")
  • "Poinciana" by Ahmad Jamal (from the 1971 album "Freeflight")

Get On The Mic

  • "Soul Girl" by Jeanne & the Darlings (1968)
  • "Just Rhymin' with Biz" by Big Daddy Kane
  • "You're My Everything" by Ahmad Jamal (from the 1970 album "The Awakening") (outro)

Album singles

Single information
"I Got a Love"
  • Released: 1994
  • B-side: "The Main Ingredient"
"Take You There"
  • Released: 1994
  • B-side: "Get On The Mic"
"Searching"
  • Released: 1995
  • B-side: "We Specialize"

Chart history

Album

Chart (1994) Peak
position
scope="row" US Billboard 200[8] 51
scope="row" US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[9] 9

Singles

Year Song Chart positions
Billboard Hot 100 Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Singles & Tracks Hot Rap Singles Hot Dance Music/Maxi-Singles Sales
1994 I Got a Love - 69 20 2
1994/1995 Take You There 76 67 33 9

References

  1. ↑ Allmusic review
  2. ↑ Q Magazine review
  3. ↑ RapReviews review
  4. ↑ Rolling Stone review
  5. ↑ The Source review
  6. ↑ Tiny Mix Tapes review
  7. ↑ Search
  8. ↑ "Pete Rock – Chart history" Billboard 200 for Pete Rock.
  9. ↑ "Pete Rock – Chart history" Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums for Pete Rock.
This article is issued from Wikipedia - version of the Monday, May 02, 2016. The text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution/Share Alike but additional terms may apply for the media files.