And for all their kiddie consciousness, junk-culture arcana, and suburban in-jokes, they're in the new tradition - you can dance to them, which counts for plenty when disjunction is your problem." Rolling Stone magazine's Michael Azerrad called 3 Feet High and Rising "the first psychedelic hip-hop record", "(o)ne of the most original rap records ever to come down the pike", and an "inventive, playful" record that "stands staid rap conventions on their def ear." Writing in retrospect for The A.V. But their music is also radically unlike any rap you or anybody else has ever heard - inspirations include the Jarmels and a learn-it-yourself French record. "Their music is maddeningly disjunct, and a few of the 24-cuts-in-67-minutes (too long for vinyl) are self-indulgent, arch. "An inevitable development in the class history of rap, new wave to Public Enemy's punk", wrote Robert Christgau of the album in his 1989 "Consumer Guide" column for The Village Voice. Sampling artists as diverse as Johnny Cash, Hall & Oates, Steely Dan and the Turtles, 3 Feet High and Rising is often viewed as the stylistic beginning of 1990s alternative hip hop (and especially jazz rap). Their positivity meant many observers labeled them a " hippie" group, based on their declaration of the "D.A.I.S.Y. Released amid the 1989 boom in gangsta rap, which gravitated towards hardcore, confrontational, violent lyrics, De La Soul's uniquely positive style made them an oddity beginning with the first single, " Me, Myself and I". It was also listed on the Rolling Stone's The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time. When Village Voice held its annual Pazz & Jop Critics Poll for 1989, 3 Feet High and Rising was ranked at #1, outdistancing its nearest opponent ( Neil Young's Freedom) by 21 votes and 260 points. It is listed on Rolling Stone's 200 Essential Rock Records and The Source's 100 Best Rap Albums (both of which are unordered). Reception and influence Professional ratings Review scores The intent of the design of De La Soul's, 3 Feet High and Rising LP cover is to be new and bright, with the overlaying of the fluorescent flowers and text reflecting a synthetic pop cartoon look This is a move away from the prevailing macho hip hop visual codes which dominate to this day". This is well before the time of Apple Macs and scanning etc. We layer the brightly-coloured hand drawn flower designs made with Posca paint pens on acetate over the black and white photographic portrait print, which is rostrum camera copied. CD's have yet to be the dominant musical format so the vinyl album sleeve is our most effective way of making a statement. We photograph them whilst hanging precariously off a step ladder, one idea being that the cover would not have a right way up. De La Soul visit our loft where we lay them down on the floor facing up, their heads making a triangle. Mott describes the process of designing the album cover in his essay 'Hip Hop in The Daisy Age': "We have come up with the 'Daisy Age' visual concept. GO also began designing album covers for groups such as Information Society and De La Soul, most notably 3 Feet High and Rising. By 1989, GO were exhibiting their paintings around the East Village and working as art directors for Tommy Boy Records and MTV (among others) making music videos for various groups, such as Public Enemy, A Tribe Called Quest, and The Rolling Stones. In 1986 Mott and Spencer had moved from London to New York after GO's infamous paint attacks on Cork Street art galleries, where they began working as bicycle messengers. The album's artwork was designed by Toby Mott's and Paul Spencer's radical British art collective the Grey Organisation (GO). It was selected by the Library of Congress as a 2010 addition to the National Recording Registry, which selects recordings annually that are culturally, historically, or aesthetically significant. In 1998, it was selected as one of The Source Magazine 's "100 Best Rap Albums". It is consistently placed on lists of the greatest albums of all time by noted critics and publications, with Robert Christgau calling it "unlike any rap album you or anybody else has ever heard". The album contains the singles " Me Myself and I", " The Magic Number", " Buddy", and " Eye Know".Ĭritically, as well as commercially, the album was a success. The album title comes from the Johnny Cash song " Five Feet High and Rising". It is the first of three collaborations with producer Prince Paul, which would become the critical and commercial peak of both parties. ![]() 3 Feet High and Rising is the debut studio album by American hip hop group De La Soul, released on Ma by Tommy Boy Records.
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