Often imitated, never duplicated: A Tribe Called Quest epitomizes that statement. And 1991's classic The Low End Theory, the Queens-bred hip-hop outfit's second album, is where Tribe really struck out on its own sonically for the first time.

Not that the group's 1990 debut, People's Instinctive Travels And The Paths Of Rhythm, was anything to sneeze at. But on The Low End Theory, the beats got tougher, the obscure jazz samples and sinewy double-bass loops were integrated into the mix much more integrally than just classy window dressing and the late Phife Dawg came into his own as an MC to rival his longtime pal and production partner Q-Tip. In short, A Tribe Called Quest started to sound like the A Tribe Called Quest everyone knows, loves and cherishes to this day right here. After this, they were a reference point for future hip-hop artists. Although no one's ever quite managed to replicate the curious magic these cats got up to on The Low End Theory and the rest of their six-album catalogue. This one's essential. 

TRACKLISTING:

1. Excursions
2. Buggin' Out
3. Rap Promoter
4. Butter
5. Verses From The Abstract
6. Show Business
7. Vibes And Stuff
8. The Infamous Date Rape
9. Check The Rhime
10. Everything Is Fair
11. Jazz (We've Got)
12. Skypager
13. What?
14. Scenario