Yahoo! Music Album Review

Released on 25/10/1999
Label: Jive

When Q-Tip, Phife and Ali-Shaheed announced they were to split up after their last album ''The Love Movement'', music fans erected a sad tombstone for an act who consistently innovated with their particular take on hip hop. Listening to 1998''s ''The Love Movement'' - still an excellent album - it was obvious that the Tribe had lost some of their creative energy when compared to their earlier works. A Tribe Called Quest burst onto the scene in 1989 with their debut ''People''s Instinctive Travels and the Paths of Rhythm'' which drew praise for its laid-back, imaginative rapping style interlaced with scraping beats, jazz influences and quirky samples. Next up came a work of total genius, ''The Low End Theory'', which was held up by some to be the greatest hip hop album ever made. Spawning cuts like ''Scenario'' and ''Jazz...(We''ve Got)'' - in fact every track''s a gem - the Tribe proved that rap artists can make albums that are truly masterful. By 1993 with the release of the ''Midnight Marauders'' long player the Tribe had established themselves as the most important rap group in the world. Their stance was non-posturing, mellow, totally original and exciting, acting as the perfect antidote to the aggression and boasting that polluted a lot of their musical contemporaries. ''The Anthology'' draws tracks from all five albums and ranges from the obvious Lou-Reed sampling ''Can I Kick It'' to the sublime ''Check The Rime'' which is truly a benchmark in rolling rhymes and beats. For both fans of the Tribe and people who have never heard of them - this collection is essential.

    by Andy Strickland