#176 Public Enemy, 'Fear of a Black Planet' (1990)

Previously #302

Previously I’d mentioned that last time around, A Tribe Called Quest was the group that finally opened my eyes and mind to Hip Hop. They weren’t the only ones. Public Enemy was the other group that was the key to unlocking my mind. This album is a collage of sounds. A complete mix of samples, that I couldn’t even begin to break them all down. One of the mostly tightly produced Hip Hop records that I’ve ever heard. To give you an idea, the first track proper, ‘Brothers Gonna Work It Out’ jumps from Prince’s ‘Let’s Go Crazy’ to George Clinton’s ‘Atomic Dog,’ with James Brown’s vocals injected in randomly and interspersed throughout the song, alongside Otis Redding, Sly and the Family Stone and even previous Public Enemy tracks. This doesn’t even scratch the surface.

The subject matter on the album deals with systemic racism towards African Americans in society, music and Hollywood, feminism and the misogyny towards women in Hip Hop, religion & politics, amongst other things. ‘911 Is A Joke’ criticizes the inefficiency of 911 and ‘Welcome To The Terrodome,’ second single, address the 1989 riots in Virginia Beach. Lead single, ‘Fight The Power’ is a call to arms, an anthem for the new generation of African Americans. I particularly loved ‘Incident At 66.6FM,’ an interlude track featuring samples of call-ins to radio shows criticising Public Enemy which culminates in Chuck D calling in. Speaking of which, Chuck D has got to be one of the coolest musicians of all time. Love him. Last time this record had a massive effect on me. I still felt it this time around, perhaps even more so. Such an important Hip Hop record; arguably as important as Bob Dylan or Bob Marley were in their time.

#rs500albums