late registration
Rapper/producer Kanye West’s second album, LATE REGISTRATION, incredibly lives up to expectations following his universally acclaimed debut, THE COLLEGE DROPOUT, which took the art of sampling to a new plateau. [1]
The first single released from the album was “Diamonds from Sierra Leone “, which contains a sample from the James Bond theme “Diamonds Are Forever ” performed by Shirley Bassey. [...] Rolling Stone magazine named it their Album of the Year, and it is one of the few hip-hop albums to receive a rare 5-star rating in its initial review, along with N.W.A ’s Straight Outta Compton and Beastie Boys ‘ To the 5 Boroughs. [2]
Other songs address potentially somber topics–ghetto life (”We Don’t Care”), religion (”Jesus Walks”), and family turmoil (”Family Business”)–yet somehow retain a truly hopeful spirit. [1]
The song’s title was subsequently changed from its original one (”Diamonds Are Forever”) due to confusion with another song featured on Jay-Z ’s The Blueprint 2: The Gift & the Curse titled “Diamond Is Forever”. [2]
Tracks like “Heard ‘Em Say” (featuring Maroon 5’s Adam Levine) and “Hey Mama,” are richly textured in their soulfulness while the flint-edge of “Crack Music” and “Gone” (feat. [...] Late Registration can’t replicate the novelty of last year’s College Dropout, but otherwise, this is an impressively more mature and labored-over album. [...] Roses-a classic song: 5 stars all the way!!! [3]
“Addiction” pairs a frenetic African beat with a stuttering, singular use of a snippet of Etta James crooning “My Funny Valentine,” while “Diamonds From the Sierra Leone” teams the majestic Bond glory of Shirley Bassey’s “Diamonds Are Forever” with perfectly subtle Miami bass to explosive effect. [1]
The third single released was “Heard ‘Em Say ” featuring Adam Levine from Maroon 5, and the fourth was the Just Blaze helmed “Touch the Sky ” featuring Lupe Fiasco. [2]
Join Amazon Prime and ship Two-Day for free and Overnight for $3.99. [3]
The second single released from Late Registration was “Gold Digger “, which contains a vocal interpretation of Ray Charles ‘ “I Got A Woman ” sung by Jamie Foxx, who starred as Charles in the film biography Ray. [2]
Personnel: Kanye West (vocals); Common, Consequence, GLC, Jamie Foxx, Jay-Z, Adam Levine, John Legend, Keyshia Cole, Nas, Paul Wall, The Game, Cam’Ron, Lupe Fiasco, Really Doe, Deray, Tony “Penafire” Williams, Plain Pat, Don C., Brandy, Charlie Wilson (vocals); Dave Tozer (guitars); Ervin “EP” Pope, Tom Craskey (keyboards); Keenan “Keynote” Holloway (bass guitar); Michele Gondry (drums); A-Trak (scratches). [...] While his MC style is often discounted as being of secondary importance, he shines when put up against the best in the game, as with Common on the bluesy “My Way Home” or Nas on the lush “We Major.” [...] Hip-hop, not to mention pop, rarely sounds this surprising, panoramic, and irresistible.” [1]
Sources:
[1] Kanye West Late Registration CD
[2] Late Registration - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
[3] Amazon.com: Late Registration: Kanye West: Music