LTM: 3 Feet High And Rising

My first encounter with the music of De La Soul was in 2002 during a visit to Liverpool’s infamous 3 Beat (now 3B) Records. I had been buying house 12″s for the last two years and, aged 17, had just started my first residency on Wednesday nights at Mosquito in Liverpool. The club was known for playing a commercial but credible spectrum of soul, funk, disco, house and R&B. I knew at the time that I was probably too young to take the gig, but I lied about my age, passed as 21, and set out to broaden my musical knowledge beyond the US soulful house I had fallen in love with.

I explained my predicament to Thomas Tuft, the house buyer at 3 Beat Records, and he took me under his wing and fed me a weekly supply of essential cuts. My musical direction wouldn’t have taken the direction it did if it wasn’t for his guiding influence during the next few years – for this I’m deeply grateful. It was a time I remember fondly: spending every spare hour immersed in these newly discovered classics.

One of the first non-house 12″s he put my way was the ninth installment of the German Groove Collection bootleg series. On the first side was De La Soul’s ‘All Good’ and Eric B. and Rakim’s ‘Paid In Full’, and on the flip was Run-DMC’s ‘Walk This Way’ and De La Soul’s ‘Say No Go’, which of course features on 3 Feet High And Rising.

‘All Good’ was the pick of these classics for me, and I remember it being a highlight of groundbreaking Liverpool DJ Robin Jackson’s set the first time I heard him spin. Before long, thanks to a couple more bootleg 12″s and some second-hand finds in Bold Street’s Hairy Records, ‘Magic Number’, ‘Eye Know’, ‘Say No Go’, and ‘Me Myself And I’ became staple selections in my weekly five hour sets at Mosquito.

Last night was the first time I’d listened to 3 Feet High And Rising in full, despite knowing the aforementioned tracks inside out. As I’d previously discovered with Jill Scott’s debut, hearing familiar tracks in the context of their parent album can offer a much richer listening experience.

The humour, carefree attitude, and slick delivery is as vibrant as ever, but more immediately noticeable to me was Prince Paul’s production. It still sounds fresh, standing tall against any new hip hop long player in recent memory.

Greg mentioned in his introductory post how cutting edge it was to hear the vinyl crackle in his samples, a stylistic technique that’s a given in the school of jazz-inspired beat makers who came after. I will admit to verging into fanboy territory when it comes to Madlib, Stones Throw’s star signing, and it’s fascinating to be able to trace another strand of the hip hop lineage that leads to his contemporary flair.

Thanks Greg for this insight, and for hosting my favourite Living To Music so far!
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