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A Prince Among Thieves is the second studio album by hip hop artist Prince Paul. A Prince Among Thieves was well received by music critics. Music essayist Robert Christgau has called it "the closest thing to a true rock opera you've ever heard".[10]
| A Prince Among Thieves | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
 | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | February 23, 1999 | |||
| Recorded | 1997–1998 | |||
| Studio | Paul's Coffee Shop (Long Island, New York) | |||
| Genre | Hip hop | |||
| Length | 77:11 | |||
| Label | Tommy Boy/Warner Bros. 01210 | |||
| Producer | Prince Paul | |||
| Prince Paul chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| AllMusic |   [1] |
| Chicago Sun-Times | [2] |
| Los Angeles Times |  [3] |
| NME | 8/10[4] |
| Pitchfork | 8.7/10[5] |
| Rolling Stone | [6] |
| The Rolling Stone Album Guide | [7] |
| The Source | [8] |
| Spin | 9/10[9] |
| The Village Voice | A[10] |
Background
editThe concept follows the story of an aspiring young emcee named Tariq, played by emcee Breezly Brewin, who needs to collect money to record a demo tape before a meeting with Wu-Tang Clan leader RZA. The story follows a desperate Tariq, who skips work at his low-paying job and turns to his friend True, played by emcee Big Sha, who introduces him to drug dealing. The two make their way through the drug world, a police ambush, jail, and, finally, a deadly showdown.
The album features cameos by Kool Keith, Big Daddy Kane, Chubb Rock, Biz Markie, De La Soul, Everlast, Sadat X, Xzibit, Kid Creole, Special Ed, Chris Rock, RZA and Buckshot.
While recording, Prince Paul tried to get Vanilla Ice to appear on the album delivering a verse as one of the convicts in the jail scene, but was turned down by Ice's manager.[11]
A single version and video in the style of a film trailer was also produced. Although conceived as a story that would be filmed, a movie never came about. In a 2013 interview, Prince Paul said:
"That was the intention. When I first made it, I was inspired by Master P's I'm Bout It. I was like, 'This movie is so poorly shot, and it's popular. I could do that with more star power.' I tried to pitch it to Tommy Boy, and they apparently didn't see the vision. I was like, 'We could make so much money', but they were like 'Yeah, yeah Paul, we're going to put this million dollars in' whatever group that they had. Then at some point Chris Rock bought the rights to it, but he didn't do anything with it. So it sits and it sits. If I had the opportunity, if somebody said, 'Hey, I have a small budget', or wanted to get a Kickstarter going, I'd love to put that together."[12]
Track listing
edit| # | Title | Producer(s) | Performer (s) | Length |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | "Tariq's Dilemma (Intro)" | *Interlude* | 0:38 | |
| 2 | "Pain" | Prince Paul | Sha, Breeze | 2:14 |
| 3 | "How It All Started" | *Interlude* | 1:19 | |
| 4 | "Steady Slobbin'" | Prince Paul | Breeze | 2:55 |
| 5 | "Just Another Day" | *Interlude* | 2:19 | |
| 6 | "What U Got (The Demo)" | Prince Paul | Sha, Breeze | 2:29 |
| 7 | "The Hustles On" | *Interlude* | 1:38 | |
| 8 | "MC Hustler" | Prince Paul | Horror City | 3:51 |
| 9 | "The Call" | *Interlude* | 0:52 | |
| 10 | "The Other Line" | Prince Paul | Breeze, Heroine | 2:51 |
| 11 | "Crazy Lou's Hideout" | *Interlude* | 1:49 | |
| 12 | "Weapon World" | Prince Paul | Kool Keith | 3:27 |
| 13 | "My Big Chance" | *Interlude* | 1:54 | |
| 14 | "War Party" | Prince Paul | Horror City | 3:10 |
| 15 | "Count Macula" | *Interlude* | 0:22 | |
| 16 | "Macula's Theory" | Prince Paul | Big Daddy Kane | 2:36 |
| 17 | "Mr. Large" | Prince Paul | Chubb Rock, Biz Markie | 1:06 |
| 18 | "Can You Handle It" | *Interlude* | 0:21 | |
| 19 | "Put the Next Man On" | Prince Paul | Breeze, Sha, Superstar | 3:46 |
| 20 | "I Was In" | *Interlude* | 0:41 | |
| 21 | "My First Day" | *Interlude* | 2:29 | |
| 22 | "More Than U Know" | Prince Paul | De La Soul | 4:24 |
| 23 | "Room 69" | *Interlude* | 1:49 | |
| 24 | "Mood for Love" | Prince Paul | Newkirk, Sweet Dee, Breeze | 3:16 |
| 25 | "The Bust" | *Interlude* | 0:45 | |
| 26 | "The Men in Blue" | Prince Paul | Everlast | 3:33 |
| 27 | "Central Booking" | *Interlude* | 2:04 | |
| 28 | "Handle Your Time" | Prince Paul | Sadat X, Xzibit, Kid Creole | 3:53 |
| 29 | "The Rev" | *Interlude* | 0:29 | |
| 30 | "Sermon" | *Interlude* | 1:01 | |
| 31 | "Showdown" | *Interlude* | 2:56 | |
| 32 | "You Got Shot" | Prince Paul | Sha, Breeze | 3:07 |
| 33 | "Every Beginning Must Have an Ending" | *Interlude* | 1:43 | |
| 34 | "The New Joint (DJ's Delite)" | *Interlude* | 0:56 | |
| 35 | "A Prince Among Thieves" | Prince Paul | Sha | 4:42 |
- Sample credits[13]
- "Pain" samples "Pain" by The Watts Prophets.
- "Steady Slobbin'" samples "Reach Out" by Average White Band.
- "What U Got" samples "I'll Play the Blues for You" by Albert King.
- "The Other Line" samples "You Better Get It" by Joe Tex.
- "Weapon World" samples "Get Outta My Life Woman" by The New Apocalypse.
- "War Party" samples "Love Without Sex" by Gwen McCrae.
- "Macula's Theory" samples "Wind, Blow Her Back My Way" by Syl Johnson.
- "More Than U Know" samples "I Like It (Corn Flakes) by Extra T's.
- "Mood for Love" samples "Impeach the President" by The Honeydrippers.
- "The Men in Blue" samples "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss.
- "Handle Your Time" samples "Having You Around" by Skull Snaps and "Why Can't People Be Colors Too?" by The Whatnauts.
- "You Got Shot" sample "Midnight Theme" by Manzel and "Brooklyn Zoo" by Ol' Dirty Bastard.
Personnel
editThe cast
edit
|
|
The DJs and VJs
edit- DJ Evil Dee
- Bobbito
- DJ Mecca
- Bobby Simmons
- Andre (Bless Me) Smith
- Ken (Special K) Spellman
- DJ Atlas
- Artist
- Lynn Gonzales
- Rotimi Rainwater
Background extras
edit
|
|
Charts
editAlbum
| Chart (1999) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Billboard 200 | 138 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums | 46 |
| US Top Heatseekers | 5 |
Singles
| Year | Song | Hot Rap Singles |
|---|---|---|
| 1999 | "More Than U Know" | 45 |
References
edit- ^ Huey, Steve. "A Prince Among Thieves – Prince Paul". AllMusic. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ Kyles, Kyra (June 13, 1999). "Prince Paul, 'Prince Among Thieves' (Tommy Boy)". Chicago Sun-Times. Archived from the original on June 14, 2017. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ Baker, Soren (April 3, 1999). "Prince Paul, 'A Prince Among Thieves,' Tommy Boy". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ Crysell, Andy (February 3, 1999). "Prince Paul – A Prince Among Thieves". NME. Archived from the original on October 16, 2000. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ Aku, Timmhotep (February 10, 2019). "Prince Paul: A Prince Among Thieves". Pitchfork. Retrieved February 22, 2019.
- ^ Stovall, Natasha (March 18, 1999). "Prince Paul: A Prince Among Thieves". Rolling Stone. Archived from the original on October 2, 2007. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ Miles, Milo (2004). "Prince Paul". In Brackett, Nathan; Hoard, Christian (eds.). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide (4th ed.). Simon & Schuster. p. 657. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8.
- ^ Reeves, Marcus (March 1999). "Prince Paul: A Prince Among Thieves". Record Report. The Source. No. 114. p. 196, 198, 200.
- ^ Kulkarni, Neil (March 1999). "Prince Paul: A Prince Among Thieves / The Roots: Things Fall Apart". Spin. Vol. 15, no. 3. p. 142. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ a b Christgau, Robert (March 23, 1999). "Consumer Guide". The Village Voice. Retrieved May 3, 2016.
- ^ "Prince Paul Tells All: The Stories Behind His Classic Records (Part 2)". Complex Networks.
- ^ Yohance Kyles (2013-11-07). "EXCLUSIVE: Prince Paul Discusses His "All Purpose Show," Art vs Business & Refusing To Sell Out". AllHipHop.com. Retrieved 2014-08-14.
- ^ Archived at Ghostarchive and the Wayback Machine: Discover Samples Used On Prince Paul's 'A Prince Among Thieves'. YouTube.