Thursday, September 23, 2010

Throwback Thurs: A Tribe Called Quest - Find A Way

I'm not tryin' to fill y'all up with unleaded when I say the track below from A Tribe Called Quest may be one of my top 25 favorite tracks of all time. No matter how many times I listen to it, I can never skip past it, I have to give it a full listen and that is extraordinarily rare when it comes to my promiscuous, on-to-the-next-one attention span with music. Every element of this track is unique and blends together seamlessly, leaving with a finish as smooth as a shot of Pat Ron. From the muffled intro, followed by the bouncy, but ocean floor deep bass that creates a beautiful backdrop for Phife Dawg and Q-Tip to craft a few coherent, flawlessly delivered verses. Add to that an interesting injection of female harmony over the hook and you've got yourself the makings of a classic track.

The sound of the track is about as smooth as it gets Hip Hop wise, but what has stuck with me over the years is the relate-ability of the lyrics. The subject matter of the track borders around that always tenuous gray area between being friends and more than friends. It centers around the complete let down feeling you get when you think you're becoming more than friends with a girl, but then she gets to talkin' about "next man" and coincidentally that guy doesn't sound like you. And to make things even more complicated, the girl has "Got me like a friend what confuses me though, is kisses when we greet tell me what's the deal yo?". The whole mind game behind figuring out feeling is always intriguing because the emotional stakes are high and it's never easy for anyone to figure out or predict...#DontFront, you yourself have found yourself in this position before. The reason why the story is so great has to do with the logical progression that a guy goes through where he's first trying to start a relationship with the girl, then finds out she's not tryin' to be with you in a relationship despite acting like more than friends, which eventually results in this final reaction:
"Start to make affections, which is good not the hurt
But it, it aint me, and I, I ain't blurred (uh)
I'ma still just chill with you
Maybe things could change if you change your view (come on)
If not then I guess it is cool (yeah)
just, to keep to yourself and adbide by the rules, right"
Yea that's right kick rocks 'til ya getcha mind right girl, that's wassup. While it can be fun to be casual, it's hard to be that way with a person you really like, hence the predicament.

Last week Kanye sent out a cheers to the douchbags and assholes, so I figure I might as well second that toast to all the no good, trick-ass women out there tryna play mind games actin' like they interested when they just tryna get ahead and string a brotha along. Go ahead with that bullshit, actin' like we can't see through it even though it's been sprayed all proper with Windex through the years. Ain't no way you ever gonna ever be able to keep a good man ridin' the emotional fence by being just friends one day and FWB the next. That act is played out, word is bond, raise a glass!

Seriously though, when I say classic track, this is in the mix of tracks whose shine will never get tarnished...get it a couple listens and pay respects to ATCQ, one of the best Hip Hop groups of my time...

A Tribe Called Quest - Find A Way
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