| Original Pirate Material | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Studio album by The Streets | ||||
| Released | 25 March 2002 (UK) October 22, 2002 (US) |
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| Genre | Alternative hip hop Electronica UK garage |
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| Length | 47:24 | |||
| Label | Locked On, 679 | |||
| Producer | Mike Skinner | |||
| The Streets chronology | ||||
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| Professional ratings | |
|---|---|
| Aggregate scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Metacritic | (90/100) [1] |
| Review scores | |
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic | [2] |
| Blender | [3] |
| Robert Christgau | (A-) [4] |
| Entertainment Weekly | (A) [5] |
| Stylus Magazine | (A) [6] |
| Drowned in Sound | (10/10) [7] |
| IGN | (9/10) [8] |
| NME | (8/10) [9] |
| Spin | (8/10) [10] |
| Prefix Magazine | (8/10) [11] |
| Pitchfork Media | (7.9/10) [12] |
| PopMatters | (positive)[13] |
| Q | [14] |
| Rolling Stone | [15] |
| Rate Your Music | (3.72/5.00) [16] |
Original Pirate Material is the debut album by the English rapper and producer Mike Skinner, under the name The Streets.
The album is a unique take on UK garage and lyrics dealing with everyday circumstances and occurrences. The album originally rose to #12 on the UK Albums Chart in 2002, and then peaked at #10 in 2004 after the release of the second Streets album A Grand Don't Come for Free. In Australia, Original Pirate Material peaked at #57.
In March 2003, NME placed Original Pirate Material at number 46 on their list of the "100 Best Albums of All Time".[17] They subsequently placed Original Pirate Material at number 9 in their list of the "100 Best Albums of the Decade".[18] Observer Music Monthly ranked it as the best album of the 00s.[19] The critic Simon Reynolds also placed the album at the top of his favourite albums of the 2000s list, with a "special 'in a class of its own' award."[20] Pitchfork Media rated the album as number ten on their list of the top 100 albums of 2000-2004.[21] They later placed it at 36 on their list of the best albums of 2000-2009.[22]
In the United Kingdom, five singles were released from Original Pirate Material: "Has It Come to This?", "Let's Push Things Forward", "Weak Become Heroes", "Don't Mug Yourself" and "The Irony of It All".
The cover artwork photograph of Original Pirate Material is by German photographer Rut Blees Luxemburg called Towering Inferno. The towerblock pictured is Kestrel House on City Road, London.[23]
All lyrics written by Mike Skinner.
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Turn the Page" | 3:15 |
| 2. | "Has It Come to This?" | 4:04 |
| 3. | "Let's Push Things Forward" (featuring Kevin Mark Trail) | 3:51 |
| 4. | "Sharp Darts" | 1:33 |
| 5. | "Same Old Thing" (featuring Kevin Mark Trail) | 3:22 |
| 6. | "Geezers Need Excitement" | 3:46 |
| 7. | "It's Too Late" | 4:11 |
| 8. | "Too Much Brandy" | 3:02 |
| 9. | "Don't Mug Yourself" | 2:39 |
| 10. | "Who Got the Funk?" | 1:50 |
| 11. | "The Irony of It All" | 3:30 |
| 12. | "Weak Become Heroes" | 5:33 |
| 13. | "Who Dares Wins" | 0:34 |
| 14. | "Stay Positive" | 6:18 |
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