The Tipping Point (album)

The Tipping Point
Studio album by The Roots
Released July 13, 2004
Recorded September 2003 - April 2004
Genre Hip hop, neo soul
Length 55:05
Label Geffen/Interscope/Universal
988 186
Producer Questlove, Scott Storch
The Roots chronology
Phrenology
(2002)		 The Tipping Point
(2004)		 Game Theory
(2006)

The Tipping Point is the sixth studio album by American hip hop band The Roots, released July 13, 2004 on Geffen Records. It is named after Malcolm Gladwell's book of the same name (2000),[1] and it serves as the follow-up to Phrenology (2002).[2][3] The album is a musical departure from their previous work, featuring a more diverse, yet pop-oriented sound, and it contains lyrics associated with rapping-prowess, political insight, and social commentary.[4][5][6][7] The Tipping Point has been noted by music writers for exhibiting and emphasizing soul, jazz, and funk influences as well.[8][9][10][11][12]

Contents

Music

The Tipping Point is arguably the most commercial-sounding of all The Roots albums with radio-friendly tracks such as "Don't Say Nuthin'". At the same time, The Tipping Point stays true to The Roots style of going deep into a groove for longer than most hip-hop artists; this is evident on the album's hidden track "Din Da Da". Comedian Dave Chappelle is uncredited on the hidden track "In Love With The Mic". The album is named after the Malcolm Gladwell book of the same name, while the album photo is the mugshot of an 18-year-old Malcolm X before his conversion to Islam in prison. Some later releases of the albums, including the iTunes version, replace Malcolm X with a similarly-posed image of Black Thought as seen in on the "Stay Cool" single cover (see below).

Reception

Professional ratings
Review scores
Source Rating
Allmusic [9]
Robert Christgau (A-)[13]
Entertainment Weekly (B+)[14]
Los Angeles Times [15]
Pitchfork Media (5.4/10)[16]
PopMatters (favorable)[17]
Rolling Stone [4]
Spin (B)[7]
USA Today [18]
The Village Voice (mixed)[19]

The album debuted at number four on the U.S. Billboard 200 chart, selling 109,000 copies in its first week.[20] Despite mixed criticism towards its production and lyrical substance,[4][8][15][19] The Tipping Point received generally positive reviews from most music critics, based on an aggregate score of 72/100 from Metacritic.[21]

Track listing

  1. "Star/Pointro" (feat. Wadud Ahmad)
  2. "I Don't Care" (feat. Dom)
  3. "Don't Say Nuthin'"
  4. "Guns Are Drawn" (feat. Aaron Livingston)
  5. "Stay Cool" (feat. Martin Luther)
  6. "Web"
  7. "Boom!" (feat. Dice Raw)
  8. "Somebody's Gotta Do It" (feat. Devin The Dude, Jean Grae & Mack Dub)
  9. "Duck Down!" (feat. Dom)
  10. "Why (What's Goin On?)" (feat. Latif)
Bonus tracks
  1. "In Love with the Mic" (feat. Dave Chappelle, Skillz & Truck North)
  2. "Din Da Da" (cover of "Din Daa Daa" by George Kranz)
  3. "Melting Pot" (cover of song of the same name by Booker T. & the M.G.'s) (Japan bonus track)
Sample credits

Personnel

The Roots
Production

Charts

Album

Chart (2004) Peak
position[22]
US Billboard 200 4
US Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums 2
US Billboard Top Internet Albums 15

Singles

Year Song Peak positions
US Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs
2004 "Don't Say Nuthin'" 66

Notes

  1. ^ DeRogatis, Jim. "Review: The Tipping Point". Chicago Sun-Times: 7. July 11, 2004. Archived from the original on 2009-10-05.
  2. ^ Gill, Andy. Review: The Tipping Point. The Independent. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  3. ^ Frosch, Dan. "Review: The Tipping Point". Vibe: August 2004.
  4. ^ a b c Wolk, Douglas. Review: The Tipping Point. Rolling Stone. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  5. ^ Hoard, Christian. "Review: The Tipping Point". Rolling Stone: 702–703. November 2, 2004.
  6. ^ Rabin, Nathan. Review: The Tipping Point. The A.V. Club. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  7. ^ a b Ryan, Chris. "Review: The Tipping Point". Spin: 101–102. August 2004.
  8. ^ a b Bieritz, Erick. Review: The Tipping Point. Stylus Magazine. Retrieved on 2009-12-05.
  9. ^ a b Jeffries, David. Review: The Tipping Point. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  10. ^ Columnist. Review: The Tipping Point. IGN. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  11. ^ Pareles, Jon. Review: The Tipping Point. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  12. ^ Empire, Kitty. Review: The Tipping Point. The Observer. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  13. ^ Christgau, Robert. "Consumer Guide: The Tipping Point". The Village Voice: August 3, 2004. Archived from the original on 2009-10-05.
  14. ^ Fiore, Raymond. Review: The Tipping Point. Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  15. ^ a b Baker, Soren. Review: The Tipping Point. Los Angeles Times. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  16. ^ Sylvester, Nick. Review: The Tipping Point. Pitchfork Media. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  17. ^ Sawyer, Terry. Review: The Tipping Point. PopMatters. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  18. ^ Jones, Steve. Review: The Tipping Point. USA Today. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  19. ^ a b Wang, Oliver. Review: The Tipping Point. The Village Voice. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  20. ^ Gelder, Laurence Van. Arts Briefing: Thursday, July 22, 2004. The New York Times. Retrieved on 2009-12-05.
  21. ^ The Tipping Point (2004): Reviews. Metacritic. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.
  22. ^ Billboard Albums: The Tipping Point. Allmusic. Retrieved on 2009-10-05.

References

  • Nathan Brackett, Christian Hoard (2004). The New Rolling Stone Album Guide: Completely Revised and Updated 4th Edition. Simon and Schuster. ISBN 0-7432-0169-8. 

External links

The Roots
Studio albums
Organix (1993) · Do You Want More?!!!??! (1995) · Illadelph Halflife (1996) · Things Fall Apart (1999) · Phrenology (2002) · The Tipping Point (2004) · Game Theory (2006) · Rising Down (2008) · How I Got Over (2010) · Wake Up! (2010) · Undun (2011)
Live albums
Extended plays
Songs
"You Got Me" (1999) · "The Next Movement" (1999) · "The Seed (2.0)" (2002) "Wake Up Everybody" (2010)
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