Undun by The Roots

Released:  December 6, 2011
Rating:  78.18

The surprising thing about this album isn't that it's only my second rap album of 2011, or that it's my second rap album in a row.  Not even that it's rated so highly.  The surprise, for me, is that it's a December release.  December usually stinks for good music.  It's a great month for box sets and bubble gum pop, but I haven't bought a December release in 3 years!

I hope you're aware of the roots.  They are amazing.  Formed by ?uestlove and Black Thought in 1987 as street rappers in Philidelphia, they're now Jimmy Fallon's house band.  (Full disclosure:  I only became fully aware of them last year with the incredible How I got Over.)

I would urge that you give them a chance, regardless of your musical leanings.  Try a couple of my favorites by clicking on the links below to youtube:

• The tragic Sleep.
• The cool funk of Lighthouse.

If you want something totally different from a hip-hop crew, search out the calssically orchestrated Redford Suite.  A series of 4 instrumental tracks featuring strings, piano and ?uestlove's drums.

And now a note about the rating: I combined the rating for the Redford suite into a single rating of 3 stars (I like it a lot).  If each track had been rated independently, the sum total would have been closer to 75.