at a minimum, reckless, but really borders more along the lines of artistic blasphemy. Soul Food, by itself, is important enough to put Goodie Mob at the forefront of socially conscious, transformational and spiritually redemptive music — the rudiments of hip hop culture.

The sheer name of the album establishes a spiritual landscape, as soul food is a religious and cultural staple within the black community. Even the cover art, with Big Gipp, T-Mo, and Khujo’s hands outstretched in prayer while Cee-Lo’s are clasped in the traditional Judeo-Christian pose, lets you know that the group is approaching this offering from a different angle than most of that time. No pimps and playas. No Mafioso drug tales. The opening dirge, “Free”, sonically sets the stage and reinforces the pious, dark and heavy tone the album takes. This hymn closes and we are introduced to Goodie Mob’s social disposition and mentality on “Thought Process”, as T-Mo rhymes, “It don’t matter young or old, it’s time we loc up and do what we supposed. We killin’ each other over this bullsh*t and some clothes!”. The weight and depth of content on this lead-off cut qualifies it as one of the most meaningful “set-it-off” tracks in memory.

The macabre production of Soul Food is steeped in brilliance and is one of Organized Noize’s crowning achievements. The haunting vocals on “Thought Process”, the boom bap of the lead single, “Cell Therapy”, and the spaciness of “Sesame Street” are just some examples of how the production camp cemented itself as one of most creative and prolific outfits on the scene — a lofty accomplishment considering the RZA, Pete Rock, and DJ Premier were dominating and shaping the sound of hip hop at the time. The album truly has a “sound” and is a cohesive, properly sequenced product — a virtue that was the norm rather than the exception back in the 9-5.

As much as this album is not about Cee-lo alone (the group aesthetic is so rich on this album), one cannot ignore the strikingly unique dynamic he brings to this album. His gospel-dellic crooning wasn’t at the full-fledged maturity of his current Gnarls Barkley-isms, so it is more of a lyrically razor-sharp Cee-lo you see on this album. His freestyle-like flow on “Goodie Bag” is intoxicating and accessible and is a shimmering glimpse into the creative deftness of a man who is one of the greatest artists of the hip hop generation. The bald-headed artist comes across as a modern day Gil Scott Heron on his spoken word, heartfelt diatribe at the end of “Fighting”. So powerful and relevant are his words they make you wonder if the issues and pathologies he discusses will ever be overcome.

As a total product, Soul Food has all the insight, wisdom and aggression of a protest novel. The visceral quality of this album alone can make a man cry in hubristic self-realization or rally a group of listeners to grassroots political action. The poignancy of the individual tracks of the album as mere standalones is profound and overwhelming at times. There may not be a tribute song to mothers more affecting this side of Tupac’s “Dear Mama” than “Guess Who”. The album is truly food for the soul as it is meant to strike a chord with a community who relies on the church and spirituality as a means to explain its situation, existence and plight.

Answers to the issues that face the communities of people this album addresses can be found on this historic debut LP. At the end of “Fighting”, Cee-lo breaks into a spoken word soliloquy that tactically breaks down the ills of his community’s socio-cultural existence while offering a rallying cry for what needs to be done:

Think about the slave trade

When they had boats with thousands of us on board,
And we still was praising the Lord.

Now [you] ready to die over a coat,

A necklace round your throat.

That's bullsh*t!
Black people ya'll better realize that we losin.

You better [expletive] fight,

And DIE if you got to get yo' spirit and yo’ mind back,

And we got to do it together!

Soul Food is a landmark, simple and plain. I listen to it in its entirety at least twice a week as it musically serves to artistically motivate, socially ground, and culturally inspire me, simultaneously.

--Travis larrier
Travis can be reached at LarryT@thisisrealmusic.com

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