REVIEW: Prince Paul, A Prince Among Thieves (Tommy Boy)
- Tim Hulsizer
From one hip hop's finest minds comes one of the most ambitious works in recent memory. Prince Paul has pulled out all the stops here to make something better than your usual album. It's more of a 77-minute story, introducing us to Tariq (played by Breez), a young man who needs a thousand dollars to put together his demo and get a rap record deal. Unable to get the cash another way, Tariq's friend True (newcomer Sha) volunteers to set up Tariq as a dealer "just for the week." Of course, things never quite work out that smoothly.
30-year-old Prince Paul has come a long way from his days with Stetsasonic and his production work on De La Soul etc., but his tendency towards innovation remains at the forefront. While his peers are content to run the same rhymes over the same old, tired beats, Paul keeps stretching the boundaries of the form, with occasionally varying results. On this, his second solo LP, he brings together a large cast to flesh out the drama. Kool Keith, Big Daddy Kane, Chris Rock, and Everlast are among the group, each with their own part to play and dialogue or songs to perform.
Prince Paul's mind works in strange ways sometimes, which may explain why he's such an underappreciated presence in the music industry. He moves among the tracks like a demented ghost, distorting a sound here or layering a noise there. A few recurring sound effects (a donkey bray, a man saying "freakin' lickin'") tend to distract after awhile, but they also add cohesion and tone to something that approaches the divine at times. Witness Kool Keith's eccentric performance as Crazy Lou, the owner of Weapon World, or check out the give and take between Tariq and True on the track "What You Got (the Demo)".
More than just another hip hop release, A Prince Among Thieves is along the lines of an experimental parable about the record biz. It combines elements of satire and wit, with serious moments as well. It's cinematic in the extreme, so it comes as no surprise that a film version is already underway. Expanding on Paul's old gift for the hip hop "skit" (he basically invented it back in the 80's), this album also functions as a look back at the past decade in the industry. It's evident that he's more of a detached observer watching things from the side, preferring not to speak until he actually has something to say.
Prince Paul calls Psychoanalysis (his 1996 solo debut) "the big middle finger up at everything". While the life situations surrounding the artist have since changed from when he put that album together, his work still has that exploratory feel to it. Let's hope this new album brings one of hip hop's great artist/producers back to center stage where he belongs. That could only mean more great things in the future.
