The Fugees Return From a Disappointing Debut to Settle The Score
Written: Mar 20 '02 (Updated Mar 20 '02)
Product Rating:
Pros: One of the best Rap albums of all time.
Cons: The Fugees are no longer together.
The Bottom Line: A Hip-Hop classic. Odds are you’ll never hear anything like this ever again. Not even in their solo efforts. Especially in their solo efforts.
madtheory's Full Review: The Score [PA] by The Fugees
One of the funniest things I remember about Lauryn Hill is her describing their first in-store promotion for the Fugees debut album Blunted On Reality. She tells how the store was so empty that Pras, L, and Clef spent most of their time just absently flipping through the CDs. When a shopper actually came in, the Fugees asked if he wanted their autographs, and the person replied, “nah, that’s OK.”
That guy has to be kicking himself now. Skillfully combining Rap, Reggae, and R&B into an eclectic blend of Hip-Hop music on their sophomore album The Score, group members Prakazrel Michel, Lauryn Hill, and Wyclef Jean proved themselves to be among Hip-Hop’s elite artists. The Score paved the way for some amazing work from Wyclef and Lauryn Hill including laying the groundwork for Hill’s Grammy-magnet The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. If these talented artists continue to grow, there’s no telling how much that shopper’s L-Boogie or Wyclef signature would have been worth one day.
And umm… the guy could always wipe his nose with the Pras autograph.
Tracklisting
1. Red Intro
2. How Many Mics
3. Ready or Not
4. Zealots
5. The Beast
6. Fu-Gee-La
7. Family Business
8. Killing Me Softly With His Song
9. The Score
10. The Mask
11. Cowboys
12. No Woman, No Cry
13. Manifest / Outro
14. Fu-Gee-La (Refugee Camp Remix) [bonus]
15. Fu-Gee-La (Sly & Robbie Remix) [bonus]
16. Mista Mista [bonus]
After a short introduction by legendary Rap deejay Red Alert, the album eventually segues into “How Many Mics”. L-Boogie, Pras, and Wyclef basically freestyle over a simplistic drum and bass track with rising and falling synthesizer accompaniment. Then the Fugees drop “Ready or Not”, one of the many killer singles off of this LP. The freestyles continue here, with some semi-dramatic long notes complimenting a snare-driven track.
“Fu-Gee-La” is the most distinctive track on this just because it’s so thick with that classic Hip-Hop Reggae feel. Producer Salaam Remi builds the complex track using layered samples and a resounding, earthy bass line. Lauryn’s beautiful voice singing the chorus doesn’t hurt the song’s appeal at all either.
I think “Zealots” might be my favorite track on The Score. For the beat, the Fugees loop the “doo wop” section from the Flamingos’ classic “I Only Have Eyes for You” and place a pounding kick drum and smooth bass line underneath it. Wyclef has this to say about critics’ assessment of the group after their debut release, “You can try but you can't divide the tribe/ 'these cats can't rap', Mr. Author I feel no Vibe / What u read in the magazine says the girl should have gone solo / the guys should stop rappin’ - vanish like Menudo / took it to the heart, but every actor plays his part / as long as someone was listening’, I knew it was a start / for me to get my chance, grab my pen and revamp / do a cameo while everybody do the dance / quick now, cause you running out of luck-a / you playing Mr. Big, ‘I'm Gonna Get You Sucka’/”
New Jersey group The Outsidaz join the Fugees to rip western-themed vocals on “Cowboys”. This was always one of my favorite tracks even before I knew who the Outz were just because their style of trading verses is so unique and precise. The Fugees adapt to their style seamlessly and Refugee Camp member John Forte drops some nice rhymes at the end.
In addition to the original music, there are definitely some noteworthy remakes on The Score. Unless you were in a coma in 1996, you’ve heard the Fugees biggest single “Killing Me Softly With His Song” more times than you could possibly count. Clef produces this cover of the Roberta Flack classic, playing some unobtrusive bass accompaniment over the famous “Bonita Applebum” beat. Lauryn just nails her vocals here, allowing the pain and emotion of the lyrics to permeate the song. Then Wyclef dips into his Reggae library to resurrect Bob Marley’s “No Woman No Cry”. Though certainly not as good as the original, Clef does a nice job on the guitar and respectfully changing the vocals slightly to add certain aspects of his life to the song.
Looking back at this album, it’s unfortunate that this group has gone their separate ways. Sure Lauryn and Wyclef are enjoying success in their solo careers, but they’ll never have that magic and chemistry that they had as members of the Fugees. Besides, take pity on poor Pras; after the monstrosity that was Ghetto Supastar and a few forgettable acting roles, without the Fugees his show-business days are numbered.
So if The Score is not already in your Hip-Hop CD/album/tape collection, then you really need to add it. For this album the Fugees deftly create the perfect blend of Hip-Hop, Reggae, and R&B to establish one of Hip-Hop’s seminal albums. Plus with the group disbanded, odds are that you’ll never hear anything like this ever again. Go buy it today.
Epinions.com periodically updates pricing and product information from third-party sources, so some information may be slightly out-of-date. You should confirm all information before relying on it.
![The Score [PA] by The Fugees](http://di1.shopping.com/images1/pi/13/37/a2/2002065096-177x150-0-0.jpg)
- Add to My Yahoo!: 
- Add to Google Homepage: 
© 1999-2009 Shopping.com, Inc.