Mecca and the Soul Brother
Mecca and the Soul Brother is the 1992 debut album from hip-hop duo Pete Rock & CL Smooth. The album contains their best known song, "They Reminisce Over You ". Mecca and the Soul Brother has been widely acclaimed as one of the greatest hip hop albums of all time. The album was mostly produced by Pete Rock and executive produced by DJ Eddie F of Heavy D & the Boyz.
Composition
Other topics on the album range from life in the ghetto, the teachings of the Nation of Islam, bootlegging, and love.Release and commercial performance
Mecca and the Soul Brother was released soon after the duo's debut EP, All Souled Out. Despite being a critical success, Mecca and the Soul Brother had little commercial success in comparison to other noteworthy releases of 1992, such as Dr. Dre's The Chronic. The first single, "They Reminisce Over You ", a dedication to their deceased friend; Trouble T Roy, has gone on to become not only their signature song, but also one of hip hop's most highly regarded songs."Straighten It Out" is the second single taken from The Main Ingredient, which was released to critical acclaim in 1992. The song deals with bootleggers and sample clearance opportunists. Unlike the previous single, "They Reminisce Over You ", "Straighten It Out" did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. The song contains a sample from "Our Generation" by Ernie Hines.
The third and final single, "Searching", was released in 1995. This is a downtempo and mellow song about relationships, with singer Vinia Mojica performing the chorus. Released just prior to the breakup of the group, the song received very little promotion. It was remixed and re-released at the beginning of 1996. The song features samples from the Roy Ayers song "Searching".
Reception
Mecca and the Soul Brother brought considerable acclaim to the duo. They were often compared to the group Gang Starr, which also featured one MC, and a producer/DJ. Although the album garnered a great amount of acclaim, sales were slow. The group only grew more popular, however, and next appeared on the Menace II Society soundtrack, followed by Who's the Man? and Poetic Justice respectively, before returning in 1994 with The Main Ingredient.Accolades
Track listing
- All tracks produced by Pete Rock & CL Smooth, except #4 co-produced by Nevelle Hodge and #5 co-produced by Large Professor.
| # | Title | Performer | Time |
| 1 | "Return of the Mecca" |
| 5:42 |
| 2 | "For Pete's Sake" | 5:48 | |
| 3 | "Ghettos of the Mind" | 5:01 | |
| 4 | "Lots of Lovin'" | 5:07 | |
| 5 | "Act Like You Know" | 4:01 | |
| 6 | "Straighten It Out" | 4:12 | |
| 7 | "Soul Brother #1" | 4:30 | |
| 8 | "Wig Out" | 4:10 | |
| 9 | "Anger in the Nation" | 5:31 | |
| 10 | "They Reminisce Over You " | 4:44 | |
| 11 | "On and On" | 5:10 | |
| 12 | "It's Like That" | 3:55 | |
| 13 | "Can't Front on Me" | 4:18 | |
| 14 | "The Basement" | 5:22 | |
| 15 | "If It Ain't Rough, It Ain't Right" | 5:04 | |
| 16 | "Skinz" | 4:14 |
- The cassette and 2xLP versions contain two bonus tracks: "The Creator " and "Mecca and the Soul Brother "
- Symbolizes co-producer
Album singles