Erykah Badu: Mama's Gun (2LP) [MOTOWN]

Why you'll love it

Mama's Gun is one of the crown jewels of neo-soul, recorded at Electric Lady with Questlove, James Poyser, Pino Palladino, Roy Hargrove and J Dilla. "Bag Lady" earned two Grammy nominations, and the ten-minute "Green Eyes" is a heartbreak epic for the ages.

This edition

• 2LP set, 14 tracks
• Motown pressing of the 2000 album
• Recorded at Electric Lady with the Soulquarians

About the album

After Baduizm made her a star, Erykah Badu took her time. She had a son, wrestled with writer's block and eventually found her way to Electric Lady Studios in New York, where the Soulquarians (Questlove, James Poyser, J Dilla, Pino Palladino and trumpeter Roy Hargrove) were busy making records for D'Angelo and Common. Badu joined the jam, and Mama's Gun is what came out of it: warm, loose, live-band neo-soul with jazz in its bones.

She wrote every song herself, and they cover a lot of ground: the self-love anthem "Bag Lady," the funk strut of "Penitentiary Philosophy," the gently righteous "Time's a Wastin" and the closing "Green Eyes," a ten-minute, three-part suite about jealousy and heartbreak that might be her finest moment. It's an album that rewards years of listening, and plenty of fans would tell you it's her best.

Also at Kops: more Erykah Badu on vinyl · browse Hip Hop / R&B

Tracklist

Listen

On Motown, a reissue of the 2000 album.